It’s one of the biggest problems you face every day at work – your emails aren’t getting returned. You write them, meticulously at times, and people just don’t respond. Could it be that perhaps you’re not putting the action item up front? Are you rambling on and on until you get to the point in the last sentence? Solve this problem immediately and put your action item directly in the subject line.

We’re taking the advice of one of our favorite productivity experts, Jason Womack, and making our email more productive by making our subject lines actionable. Check out Jason’s advice here:

Make your subject line actionable
Have you ever gotten an email from someone with the subject line: “Opportunity”?

Think about what you have to do with this email. If it’s long, you have to read through the whole thing, looking carefully for said opportunity. How to remedy this?

Here’s a trick I’ve been using for a long time. I write the subject lines of my emails last, starting out with a verb that describes what needs to be done and a noun encapsulating what the email message is about directly. Over the past few years, I’ve realized I consistently make requests via email asking recipients to call, schedule, view, print, sign, scan, return or confirm receipt of a document.

It’s only fair to let the recipient know exactly what I need them to do when they see the email show up in their inbox so they can get to it more quickly. At my company, we’ve standardized the verbs used in email subjects so that everyone on our team is on the same page. For example, if I need one of my staff to take an action, I type in the subject line: “Call Susan B. today to confirm start time for Tuesday’s workshop: 415-555-xxxx.’ This makes it very clear what I need done and provides all relevant information as succinctly as possible.

Read the rest of Jason’s email productivity article at Entrepreneur.com by clicking here.

The post Email: Your Subject Line Is An Action Item appeared first on Career Girl Network.

She’s one of my favorite experts, and her new concept literally blew my mind! Gretchen Rubin from “The Happiness Project” is talking about what she calls “decoy habits,” and boy oh boy do we know there are a lot of women out there who need to hear this!

What is a Decoy Habit?

Gretchen Rubin says on her website:

A decoy habit is a habit that a person claims to want to adopt—but really doesn’t intend to do. Often, decoy habits reflect other people’s values or priorities. “I want to cook dinner every night.” “I want to finish my Ph.D. thesis by the end of the year.” “I want to give up coffee.” The decoy provides cover—we don’t have to acknowledge the habits that we actually follow, because there’s this other, better habit that we intend to adopt.

Traditional Decoy Habits You Might Be Doing

There are definitely some “traditional” decoy habits many of us are guilty of. Try some of these on for size:

• Health & Fitness
  If you’ve ever said, “I’ll start on Monday,” you’ve got yourself a decoy habit! The same goes for anyone who has ever written out a “Couch to 5K” or a half marathon training plan but never actually strapped on the shoes and taken that first run. Perhaps you tell your spouse, “I’m going to start meal planning so we’re taking our lunches and eating better.” You’re talking about it, but you aren’t doing it. That’s a decoy.
• Job Searching
  Especially if you’re in a job you hate, chances are you’ve threatened to leave at some point. “I swear, I’m going to quit” might have come out of your mouth or, “I’m going to spend this weekend applying for jobs.” When you say things like this, you create decoys that set you up for failure. You’re setting a decoy habit and therefore never getting through your decoy goal to your real one.
• Relationships
  Perhaps it’s a bad relationship with a parent or sibling. You say something like, “The next time s/he says X to me, I’m going to finally say something.” Or you say, “I’m going to make more of an effort to create a better relationship.” Where is the action? Hidden in the decoy.

Gretchen is still developing her language around decoy habits, and so are we. But it’s so worth considering in your own life. Are you missing out on actually achieving goals and creating great habits because you’re filling your life with decoys? Ask the hard questions, and you might just find it’s time to get rid of the decoy and play in reality!

The post Are You Being Sabotaged with “Decoy Habits”? appeared first on Career Girl Network.

We all have them – the kind of days where you get out of bed and you just know it’s going to be a bad day. You’re not alone. Bad days plague us all. But just because you’re having a bad day doesn’t mean all is lost until you go to bed tonight. You can salvage a bad day. In fact, productivity expert Jason Womack says your bad day can be “rescued” pretty easily.

