From the blog

Article

Meet Business Contacts: Best Places for Networking

Unlock methods for meeting new business contacts through a mix of digital engagement and in-person events. Gain insights into using social media, attending local industry meetups, and participating in conferences to expand your business circle. Includes practical advice for fostering lasting connections and excelling in lead generation.

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How to Organize Your Contacts to Maximize Your Business Relationships

Learn essential strategies to streamline your contact management, ensuring you can always tap into your network's potential with ease. Centralize and effectively organize your business contacts with this seven-step guide for improved productivity and stronger relationships. Utilize tools like Contactzilla for seamless integration and collaboration. Transform how you store, access, and update contact information to make every business connection count.

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How to Battle the After Lunch Productivity Slump

This blog post discusses the reasons behind the post-lunch productivity slump and provides tips on how to overcome it. The factors that contribute to this slump are the food we eat and our circadian rhythms. The post suggests quick fixes such as napping, taking a walk, and changing your work environment, as well as long-term solutions like eating clean and getting enough sleep.

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How to Kick Some Serious Butt with Traditional and Social CRM

This blog post discusses the importance of social skills in customer relationship management (CRM). It explains that today's consumers prefer genuine engagement and interaction and are turning to social media to connect with businesses. The post argues that integrating traditional CRM with social CRM techniques can help businesses better engage with customers and improve CRM results. It provides some tips for implementing these strategies and concludes by encouraging businesses to be open to new CRM systems in the future.

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Best Places to Meet New Business Contacts

The blog post discusses different ways to meet new business contacts, such as attending local industry meetups, using Twitter to engage with potential customers and influencers, attending conferences, and asking for introductions from existing contacts.

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How being angry can make you more productive

This blog post discusses how to deal with anger in a way that improves your life. It suggests using anger as a signal for change, channeling the energy that anger gives you into exercise, and channeling anger into creativity. The post concludes by asking readers how they turn negative emotions into positive ones.

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Hootsuite and Contactzilla Team Up to Elevate Contact Management with

Contactzilla has partnered with Hootsuite to create an integration that allows businesses to manage their social relationships more effectively. The integration combines Contactzilla's shared address books and contact management with Hootsuite's social dashboard, making it easier to identify leads, save social posts, and gain insight into what is and isn't working. The integration is useful for sales and customer service teams, as well as journalists managing leads in the field. Users can download the Contactzilla app from the Hootsuite app directory to take advantage of the integration.

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Workplace Hack: Keep a Busywork List to Feel More Fulfilled and Produc

The blog post discusses how busywork, despite being boring and easy, can actually make us feel happier and more productive. It cites a 2014 study by the University of California and Microsoft Research that found busywork can give a feeling of accomplishment and fulfillment, without the frustration or stress of complex tasks. The post suggests creating a busywork list and working on mindless tasks when feeling stressed or uninspired. The question at the end asks readers how they get their busywork done.

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Product Update: Find Contact Details Quicker, Smart Search and New Int

The blog post announces a redesign of the contacts list in Contactzilla, making it easier to manage contacts. The update includes features such as displaying phone numbers and email addresses upfront, an improved search function, the ability to create new contacts from unrecognized names, and a new service connection area for managing integrations. The post also encourages users to provide feedback and promises more updates to come.

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Workplace Hack: Create a Response Schedule to Improve Communication &

The blog post discusses the importance of effective workplace communication and suggests setting a routine for communication to increase efficiency. The author recommends establishing response times for different types of communication and communicating these expectations to co-workers. They also suggest adding a target response time to email signatures. The post ends with a question asking readers how they manage communication in their workplace.

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Collaboration is an HR Issue: How HR Managers Can Build a Collaborativ

This post discusses how HR departments can help develop a collaborative workplace. It suggests utilizing collaborative technology, promoting and rewarding collaboration, and making sure employees' voices are heard in company-wide decisions. The author asks readers to share how their HR departments tackle workplace collaboration.

Article

The Contactzilla eBook: 101 Productivity Tips & Lifehacks From the Pro

This blog post promotes a new eBook that offers advice on how to be more productive. It includes tips from various industry leaders such as saying 'no', creating a stop doing list, setting fixed deadlines, asking for help, and avoiding reliance on willpower. The eBook provides 101 pieces of advice on productivity.

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Spot the difference: contact management and customer relationship mana

This blog post discusses the various products available for managing contacts and customers, highlighting the difference between shared address books, contact management systems, and customer relationship management (CRM) systems. It then introduces ContactZilla as a simple and easy-to-use shared address book solution for small businesses.

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4 Ways You’re Sabotaging Your Business Relationships (and How to Stop!

The blog post discusses four ways in which individuals may sabotage their business relationships: trying to be someone they're not, being negative, tardiness and failing to respond, and making promises they can't keep. The author provides tips to avoid these behaviors and build valuable relationships.

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Is Your CRM Program Falling Flat? Here’s How to Fix It

This blog post discusses the importance of managing and maintaining healthy customer relationships in running a successful business. It provides tips on how to improve CRM programs, including reviewing and revising the company's mission, emphasizing planning, minimizing time spent on problem customers, keeping the CRM system simple, and being active on social media.

