7 Key Strategies That You Must Learn From Apple’s Marketing

Coming off the heels of yet another successful Apple launch debut, it’s increasingly clear that Apple is on top of their game in a way like no other. Which other company could turn an ordinary press conference into a live global event?

The secret lies beyond their product line and design standards; it lies beyond even Steve Jobs’ emphatic adherence to Apple’s core philosophy, which is that the user doesn’t always know what they want.

Looking at the company’s latest product lines and revenue models, I’d be a fool to call them anything less than what they are, which is:

• A design firm
• A media platform
• A publishing company
• A software powerhouse
• A computer builder
• A movement

Break down each of these bullets individually and you’ll find a company at the top of their respective industry, but combine them into a single entity and you’ve got the recipe for building one of the most influential businesses of all time.

 

 

So how did they do it?

Rather than tell you how I think they did it, I thought instead I’d turn to their fans on Twitter, who helped me uncover 7 of the greatest marketing lessons that Apple brings to the table.

1. Ignore Your Critics

As an entrepreneur, you’ll hear a lot of people tell you that you need to reach out and figure out what people want, which means listening to your critics, often times more patiently than you’d like.

Apple decides to flip the script and instead focus on building what they want to build, no matter the perceived cost. When Steve Jobs debuted the iPad, the critics stood in line, throwing every insult they could muster. The critics said that the iPad would fail. The numbers say otherwise.

Each and every time Apple decided to innovate, they were laughed at. They prevailed anyway.

“Great ideas often receive violent opposition from mediocre minds.”

- Albert Einstein

 2. Turn the Ordinary into Something Beautiful

For quite some time, PC fans enjoyed the work of buying their own parts and building their own tower systems. At the same time, PC makers were building standard hardware for standard applications.

Apple would have none of that.

They’ve been pioneering not only the features of standard operating systems and computer systems, but simultaneously reinventing the design standards as well. As a result, we have the gorgeous iMac, the beautiful new Macbook Air, and who could forget, the amazing iPhone 4.

Where others focus on one aspect of the equation, Apple focuses on the entire product, and it shows.

 

3. Justify Your Price

We’re in a time when pricing strategies are all over the place. People don’t know what to charge, and in many cases, prefer to race to the bottom instead of pricing strategically to a market that can bear the cost.

Once more, Apple ignores the standard by not only pricing their technology more than 2x what their competitors charge, but doing so without blinking. How can they get away with it?

Well, the answer is twofold:

1. They build beautiful products for an audience that loves them passionately.
2. They justify their price with features and benefits that can’t be matched.

Since we’ve already hit point 1, let’s work on #2.

No other computer can match the display of a 27” iMac…it simply can’t be done.

No other software can match what iTunes brings to the table.

No laptop is as thin as the Macbook Air.

No software is more intuitive, no product more valuable than the Apple product. Any other smartphone looks like it was developed by rookies when compared to an iPhone 4. You simply cannot compare the two.

Critics will play on the fact that the core features are the same, and they might be, but that’s not the point. The point is that Apple is the Rolls Royce of the technology and design world, and their customers will gladly pay a premium because of it.

 

4. Communicate in the Language of Your Audience

It makes no sense to talk about things like megabytes, gigahertz, and processing power to customers that simply don’t care about technical jargon.

Take a look at any Apple product page and you’ll find that though they do discuss product specifications and technical information, it’s hidden behind the benefits that their audience is truly after.

Instead of display resolution, you’ll see phrases like “edge to edge glass,” “retina display,” and “LED backlighting.”

Sure, the jargon is there for those that need it, but it’s presented in a way that makes you want to learn about megapixels, rather than shy away from them. The art is in the copy, not in the features.

 

5. Extend the Experience

Have you ever heard of an unboxing? I hadn’t either until recently, when I learned that not only was I not the only one keeping Apple packaging post-sale, but that there are legions of people that record the actual process of unwrapping their newly purchased Apple products.

Do a search on YouTube and you’ll find hundreds of Apple unboxings, each from different users from across the globe. It’s pretty crazy right?