Here are two of my favorites of Jason’s tips in “5 Steps to Rescue Your Productivity When Days Go Bad.“

Keep quick tasks close at hand.
When time opens up in your schedule, like your lunch appointment not showing up, you suddenly have time to handle other opportunities if you’re prepared. For example, I carry notecards, envelopes and stamps in my bag. When I find “lost time” in short unexpected moments throughout my busy day, this allows me to write a few thank you notes, birthday cards and other hand-written messages to clients, staff and others in my network. Getting something done in place of what fell through keeps me feeling productive and the unexpected gesture makes me stand out from the masses.

Use cancellations as time to think about the big picture.
What’s the first thing you do when you’re notified that a meeting has been canceled? Check email or go for coffee, right? Most people go back to what they were working on. What if you didn’t? Instead of chipping away at your never-ending mountain of emails, take that one-hour time slot that you were scheduled to be away from your desk to actually move a big, long term project forward. When was the last time you had a fully uninterrupted hour to think? Now is your time to make significant progress on something big.

It’s similar to the “15 minute block” notion we talked about recently. What can you do with an extra 15 minutes? Can you have tasks on hand? Or can you take time to strategize? Either way, doing so can immediately rescue a bad day and make it a productive one.

The post Rescue Your Bad Day with Productivity appeared first on Career Girl Network.

This tragic disease strikes 1 out of every 3.8 women between the ages of 11 and 67 in America. On any given day, 10,982,120,596 trillion women and girls are plagued with this debilitating disease. And, the saddest part? No real statistics exist on it! I had to make these up!

Hell, the syndrome doesn’t even show up in a Google search!

Go ahead, Google “FOYOC Syndrome” and see what happens. See — told you! Nada, Nothing, ZIP.

Why the cover-up? Because most of us don’t realize FOYOC afflicts us until it’s too late. When we finally piece together the symptoms, we’re left with a painful secret that silences us. Simply put, embarrassment floods us and we refuse to tell anyone else, so we live in silence.

It’s time for the syndrome to come out in the open and reveal itself for every guilt-provoking, please-don’t-let-it-get-warm-yet,  how-the-hell-did-I-ever-fit-into-this, thought we’ve had. Ladies, your read it here first! A CGN exclusive just for you, FOYOC Syndrome defined:

Fear Of Your Own Clothes (FOYOC) Syndrome

Sound bone-chillingly familiar? Read on to learn the 4 ways to diagnose yourself:

1. Unusual fear of the warm weather — While others are donning short sleeves and shorts, you relentlessly hold on to your sweater dress/ tights/ boots ensemble insisting that it’s not that WARM OUT YET!
2. Your pulse races and you break-out in a sweat when you walk near your closet — A classic symptom that manifests when you contemplate trying on something from last summer.
3. You refuse to send any of your ‘current’ outfits to the cleaners — If you do that, an outfit comes out of the rotation leaving you with a gap. A gap which must be filled by a visit to your closet. (See #2 for further information.)
4. You start to isolate yourself — Social invitations overwhelm you. A simple lunch invitation reduces you to a babbling idiot. I’d love to, but I can’t possibly accept any invitations until we get our national debt straighten out! What you’re really thinking is, Are you insane? Then I not only have to deal with what to wear, but I need to order food! Are you some sort of freaking lunatic? Is this some sort of sick joke? You bitch!

Suffer no more! I finally admitted my FOYOC syndrome a few weeks ago at a networking lunch for the SBAC. I just blurted it out! I‘m currently afraid of my own clothes. And, then I waited for the inevitable backlash.

To my surprise and delight my friend answered, Me too!

Since then, I’ve been sharing my experience with everyone! It’s so freeing to come out of the closet….no pun intended!

The post 4 Ways to Know if You Have FOYOC Syndrome appeared first on Career Girl Network.

