small talk holds big rewards

During my regular 1-on-1 I engaged with my manager on a personal level and inspired her to talk about herself. Most of the scheduled time was used up by that. Even better I didn't get grilled about minutia of my work. It made for a shorter and less stressful call. The relevant work details were covered efficiently and adequately at the end of the call. And my boss probably liked me more because I truly listened to her.

yesterday's final draft is your template for today's task

My organization has a quarterly performance/bonus review. Previously I was making unorganized notes for myself when I received praise or did something extra at work. I had the idea to use the review form as a template. Today I helped someone senior to me and felt the effort and results were worth capturing. After reviewing the categories, one of them jumped out as the place where I could record this. Because the event was so fresh in my mind I was able to tailor my accomplishment for the category and the record will be there when performance reviews roll around. Plus, I won't have to try to remember how or why something was important to put it in context later. As a broader lesson, when you have a recurring task, consider using the final version as a template for gathering future information. It cuts out much of the formatting and processing and reduces the total effort required. People will think you are super productive when you can produce such polished reports at a moment’s notice.

prepared notes give powerful impression of more work done than actual

I filled in a spreadsheet right after it was given to me regarding what it would take to deliver on some customer requirements. During a later team call I gave my brief analysis based on the spreadsheet. I also asked several questions to give me the understanding I needed to fulfill my duties. After the call my boss and two other senior people reached out to tell me what a great job I did. The funny thing is I probably only spent 30 minutes preparing the spreadsheet for the call. Yet my results were clearly perceived as an outsized contribution to the team.

notes make effective phone calls

Before a phone call prepare your key points to cover and place them in writing in front of you. If the conversation goes off the rails it will help you bring it back on track. If making calls near a computer (practically mandatory in today’s work environment) you can quickly type those in Word, Notepad, or any text editor. You will likely see an improvement in the quality and efficiency of those conversations.

5 min. prep for 30 min. return

I had a one-on-one scheduled with someone up the chain of command in my organization and spent five minutes in advance preparing three or four questions. My questions became an immediate lifeline that kept the conversation flowing in a natural and meaningful way. The VIP was impressed with my preparation and the meeting easily went through the allotted time. My five minutes of preparation covered a 30 minute meeting and enhanced my professional brand.