No one tells these people to video their experience, but they do it because the process is so Zen that you can’t help not to.

Apple does this by making sure that the experience doesn’t end at the cash register. They take great care in designing a user experience from browsing to unwrapping, which relies on incredible packaging and installation procedures.

By reducing installation to the lowest common denominator, they make buying new products a snap, and by spending as much time on designing packaging as they do on the products themselves, they’ve ensured that the box matches what’s inside.

As a result, they’ve built an experience that is nearly impossible to match.

 

6. Build a Tribe

It’s no secret that Apple has built one of the most hardcore fan bases of any product and of any time. There’s a reason they’re called “fanboys.”

But who cares, right? Most of the chatter is out of jealousy more than anything, but Apple doesn’t really care. They know that they serve an elite audience, and rather than back away from that fact, they embrace it.

 

7. Become “The Name”

You don’t buy tissues, you buy Kleenex.

You don’t buy MP3 players, you buy an iPod.

You don’t buy a smartphone, you buy an iPhone.

Have you noticed what they’re doing here? Apple isn’t content with being a leader in sales alone, they want to own the market itself, which explains why they’ve engineered iTunes as the major music provider that it is, and why the iPad, having the luxury of being the first, has now set the trend for future tablet devices.

From here on out, everything will be compared to the iPad, iPhone, iPod, and iTunes. Sadly, this sort of thing is tough to duplicate, but it’s not impossible. You need to have one of two things:

1. A clear head start in terms of being first to market.
2. A USP that differentiates your product in a way that makes people wish it were first.

The iPhone wasn’t the first phone, but they engineered it to be so unique that you couldn’t help but think it was. The iMac isn’t the first all in one, but it became the only one that mattered.

 

It’s not so much the marketing angle that matters as it is the way that people identify with that angle. Take a look at any Steve Jobs product release and you’ll watch as he tells you why every other product in the market pales in comparison to what he’s created.

You know what? We believe him.

 

Warren Buffett's 10 Ways to Get Rich

Warren Buffett's

10 Ways to Get Rich

With an estimated fortune of $62 billion, Warren Buffett is the richest man in the entire world. In 1962, when he began buying stock in Berkshire Hathaway, a share cost $7.50. Today, Warren Buffett, 78, is Berkshire's chairman and CEO, and one share of the company's class A stock worth close to $119,000. He credits his astonishing success to several key strategies, which he has shared with writer Alice Schroeder. She spend hundreds of hours interviewing the Sage of Omaha for the new authorized biography The Snowball. Here are some of Warren Buffett's money-making secrets -- and how they could work for you.

1. Reinvest Your Profits: When you first make money in the stock market, you may be tempted to spend it. Don't. Instead, reinvest the profits. Warren Buffett learned this early on. In high school, he and a pal bought a pinball machine to put in a barbershop. With the money they earned, they bought more machines until they had eight in different shops. When the friends sold the venture, Warren Buffett used the proceeds to buy stocks and to start another small business. By age 26, he'd amassed $174,000 -- or $1.4 million in today's money. Even a small sum can turn into great wealth.

2. Be Willing To Be Different: Don't base your decisions upon what everyone is saying or doing. When Warren Buffett began managing money in 1956 with $100,000 cobbled together from a handful of investors, he was dubbed an oddball. He worked in Omaha, not Wall Street, and he refused to tell his parents where he was putting their money. People predicted that he'd fail, but when he closed his partnership 14 years later, it was worth more than $100 million. Instead of following the crowd, he looked for undervalued investments and ended up vastly beating the market average every single year. To Warren Buffett, the average is just that -- what everybody else is doing. to be above average, you need to measure yourself by what he calls the Inner Scorecard, judging yourself by your own standards and not the world's.

3. Never Suck Your Thumb: Gather in advance any information you need to make a decision, and ask a friend or relative to make sure that you stick to a deadline. Warren Buffett prides himself on swiftly making up his mind and acting on it. He calls any unnecessary sitting and thinking "thumb sucking." When people offer him a business or an investment, he says, "I won't talk unless they bring me a price." He gives them an answer on the spot.