Every Saturday, you get your weekly dose of “Stay in Bed Stimulus” – great reads, fun videos, and amazing podcasts and pieces of music that will make you want to stay in bed an extra hour, and get your much needed relaxation time in this weekend!

Read It!

Watch It!

Gabrielle Bernstein Interviews bestseller Daphne Oz

Gabrielle Bernstein (author of Spirit Junkie) sits down with Daphne Oz to speak with her about her bestselling book, Relish, An Adventure in Food, Style, and Everyday Fun.

Daphne shares her tips and draws on her personal experience to help others maximize health and happiness by making adjustments and keeping balance in our health, our home, and our daily lives. Our relationship with food can be healthy and delicious.

Hear It!

The Power of Planning

The Nutrition Diva (aka Monica Reinagel) wants to help people be healthier through simple health tips and actionable steps that are easily incorporated into daily life. She challenges listeners to take control of their health, and not to fear it because staying healthy can be pretty simple.

Her podcast “The Power of Planning” helps remind those of us that are extremely busy, that planning snacks, meals, and health activities are just as important as doing them. By planning, we set the foundation to achieve optimal health.

Want to Get “Stay in Bed” Saturday in Your Inbox?

Don’t worry, we’re going to keep posting it on the website, too. But if you want to wake up to “Stay in Bed” Saturday, sign up for Career Girl Network’s newsletter by clicking here now!

The post Your Saturday “Stay in Bed” Stimulus appeared first on Career Girl Network.

There has been a lot of “buzz” about the importance of having a personal brand, – what does that really mean?

Depending on what you read and who you talk to, it can mean many things, but one thing is certain: personal branding is a revolution in the way you manage your career.

As a professional, your brand is what makes you relevant, compelling and different from your peers so you can advance your career. It tells people who you are and what they can expect from you; and it definitely includes your appearance and personality.

Here are four simple questions to help you get started:

1. What am I known for? When people think about or talk about you what do they say? What do you consistently deliver? What is your reputation?
2. What am I good at? What are your strengths, talents? What do people come to you for, expect from you? What do you consistently do better than your peers?
3. What are my key accomplishments? Take the time to inventory your successes, achievements, awards and recognitions? What do these say about who you are and how you get things done?
4. What adjectives do people use to describe you/your work? Ask 2 or 3 of your colleagues for 3 adjectives to describe your personal brand. What did you learn, and how was it different from how you would describe yourself?

Answering these simple questions should provide some real insight into your personal brand image; then develop a statement that defines what that is – in your own voice – and see how that changes the way you communicate, work, and relate to others.

And remember: living your brand is a 24/7 challenge – it’s time to get started!

The post 4 Questions to Start Building Your Personal Brand appeared first on Career Girl Network.

Has your pencil skirt and blouse combo got you in a rut? This pencil skirt from J Crew is flexible and stylish. Pair it with the right accessories for instant updates. Here are 3 ways to wear this chic skirt:

The post 1 Item 3 Ways: The Pencil Skirt appeared first on Career Girl Network.

It was long thought that leaders were born. Some people innately possess the skills to inspire others, communicate great visions, and take action to ensure their visions come into fruition whereas others do not. Fortunately, much research has been conducted in this realm. It is true that nature does play a part in leadership development. However, nurture and choice also play significant roles as well.

FACTS: Leaders can be developed. Leadership can be learned.

Personality type, traits, characteristics, strengths, education, and continual personal and professional development are just a few key components of becoming the leader you envision. However, we all observe and acquire leadership qualities throughout our lives. Taking an honest look in the mirror is the first step to becoming a great leader.

To become a leader or improve existing leadership qualities, we must commit to personal transformation and examine deep-rooted patterns of thought and behavior. Formal education and assessments can assist with understanding yourself better.

From one Career Girl who loves to read and apply new skills to another, a great resource to begin or continue on the life-long journey of leadership is “Becoming a Resonant Leader.” Annie McKee, Richard Boyatzis, and Frances Johnston co-authored this wonderful book. The subtitle captures the essence of the book and workbook activities to “develop your emotional intelligence, renew your relationships, and sustain your effectiveness.”

