Increasing Your ROI

All requests are not equal; all customers or clients are not equal; all to-do-list tasks are not equal; all work responsibilities are not equal. You can do fifty things today and get little, if any, return on your investment for having done them. Or you can do one or two things which have a large return.

You possess personal capital. It is comprised of your time, effort, knowledge and skills. Investing that capital wisely yields a return on your investment. The higher your return on investment (your ROI), the more profit you earn. Profit in this context yields discretionary endeavors. And discretionary endeavors tap into the most powerful thing you can do to create career results - initiative.

There are hundreds of books filled with an equal number of approaches to managing your tasks and time. Use whatever works for you. But as you do, keep your ROI in mind. Every day you invest your capital. Sometimes you invest it wisely, sometimes foolishly, sometime neutrally. The better investments you make, over time, the better your returns will be, over time. Think long-term ROI.

Here are three of my personal ROI strategies:

1. Prioritize people over tasks. Family or staff or a boss asking for something, regardless of what, should go to the top. Requests from your key people list should be met immediately, if possible, with a sense of urgency. These are the people that pay you the biggest dividends (love, support and economic well being) so do the requests from this group first and you will build equity for the long-term. When you hit life's potholes, that equity will help carry you through.

2. Work smart and fast. If you're slow on the computer, increase your skills. If you pace yourself or spread your work out through the day, don't. If you don't have time to train someone to help you, make the time. The more you can leverage yourself and the more work that you produce, the more valuable an asset you become. Invest in yourself.

3. Choose making progress over being busy. Spend a day answering emails, reading mail, completing miscellaneous and unimportant tasks, and at the end of the day you're no further along on your important work than when you started. Sure, those recurring tasks need to be done, too. But choose first to make progress, then do the recurring tasks, not the other way around or you'll find there's no time left for the big stuff that offers a better return on your investment.

Want to be winning at working? Invest your personal capital wisely and you'll find your ROI compounding year after year and your career stock rising.

(c) 2005 Nan S. Russell. All rights reserved.

Sign up to receive Nan's free biweekly eColumn at http://www.winningatworking.com. Nan Russell has spent over twenty years in management, most recently with QVC as a Vice President. She has held leadership positions in Human Resource Development, Communication, Marketing and line Management. Nan has a B.A. from Stanford University and M.A. from the University of Michigan. Currently working on her first book, Winning at Working: 10 Lessons Shared, Nan is a writer, columnist, small business owner, and on-line instructor.

Visit http://www.winningatworking.com or contact Nan at http://www.winningatworking.com.

family-safe home cleaners Morton Grove ..
In The News:

The Christmas season brings a surge in Netflix phishing scams targeting shoppers with fake emails. Stacey P received convincing scam but verified account first.
San Francisco Giants invite Jamie Grohsong to throw ceremonial first pitch at Oracle Park after he learned to play baseball with a bionic hand following an injury.
FBI warns cybercriminals are stealing family photos from social media to create fake proof of life images in virtual kidnapping scams targeting victims.
Instagram's new 'Your Algorithm' tool lets you control your Reels feed in real time. The app now gives you power to customize what videos you see.
Major Marquis fintech breach exposes 400,000-plus Americans' data through unpatched SonicWall vulnerability, with Texas hardest hit at 354,000 affected.
Free up iPhone storage fast by clearing large photos and videos from Messages app. Simple steps for iOS users to delete attachments without losing chats.
Scammers are flooding inboxes with fake tracking alerts that mimic real carriers, exploiting the holiday rush to steal logins and personal data.
The Fox News AI Newsletter brings you the latest news on AI technology advancements and the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.
Texas family reunites with missing 11-year-old cat Grayson after 103 days using Petco Love Lost's AI photo matching technology and community help.
Tired of AI customer service loops? These insider tricks help you escape "frustration AI" and get real human help when you need it most for urgent issues.
Unlock richer audio from your streaming apps with simple tweaks to volume normalization, equalizer settings, and quality preferences for cleaner sound.
Scammers are sending fake Facebook settlement payout emails that mimic legitimate notices from the privacy settlement administrator to deceive users.
Holiday shopping scams surge as fake refund emails target distracted consumers during Black Friday and holiday seasons, costing Americans billions annually.
The AI-powered IRMO M1 exoskeleton features four modes, including turbo, eco, training and rest for hiking, running, cycling and sports with eight-hour battery life.
OpenAI announced upgrades for its ChatGPT Images platform on Tuesday, saying the program can now make more precise edits and produce images more quickly.
Chrome for Android now turns web articles into AI-powered podcast conversations. Get hands-free browsing with Google Gemini's natural audio summaries.
LastPass faces $1.6 million fine from U.K. regulators after 2022 data breach exposed 1.6 million users. Password manager failed proper security controls.
Petco disclosed a data breach exposing customer Social Security numbers, financial account details, and driver's license information due to a software error.
Baseball teams can now analyze complete swing mechanics in normal training environments using Theia's markerless AI system that processes standard high-speed footage.
Smart home hacking fears overblown? Expert reveals real cybersecurity risks and simple protection tips to keep your connected devices safe from hackers.
MIT develops needle-free glucose monitor using light technology. Revolutionary device could replace painful finger pricks for diabetes management.
The ClickFix campaign disguises malware as legitimate Windows updates, using steganography to hide shellcode in PNG files and bypass security detection systems.
Researchers from Osaka Metropolitan University designed a 21-foot dome that combines aquaculture and hydroponics to create a self-sustaining urban food system.
The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.
ChatGPT data breach exposes personal info of users through partner Mixpanel. OpenAI confirms names, emails compromised in security incident.

Scheduling Productive Days - Dont Interrupt, Im Pouring Concrete

Almost everyone in business knows the balancing act between the... Read More

Doing Things We Dread

As I sit here in front of the computer... Read More

Time: Do You Spend it or Invest it?

Time is our greatest and most precious asset. Time is... Read More

9 Business Time Management Skills You Need To Succeed

Do you have plenty to do, but don't have enough... Read More

Time Management For Home Business Owners

As each day passes, and more and more things need... Read More

First Things Last

Years ago clients would tell me they could not identify... Read More

The Rule of Three

It's amazing how many sayings there are in our culture... Read More

24 Time Management Tips

Where does your time go? We all know we are... Read More

Time Management: How to Stay Motivated and Get More Done

If you can motivate yourself at will to get any... Read More

Could you use a ?Stop Doing? list?

One of the tried and true organization and time-management tools... Read More

Time is Money?

Not 1 in 10 people can tell you where money... Read More

Let Someone Else Do It

When you decide to become self-employed, you automatically become the... Read More

The Laundry Has Never Been More Fun Or The Pitfalls To Working At Home

As a home-based, self-employed woman, mundane tasks can be as... Read More

Todays Overload: Tommorrow

Whatever providence has in store for us tomorrow is not... Read More

Time Management: Which Advice to Follow?

There are so many books on Time Management published every... Read More

Time Managements

There are the golden rules that apply to time. If... Read More

Are You Really Swamped or Just Disorganized

"Time is what we need the most and what we... Read More

How to Put Housework on Autopilot!

My husband and I recently returned from a trip to... Read More

Freelance Productivity: Do One Thing Extra Each Day

This may not sound like a big deal. But it's... Read More

Four Simple Ways To Take Control Of Your Time And Your Life

It's been said, "That no one has enough time yet,... Read More

Time Management is Life Management

Many of the clients I work with in success coaching... Read More

Are You Always Late?

"Fashionably late" is no longer in fashion. In today's heavily... Read More

Save Yourself Hours of Time in One Easy Step

If you have spent any time at all working at... Read More

Focus on One Thing at a Time to Get the Job Done

All too often we can feel overwhelmed by the amount... Read More

Use Your Time Wisely!

When I was small, I have never considered the importance... Read More

home cleaning services Wilmette ..