4. Spell Out The Deal Before You Start: Your bargaining leverage is always greatest before you begin a job -- that's when you have something to offer that the other party wants. Warren Buffett learned this lesson the hard way as a kid, when his grandfather Ernest hired him and a friend to dig out the family grocery store after a blizzard. The boys spent five hours shoveling until they could barely straighten their frozen hands. Afterward, his grandfather gave the pair less than 90 cents to split. Warren Buffett was horrified that he performed such backbreaking work only to earn pennies an hour. Always nail down the specifics of a deal in advance -- even with your friends and relatives.

5. Watch Small Expenses: Warren Buffett invests in businesses run by managers who obsess over the tiniest costs. He one acquired a company whose owner counted the sheets in rolls of 500-sheet toilet paper to see if he was being cheated (he was). He also admired a friend who painted only on the side of his office building that faced the road. Exercising vigilance over every expense can make your profits -- and your paycheck -- go much further.

6. Limit What You Borrow: Living on credit cards and loans won't make you rich. Warren Buffett has never borrowed a significant amount -- not to invest, not for a mortgage. He has gotten many heart-rendering letters from people who thought their borrowing was manageable but became overwhelmed by debt. His advice: Negotiate with creditors to pay what you can. Then, when you're debt-free, work on saving some money that you can use to invest.

7. Be Persistent: With tenacity and ingenuity, you can win against a more established competitor. Warren Buffett acquired the Nebraska Furniture Mart in 1983 because he liked the way its founder, Rose Blumkin, did business. A Russian immigrant, she built the mart from a pawnshop into the largest furniture store in North America. Her strategy was to undersell the big shots, and she was a merciless negotiator. To Warren Buffett, Rose embodied the unwavering courage that makes a winner out of an underdog.

8. Know When To Quit: Once, when Warren Buffett was a teen, he went to the racetrack. He bet on a race and lost. To recoup his funds, he bet on another race. He lost again, leaving him with close to nothing. He felt sick -- he had squandered nearly a week's earnings. Warren Buffett never repeated that mistake. Know when to walk away from a loss, and don't let anxiety fool you into trying again.

9. Assess The Risk: In 1995, the employer of Warren Buffett's son, Howie, was accused by the FBI of price-fixing. Warren Buffett advised Howie to imagine the worst-and-bast-case scenarios if he stayed with the company. His son quickly realized that the risks of staying far outweighed any potential gains, and he quit the next day. Asking yourself "and then what?" can help you see all of the possible consequences when you're struggling to make a decision -- and can guide you to the smartest choice.

10. Know What Success Really Means: Despite his wealth, Warren Buffett does not measure success by dollars. In 2006, he pledged to give away almost his entire fortune to charities, primarily the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. He's adamant about not funding monuments to himself -- no Warren Buffett buildings or halls. "I know people who have a lot of money," he says, "and they get testimonial dinners and hospital wings named after them. But the truth is that nobody in the world loves them. When you get to my age, you'll measure your success in life by how many of the people you want to have love you, actually do love you. That's the ultimate test of how you've lived your life."

5 Warren Buffett tips everyone must follow

1. Spend wiselyIf you buy things you don't need, you will soon sell things you need. - Warren Buffett

All of us suffer from the urge to splurge and we justify our spending using the pretext of special occasions, peer pressure, lifestyle, family, emotions and even smart decisions. Most marketing companies understand this urge and try to exploit it by making offers that give consumers the false notion of having made the right decision. Unhealthy carbonated drinks are sold with promises of happiness, adventure, youthfulness, etc. Take the example of the current EMI options on expensive smartphones.

When one could do with a Rs. 15,000 phone (within budget), the EMI option gives a false sense of smart decision and instead makes you buy a Rs. 35,000 phone (overstretched budget). Spending wisely is not being stingy but being smart and aware. Every rupee spent on unnecessary urges contributes to lost wealth.

What you should do: Always ask these questions: Do I really need this? Am I overspending? Can I save some money without compromising on the value I want from a particular product/service? Encourage your family members to follow this path.