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Top 6 HR Apps For Workplace Happiness & Productivity

This blog post discusses six tools that can be used to track and improve workplace happiness and productivity. The tools mentioned are TINYpulse, Hppy, iDoneThis, Kudos, Campfire, and Contactzilla. Each tool has its own unique features and pricing, making them suitable for different needs and preferences. The post also includes pro tips for each tool.

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How Multitasking Is Making You Less Productive

This blog post discusses the downside of multitasking. It highlights recent research that suggests multitaskers are less productive, lack concentration, and can suffer long-term damage. The post also provides takeaways, such as limiting tasks to two at a time and trying monotasking for increased productivity.

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Redefining Work-Life Balance in an Always-On World

The blog post discusses the concept of work-life balance and how it can be achieved by removing the office from the equation. It emphasizes the advantages of remote work, such as increased control over priorities, productivity, and flexibility. The author recommends reading the book "Remote" and running tests to see if remote work is suitable for your team.

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7 Popular Productivity Myths Debunked

A blog post reveals seven common productivity myths that have been debunked. These include the idea that waking up early guarantees productivity, working long hours gets lots accomplished, multitasking makes you more productive, blocking Facebook improves productivity, not taking vacations makes you a better employee, a pissed off employee is not a motivated employee, and you always need to be plugged in. The author argues that it's important to break these myths and come up with new ideas rooted in research to increase productivity.

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Productive Business Networking Tips From the Pros

This blog post provides tips on how to effectively and productively network. The author emphasizes the importance of connecting with people through personal conversations rather than trying to sell. The post also discusses the significance of being helpful and confident, and highlights the necessity of maintaining relationships by following up with people.

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3 Ways to Improve Your Business Relationships with Contactzilla

This blog post discusses the importance of meaningful relationships in business and provides tips on how to build and maintain them. It suggests creating a shared address book for the team, keeping notes on clients, and managing relationships as a team using a contact management tool like Contactzilla.

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Top 10 Apps for Kick-Ass Team Collaboration

This blog post provides a list of kick-ass team collaboration apps that are perfect for telecommuters. The apps mentioned include Hojoki, Catch, Trello, ReaddleDocs, Campfire, Google Docs, Google Plus Hangouts, Basecamp, Evernote, and Onehub. These apps offer various features such as syncing contacts and tasks, creating separate spaces for projects, real-time chatting, document management, video conferences, project management, and note organization. These tools make it easier for teams to work together and collaborate effectively.

Article

The startup journalist pitch checklist

The blog post discusses the author's experience breaking every rule in the "pitching a startup to a journalist" rule book and how it resulted in a negative response from the journalist. The post provides a checklist of rules for pitching to journalists to avoid making the same mistakes.

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How to Really Connect in the Facebook-Driven World

The blog post discusses the hazards of false connectivity and the importance of face-to-face interactions in today's society. It highlights studies that link low social interaction to negative health effects and emphasizes the need for balance between online and offline interactions. The post also mentions the viral YouTube video, the famous comedian Louis C.K's interview, and suggests using technology to facilitate offline interactions. It concludes with a reminder to take time to disconnect and prioritize human connections.

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5 apps you need to become focused

The blog post discusses five web and mobile apps that can help improve concentration and productivity. The apps mentioned are Focus@Will, It's Focus Time!, RescueTime, Lumosity, and Quiet. Each app is described along with its features and benefits.

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Tidy up contacts with Smart Labels

The blog post introduces the concept of "smart labels" in Contactzilla, which helps users manage and tidy up their contacts more easily. The functionality now includes two new smart labels that allow users to display contacts without any email addresses or phone numbers. This feature is helpful in identifying and deleting useless "phantom" contacts. The post encourages users to provide feedback on any other smart labels they would like to see.

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The Secret To Reducing Stress At The Office

This blog post discusses the importance of setting time expectations for government leaders to prevent frustration and stress. It provides advice from time coaching expert Elizabeth Grace Saunders on how to communicate and set boundaries with stakeholders and colleagues to manage deadlines and avoid feeling overwhelmed.

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7 Ways to Guarantee Instant Customer Happiness

The blog post highlights seven ways to make customers happy and strengthen business relationships. These include providing a fantastic customer experience, using email support effectively, practicing reciprocity, making a good first impression, harnessing the power of live chat, helping customers help themselves, and throwing in an unexpected bonus. The post emphasizes the importance of customer satisfaction and happiness in business.

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4 Mindfulness Hacks to Help you Focus

This blog post discusses the concept of mindfulness and its benefits in improving focus and productivity. It provides four mindfulness hacks that can be practiced in the office, including hourly check-ins, mindful breathing, meditating while doing other activities, and a 15-minute mind capture exercise.

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4 Ways to Own Your Customer Relationships

This blog post discusses four business management tips to ensure that you own the customer relationship and prevent customers from leaving when a salesperson leaves. The tips include creating a customer success culture, improving customer experience, using a contact management system, and using multiple channels to interact with customers.

