Staying sane on an insane schedule…

November 11, 2009  |   Posted in Blog, productivity   |   View Comments  

My mobile office to maximize productivity... and sanity!!

Between September 24 and November 10, I attended 10 conferences/workshops/summits, travelled to 6 states, hosted 4 of my own WIN events, spoke at 3 events and participated in 2 tele-seminars.

And, right now I’m at the airport dealing with a 3 hour flight delay in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Suffice to say, I’ve been busy.

I’ve been getting asked frequently how I manage to get any work done and stay sane. Creature comforts become all the more important when existing outside of your normal elements.

These are a few of the things that help me stay sane.

• Light laptop – I have a Mac Air. The fact that I can put this thing into my purse and have it not drag me down is glorious. There are things that I miss about heavier units such as having a CD rom but the weight benefit alone while still having a decent size screen makes this baby worthwhile.

• MobileMe – I simply love this service from Apple. I love the fact that I can log in on the web from any computer, add an event or appointment and it almost instantly updates my phone without the need for physical syncing. However, I am in the process of considering to convert to Google Calendar… but the principle is the same!

• Virtual Assistant – Kyra Hatter with Virtually Ideal Executive Services is my salvation! She manages my massive voicemail inflow, contact follow up and speaking engagements. If you are struggling with too much to do and not enough time, I highly encourage you to consider a VA.

• Great Headphones – As you will see in the picture, I don’t mess around when it comes to headphones. Now, these are not the new spiffy ones with noise reduction (though I’d love a pair if anyone has an extra set laying around! ). These headphones are near and dear to me as I’ve had them since 1998 when I used to DJ. I splurged and they have not let me down yet. I highly encourage everyone to consider getting –serious- headphones if music helps you get to your “happy place”.

• Ipod – Yes, I’m using an antiquated Ipod mini but I love it. Yes, I have an iphone and a laptop. I could easily consolidate. In fact, I even got a new ipod mini but it was such a nightmare moving the music and playlists over that I let my husband “acquire” the ipod. I have music on here from the last… 6 years and it’s a compilation from my last 4 computers and I simply don’t have the originals from when I burned them.

What things keep you sane?