Lesson: Rule No. 1 : Never lose money. Rule No.2: Never forget Rule No.1 - Warren Buffett

2. Saving: Save for the unexpected
Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. - Warren Buffett

All of us know that saving is important for a better future. But it is alarming to observe that most of us do not even save enough for emergencies. This happens due to our myopic view about personal finance.

Instant gratification today matters more than saving for tomorrow. In fact, saving is perceived as sacrifice by people.

What you should do: Follow "pay yourself first" principle. Set aside money for your future goals (and risk) as soon as you receive your monthly paycheck. Take professional advice to know where and how much you should invest for achieving goals.

Lesson: Don't save what is left after spending; spend what is left after saving. - Warren Buffett

3. Think long-term and be patient
 "No matter how great the talent or efforts, some things just take time. You can't produce a baby in one month by getting nine women pregnant." - Warren Buffett

Money is part of nature, it doesn't grow overnight. However, we overestimate money we can make in a year and underestimate what we can make in 10 years. People make money by staying invested for the long-term and without doing much "dancing in and dancing out" i.e. changing portfolios frequently.

Investors around the world believe in the India story in the long-term. You can benefit from India's growth only if you invest for long-term and not panic seeing short-term fluctuations.

What you should do: Make a diversified portfolio based on your risk appetite and financial goals. Pick right financial instruments recommended by your financial advisor and invest regularly and persistently for the long term (8-10 years).

Lesson: Life is like a snowball. The important thing is finding wet snow (opportunities) and a really long hill (long term). - Warren Buffett

4. Borrowing: Limit what you borrow
You will not become rich by living on borrowed money (credit cards, loans). People initially think that borrowing is manageable. But our country is full of examples when managing debt becomes overwhelming. Borrowing should never be done without an objective assessment of future cash flow and other financial needs. One needs to have a solid plan to pay the debt back and not become its lifetime slave. A debt-free life is the best life.

What you should do: Start with thinking that borrowing money is not an option. Shift to using debit card (in-hand money) from credit card. Negotiate your interest rates with the banks and re-finance (early phase) if necessary. Objectively assess inflation rates, income growth, sources of income, assets to pledge, etc, while planning long-term borrowing.

Lesson: I've seen more people fail because of liquor and leverage - leverage being borrowed money. You really don't need leverage in this world much. If you're smart, you're going to make a lot of money without borrowing. - Warren Buffett

5. Risk
Risk comes from not knowing what you're doing. - Warren Buffett

Everyone wants to make money and we all want it quick. We go for investments which promise high returns. But we fail to objectively analyze the associated higher rate of risk. Trying to hit a six on every ball with your hard-earned money is nothing short of gambling. This happens because we are greedy, don't read fine prints of financial instruments and don't understand their investment objective. Our financial planning is vague and is done in a random fashion which leaves us susceptible to risk.

What you should do: Understand the objective of various financial instruments and asset classes.

Consult professional advisors to understand the investment pyramid, develop an investment strategy, review regularly and diversify.

Lesson: Investing without knowing increases risk. However, instead of shying away from investing one should acquire knowledge to get it right.

Life after 60

 
Life can begin at 60, it is all in your hands! Many people feel unhappy, health-wise and security-wise, after 60 years of age, owing to the diminishing importance given to them and their opinions. But, it need not be so, if only we understand the basic principles of life and follow them scrupulously. Here are ten mantras to age gracefully and make life after retirement pleasant.

 1. Never say I am aged' : There are three ages, chronological, biological, and psychological. The first is calculated based on our date of birth; the second is determined by the health conditions; the third is how old we feel we are. While we don't have control over the first, we can take care of our health with good diet, exercise and a cheerful attitude. A positive attitude and optimistic thinking can reverse the third age.

 2. Health is wealth: If you really love your kit and kin, taking care of your health should be your priority. Thus, you will not be a burden to them. Have an annual health check-up and take the prescribed medicines regularly. Do take health insurance coverage.

 3. Money is important: Money is essential for meeting the basic necessities of life, keeping good health and earning family respect and security. Don't spend beyond your means even for your children. You have lived for them all through and it is time you enjoyed a harmonious life with your spouse. If your children are grateful and they take care of you, you are blessed. But, never take it for granted.