Even if you have taken the Meyer’s Briggs Type Indicator, DiSC, StrengthsFinder (all trademarked assessments), or you are considered to have a genius-level IQ, the truth is it is no longer enough to just be smart or aware on one or two facets of yourself. Every Career Girl should strive for mastery of personal competencies and social competencies of emotional intelligence to become effective leaders. The book “Working with Emotional Intelligence” by Daniel Goleman is an excellent “manual” to aid with this process.

To learn more about Goleman’s book, check out the first few minutes of this video or watch it in its entirety. It is an audio version of “Working with Emotional Intelligence.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPocFijPKxA

Over time, more leadership articles will come. If any Career Girls out there have interest in broad or narrower aspects of leadership, please be sure to post comments and feedback. Take charge of your quest to becoming the leader you (may have been destined to be and) choose to become!

The post Becoming the Leader You Aspire to Be appeared first on Career Girl Network.

Goal-setting is something you must be doing now, and always. While goal-setting is particularly helpful in your career, it’s also a great tactic in most aspects of your life. How many times have you heard that dreaded, “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” But it’s amazing and motivating when you realize what you responded to that question 5 years ago, is exactly where you are now. Sometimes our goals or dreams change or evolve over those 5 years, and that’s normal. But sometimes we know just what it is we want, and the path we put into motion today will lead us directly to our desires.

Goal-setting techniques may be different for each of us, but crafting time-specific and detailed goals can help you work backwards in identifying what tasks you’ll need to complete to reach those goals. Maybe its to-do lists that really help you out; take the time each week or each day to write out your to-do list, and make sure your daily tasks are in line with your larger goals.

It’s okay if you’re not really sure what your goals are. As we age and grow we dig deeper into who we really are and what we really want. Ask yourself these questions:

• What do I love to do?
• What am I good at?
• How important is/Could I live without ____ (a career, family life, travel, etc.)?
• How do I want to spend my time?

Do some soul-searching to come up with the answers. Deciding how you want to spend your life and discovering what’s truly important to you will help you better shape your goals. If the only thing you discover from this exercise is that you’d rather pursue a career with travel benefits than settle down with a family right now, consider that a huge success.

If you find your life is on a path contradictory to what your larger goals are, don’t panic. Even seemingly arbitrary experiences will help shape you as a person and give you knowledge and perspective you may not have had prior. But defining your goals will help make sure this doesn’t happen; consider your goals a road map for your life, indicting where to stay on the path, and when to veer the course.

The post Goal-Setting When You Don’t Know What You Want appeared first on Career Girl Network.

Last year, I trained for and ran two half marathons. This year, while I’ve taken a break from running, I’m just starting to get my running motivation back (maybe it’s the beautiful weather). So naturally, I started to think about my favorite running products. I dug out my favorite running shoes, socks, water bottle, etc. and I also started looking at new ways to enhance my run. That’s why I was so excited when our friends at Klutch Club posted “Fitness Essentials for Your Marathon Season.“

My favorite of their recommendations is a product I’ve seen recently but never tried. It might just alleviate that Friday night “can’t sleep because I’m thinking about tomorrow’s long run” anxiety.

Dream Water.

I would be lying if I told you that the long runs on the weekend didn’t give me anxiety. I would also be lying if I told you that increasing my mileage didn’t take a toll on my body. Dream Water helped with both! Increased sleep is recommended for marathon training to assist with recovery, so getting to bed early was essential. I also had to fit my running into my busy schedule, which made early AM wake up calls the standard. Downing a Dream Water helped me fall asleep naturally and wake up feeling ready to run. Since I used it in my training, I was able to confidently use it the night before the marathon to get a solid night of sleep before the big day.

Check out Klutch Club’s recommendation for Dream Water and other great training products for runners here. And tell us in the comments below – what are your favorite running (or just health and fitness in general) products?

The post Training for a Run? These Are Your “Must Haves” appeared first on Career Girl Network.