 4. Relaxation and recreation: The most relaxing and recreating forces are a healthy religious attitude, good sleep, music and laughter. Have faith in God, learn to sleep well, love good music and see the funny side of life.

 5. Time is precious: It is almost like holding a horses' reins. When they are in your hands, you can control them. Imagine that everyday you are born again. Yesterday is a cancelled cheque. Tomorrow is a promissory note. Today is ready cash - use it profitably. Live this moment; live it fully, now, in the present time.

6. Change is the only permanent thing: We should accept change - it is inevitable. The only way to make sense out of change is to join in the dance. Change has brought about many pleasant things. We should be happy that our children are blessed.

 7. Enlightened selfishness: All of us are basically selfish. Whatever we do, we expect something in return. We should definitely be grateful to those who stood by us. But, our focus should be on the internal satisfaction and the happiness we derive by doing good for others, without expecting anything in return. Perform a random act of kindness daily.

 8. Forget and forgive: Don't be bothered too much about others' mistakes. We are not spiritual enough to show our other cheek when we are slapped in one. But for the sake of our own health and happiness, let us forgive and forget them. Otherwise, we will be only increasing our blood pressure.

 9. Everything has a purpose: Take life as it comes. Accept yourself as you are and also accept others for what they are. Everybody is unique and is right in his own way.

 10. Overcome the fear of death: We all know that one day we have to leave this world. Still we are afraid of death. We think that our spouse and children will be unable to withstand our loss. But the truth is no one is going to die for you; they may be depressed for some time. Time heals everything and they will go on.

 Secrets of Old Age. If you have time for one very special blog today this is it. Take the time and accept the secrets of old age.
 

A new work culture in Kerala

A friend of mine, who is a doctor in Thiruvananthapuram, called me the other day to tell this story. He recently built a house in one of the city suburbs. One day, a man who lives nearby, came and asked him why he still had no curtains on the windows.

Doctor, he said, this is a beautiful, new house. But where are the curtains? You need curtains.

Curtains, he said, would look nice on this new building. My friend told the man that he would call him after some time. The man gave my friend his address and left. A month later, my friend decided to put curtains and went in search of this man. But when he enquired in the locality, he was told that there was none who stitched curtains.

After a couple of days, the man again appeared before my friend. Doctor, it seems you came searching for me. My friend told him that he was indeed there but could not locate him. To this, the man replied, True doctor, it is me and my brother who are doing this. I will bring him soon.

And off he went. But a few days later, both were back. When the doctor gave the specifications for the curtains, they said they would return. They were true to their word but they brought with them an emaciated man. This man took the measurements and the curtains were ready in a week.

But what were the first two doing? Of course, we all know what they were doing. They did nothing. But they made money out of the poor tailors labour and sweat. And this is the latest and rapidly spreading work culture in every field of activity in Kerala.
 Who on earth said you cannot catch fish without wetting your hands?

One of the Best Message

How to Build Trust to empower relations

During my recent training on Management, the course of discussion slightly moved to the subject of Building Trust. Our trainer (my mentor as well) draw our attention to some important aspects of building trust. Since the idea of writing this article was originated during the training so I dedicate this article to my teacher, Georgie Collis, as she sowed the seed in my brain to produce this article.
 
 
So, before we go in to the details on how to develop trust, let us understand what Trust is.


Trust is the permanent certainty and confident expectation from someone for something. Lack of trust might lead to shattered relations so Trust is the most critical ingredient for strong relationship; the relation which can either be between Husband-Wife, Boss-Employee, Father-Son, Brother-Sister, supplier-customer and so on.


 
Here are some recommended behaviours which you need to demonstrate in order to develop trust:

1-    Being Responsible: ensure you are performing your day-to-day responsibilities and meeting the short-term and long term expectations by your dependants.

2-   Listen: Listen, Listen, Listen. God has given you two ears and one tongue so you listen more and speak less. Effective Listening is a skill; develop this habit.

3-   Being Truthful: Be honest and fair. Don't deceive someone. Remember the fact that building trust is tough but it takes seconds to have scratches-in-the-jewel which usually is very hard to recover.

4-   Keeping Promise: your promise is your commitment with someone to do something, so don't break at any cost. In case you couldn't meet your promise, there is always a door for dialogue for re-consideration of things. In case of dialogues be fair, be truthful and be open. Confess the short comings on your end.

5-   Consistent behaviour: the ever changing attitude is an indication of your non-predictive personality which is an anti-trust drive. So be consistent in what you speak and what you do. 
 

6-   Apologizing behaviour: Sorry is the best medicine in healing relationship complications. In fact, Sorry and Thanks are the two golden words which my Kindergarten going son has refreshed for me which he learnt from school. Use them often and you will see massive improvements in your daily life.
 

What are your suggestions to develop Trust?

 

The Two Brothers with Opposite Future

This is a story of two brothers. One was a drug addict and a drunkard who frequently beat up his family. The other one was a very successful businessman who was respected in society and had a wonderful family. Some people wanted to find out why two brothers from the same parents, brought up in the same environment, could be so different.
 


 

The first one was asked, "How come you do what you do? You are a drug addict, a drunk, and you beat your family. What motivates you?" He said, "My father." They asked, "What about your father?" The reply was, "My father was a drug addict, a drunk and he beat his family. What do you expect me to be? That is what I am."

 
They went to the brother who was doing everything right and asked him the same question. "How come you are doing everything right ? What is your source of motivation?" And guess what he said? "My father. When I was a little boy, I used to see my dad drunk and doing all the wrong things. I made up my mind, that is not what I wanted to be."
 
Both were deriving their strength and motivation from the same source, but one was using it negatively and the other positively....

What is Leadership Vision

The young boy asked theold man, "why a fast running horse is better than the slow running horse"? Theold man said, "it has developed the habit to produce more power so that it can run up toten times faster than the slow horse"The youngster said, "and what if the horse is running in the wrong direction"? Theold man smiled and said, "then definitely it has the appropriate factor to waste his efforts ten times quicker than the slower horse" The young man said, " and what if other horses are following him too" The older man said, "off course it will mislead all those horses too!" "Then why all other horses follow the faster one" "Becausethat attracts them but all that glitters is not gold sometimes.


 
Associating this analogy with our daily life, you notice that you are surrounded by mixture of slow and fast pace personalities. Some of them are reallygenuineleaders and some of them are being followed blindly. Overall, here is the summary of the concept of Visionary Leaderswhich I suggest you to ponder:
 

 

 1-If youhave a slow attitude towards life (slow running horse) then you mustdevelop the habit to produce more power in your character. You must be aware of yourreal goals.You must developanalytical skills,Empowered Relationships,Proactive approachand other personality traits such as Commitment, Courage, Communication Skills, Focus, Competence andPassion.
 
2-If you have a faster response to life and quick decision makingthen you must audit yourself on whether you are heading in the right direction? Not having clear goal will take you nowhere regardless of your speed and efficiency. Remember, Onlyhard work doesn't guarantee the success., the vision and strategy are the most important ingredients of the success which is acheived through consistent, productive and effectiveefforts in the right direction.
 3-Are you following a leader? Are you sure you have atrue leader? Areyou sureyou willnot end upon the blocked road? Remember, U-turns are always possible before the dead end but consequences of U-turnwill be more harsh if you don't evaluate the situations on time and delay it to the eleventh hour.

The Cute Student Counts the Apples

A teacher teaching Maths to seven-year-old Laiq asked him, "If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?"Within a few seconds Laiqreplied confidently, "Four!"

 The dismayed teacher was expecting an effortless correct answer (three). She was disappointed. "Maybe the child did not listen properly," she thought. She repeated, "Laiq, listen carefully. If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?"
 
Laiqhad seen the disappointment on his teacher's face. He calculated again on his fingers. But within him he was also searching for the answer that will make the teacher happy. His search for the answer was not for the correct one, but the one that will make his teacher happy. This time hesitatingly he replied, "Four"
 
The disappointment stayed on the teacher's face. She remembered that Laiqliked strawberries. She thought maybe he doesn't like apples and that is making him loose focus. This time with an exaggerated excitement and twinkling in her eyes she asked, "If I give you one strawberry and one strawberry and one strawberry, then how many you will have?"
Seeing the teacher happy, young Laiqcalculated on his fingers again. There was no pressure on him, but a little on the teacher. She wanted her new approach to succeed. With a hesitating smile young Laiqenquired, "Three?"
 
The teacher now had a victorious smile. Her approach had succeeded. She wanted to congratulate herself. But one last thing remained. Once again she asked him, "Now if I give you one apple and one apple and one more apple how many will you have?"
Promptly Laiqanswered, "Four!"
 
The teacher was aghast. "How Laiq, how?" she demanded in a little stern and irritated voice.
In a voice that was low and hesitating young Laiqreplied, "Because I already have one apple in my bag."

"When someone gives you an answer that is different from what you expect don't think they are wrong. There maybe an angle that you have not understood at all. You will have to listen and understand, but never listen with a predetermined notion."

The 7 Ways Successful People Approach Their Work

When it comes to work, everyone has their own methods for getting tasks done.

1. Mind Your Hours.

If you want to give your working hours a makeover, you've got to know how long your activities take. One of the most prolific children's book illustrators interviewed in the e-book can project exactly how much time a drawing will take (and actually measures each by how many Seinfeld reruns will play in the background before she’s finished). Then, she uses that knowledge to set goals for specific time periods — i.e. three illustrations in a day.
To get the same understanding of your own work or productivity, Vanderkam recommends you keep a time log for a full week so you also capture the weekend — that’s when people tend to be less conscious of what they're doing. There's no one way of tracking your time, so just pick something that works for you. As Vanderkam said by phone from her home outside Philadelphia, "The goal is to be helpful, not to make you hate your life." For instance, Vanderkam updates her time log twice a day. Another person might want to do it more frequently, using a computer or smartphone app. Whatever you choose, make it something convenient that will also allow you to faithfully track what you've been doing. "Time passes whether or not you make a conscious choose about how to use that time," Vanderkam says. "And not being conscious of how you spend your time is also a choice. I can't tell you how many people tell me by the second day, 'I got so sick of saying, "checked Facebook," for the tenth time that I stopped doing it.’”

2. Plan.

The next step to being more conscious with your work time is to plan out your hours. This might seem really obvious, but many harried workers find themselves in triage mode — only answering urgent matters and never taking a moment to strategize about how best to spend their time. As Vanderkam writes, "People lament that they’d love to have strategic-thinking time, but they’re just too busy!" She recommends having a planning session at least once a week -- or a big one weekly and then smaller ones as projects get finished. She also suggests planning over different time frames. For instance, at the end of the year, you could plan your goals for the year, and then, in your weekly planning sessions, make sure you are steadily working toward those goals.

3. Make Success Possible.

With a new plan, it's easy to start getting excited about your goals, become over-ambitious ... and then fail. But you are more likely to reach your dreams as long as you set discrete, doable tasks for yourself -- and then make sure you're held accountable. First, break down big projects into small steps, and try to limit yourself to tackling three to six a day.
Then, make sure you get to them. Everyone has a different accountability system, says Vanderkam. She personally uses an accountability partner, with whom she has weekly check-ins on Friday. Others might want a more punitive or public approach, such as making a promise on Stickk, a web site in which people can set goals and then promise to do something dreaded, such as donate to an organization they loathe, if they fail.

4. Know What Is Work.

Many of us end up spending inordinate amounts of time answering email. As Vanderkam writes, “According to a 2012 McKinsey Global Institute report on the social economy, knowledge workers spend 28 percent of their time wading through their inboxes.”
But checking email is not the same thing as doing “work” — and by that, Vanderkam means the core of what you’re trying to accomplish. “Email expands to fill in the available time. Give email less time, and it will take less time,” she says. If you’re the kind of person who is worried about leaving your inbox unattended, Vanderkam suggests starting to wean yourself off by being on email for 20 minutes, and then using the next 40 minutes to focus on a task without interruption. Eventually, expand those times between email check-ins.
Another thing that can look like work but isn’t always: meetings. “The reason you have a meeting is that you want something to change in the world by the end of it,” she says. “The problem is that people have meetings to check that everyone is still doing their jobs — but hopefully you hired people good enough where you don’t have to check.”
She also notes that many people schedule meetings as a way of imposing a deadline. She says that if you’re a supervisor giving an assignment, you should explain that you won’t meet about the work, but you still need the project done by a certain time. In general, she says, “meetings have to earn their place in someone’s life.” For this reason, she recommends shying away from recurring meetings. “Everything you do with an hour should be a conscious decision,” she says.

5. Practice.

Vanderkam points out in her book that while professional musicians or athletes spend time practicing their craft or sport, many people with other jobs don’t. “Yet, if you think about it, your job is likely a performance of sorts, too,” she writes. And that means that you can also consciously practice your job skills with the goal of improving, though you’ll need to ask someone to give you feedback.
“That’s the chunk that’s missing for a lot of people in their work,” Vanderkam says. “We don’t have as much feedback as we need. People do yearly performance reviews, but that’s kind of useless vs. ‘What did you do right in this presentation?’” If you don't get regular feedback, then after you, say, complete a task or give a presentation, ask your supervisor what you can do to improve next time. Or, have a friend in the same profession either look over your work before you send it to your boss or watch you practice giving your presentation before the real thing.

6. Pay in.

Let’s say, God forbid, that you lost your job today. In order to find a new one, you’d have to draw on your career capital, which Vanderkam says is “the sum total of your experiences, your knowledge, your skills, your relationships — and all these things enable you to get a new job if you need one, create new situations for yourself or other people, or even let you take a break without having it ruin your career.” Successful people tend to pay in to their career capital account regularly.
There are three main ways to create career capital. One is to simply improve your skills and adopt new ones important in your line of work. Take professional development classes, or have a mentor help you figure out what you’ll need to learn in order to succeed five, ten or 20 years from now. Another type of career capital deposit is developing a portfolio of your work. “The good thing about writing or illustrating books is that they are then out there in the market, speaking for you and your ideas even when you’re not around,” she writes. And that explains why experts in many fields from medicine to business take up the pen. But writing or publishing isn’t the only way to create this portfolio. Doing work that has any kind of visible, tangible outcome will have the same effect.
The third and final way to build your career capital is to build up a network of people loyal to you. You can do this by introducing colleagues to others you know who could be helpful to them, providing references for people, and also standing by associates when they’re down. “Anyone can have lunch with someone who is successful,” says Vanderkam. “Real career capital comes from having lunch with someone who just lost the job she loves.”

7. Pursue pleasure.

The final commonality Vanderkam found among the successful is that they find joy in their work. While many of our jobs have elements we like less than others, over time, she recommends we try to tweak our time to spend more hours doing the things we love and fewer hours doing the things we don’t.

The other thing she found is that joy, in turn, often comes from feeling a sense of progress in our work. In fact, a feeling of progress brings more joy than encouragement from a boss. For this reason, focusing on the core parts of your work that are measurable and give you the greatest sense of accomplishment will bring you joy, further fueling your desire to work.
So, which of the seven rules does Vanderkam think is most important? Paying into our career capital account, which of course, builds slowly. But, she says, “If you take the long-term view of your career, say, ‘I won’t be with any one organization the whole time, but I will be with me. What can I do to make sure that “me” is a great person to work with?’ If you’re paying into your career capital account every day, it’s hard to see how your career couldn’t soar.”

Stress in Work & Life

A group of highly educated students visited their old university professor. Conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life.
Offering them coffee, Professor returned from kitchen with a pot of coffee and an assortment of cups- porcelain, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to hot coffee. When all had a cup of coffee in hand,

The professor said: "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain ones. While it's but normal for you to want only the best, that's also the source of your stress. What you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, But you still went for the best cups and were eyeing each other's cups!" :)