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4 Workplace Happiness Myths, Debunked

This blog post discusses four myths around workplace happiness. The first myth is that happy workers are more engaged, but happiness doesn't guarantee engagement. The second myth is that employees should be happy all the time, but negative feelings are sometimes necessary. The third myth is that a "fun boss" will make everyone happy, but trying too hard to be happy can negatively affect the team. Lastly, while money can't buy happiness, the lack of money can negatively impact happiness. The conclusion suggests that workplace happiness is important, but forcing happiness onto employees is not effective.

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How to Take Back Your Day - 30 Minutes at a Time

This blog post provides five productivity hacks to help individuals take back their day and make the most of their time. The hacks include starting the day with physical activity, taking a real lunch break, making people earn a meeting with you, having only one to-do list, and debriefing yourself at the end of every day.

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10 Things Every Manager Should Know About Team Collaboration

The blog post discusses the benefits and importance of effective collaboration in teams, and offers 10 strategies to help improve team collaboration. Strategies mentioned in the post include giving people alone time, using social tools for improved communication, providing clear roles but fewer directions, building a diverse team, encouraging a trusting workplace culture, knowing when to focus on quality and quantity of collaboration, developing a shared mental model, creating regular touchpoints, and recognizing which problems are best addressed collaboratively.

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You’re Not a Genius (Yet): How to Rewire Your Brain

This blog post discusses the idea that productivity is a skill that can be learned, rather than a talent that some people are born with. It provides five productivity hacks to improve performance, including finding more freedom and autonomy at work, becoming more decisive, avoiding small tasks, staying rested, and relieving stress.

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5 Signs Your Business Management Philosophy Needs A Makeover

This blog post discusses five signs that indicate your business management philosophy may need a makeover. It highlights the importance of keeping promises to customers and employees, being a servant leader, making employees feel valued, creating a fun work environment, and being self-reflective to align business goals with employee values.

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9 Happiness Hacks to Increase Workplace Productivity

The blog post discusses the importance of workplace happiness and provides 9 ways to improve happiness and productivity within a team. These methods include creating break out spaces, organizing days out, providing free lunch, encouraging breaks, implementing peer to peer feedback, banning multitasking, staying in touch with team members, offering flexible working, and measuring the effects of happiness hacks.

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13 Ways To Keep Focused And Beat Facebook Syndrome

This blog post discusses the biggest challenge people face at work, which is being distracted by their computer or smartphone. It provides 13 productivity hacks to help stay focused and beat distractions caused by the internet and social media. These hacks include using one computer monitor, creating a routine, minimizing browser tabs, and using noise-reducing earphones, among others. Implementing these hacks can increase productivity and reduce distractions.

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8 Productivity Quotes To Get You Motivated

This blog post shares several motivational quotes to help readers overcome procrastination, improve productivity, embrace failure, avoid procrastination, work hard, find inspiration, take risks, and believe in themselves. The post encourages readers to apply these quotes to their lives and achieve their goals.

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5 Employee Engagement Secrets That Will Boost Office Productivity

The blog post discusses how being happy at work doesn't necessarily mean that an employee is engaged and productive. It offers five ways to boost employee engagement and productivity, including creating a sense of purpose, hiring for passion, offering advancement opportunities, building a culture of collaboration, and helping out the industry/community.

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CRM Secrets to Winning Back Customers After You've Screwed Up

This blog post discusses the importance of not giving up on lost customers and shares five steps to win them back. The steps include knowing who left and keeping a record, segmenting the people who left and identifying high-value customers, offering a respectful apology, noting the reasons the person left, and creating a customer ICU to take care of returning customers. The post also provides real-life examples to support its points.

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How to Build a Community, Not Just a Workplace

This blog post discusses the importance of building a community in the workplace rather than just having colleagues. It emphasizes the need for shared goals, feedback, and creating spaces for employees to connect with each other. It concludes by promoting Contactzilla, a contact management tool that integrates seamlessly into existing workflows.

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6 Quick Ways To Get Motivated In The Morning

This blog post provides tips on how to find motivation and be productive throughout the day. It suggests setting your alarm earlier, setting goals, getting enough sleep, eating well, exercising, cleaning out unnecessary items, switching up routines, and remaining positive. The author emphasizes that by implementing these strategies, you can start your day strong and maintain motivation throughout the day.

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How a Culture of ‘Compassionate Love’ Will Increase Productivity

Creating a culture of "compassionate love" among employees can make them more productive, according to recent studies. Employees who feel cared for by their colleagues and company are more satisfied with their jobs and show higher levels of engagement and commitment. Encouraging compassion at work can be achieved through leading by example, assuming the best of intentions from others, and rewarding acts of kindness.

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How to Stay Productive When an Employee Leaves

This blog post discusses how to handle when employees leave your company, without sacrificing productivity. The post recommends identifying and understanding the employee's responsibilities and processes, making a transition plan, preserving the employee's key values, and staying positive about the change.

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How to Use Technology for More Productive Communication

This blog post discusses how communication technology can be used to increase workplace productivity. It suggests using instant messaging services like Campfire or Google Hangouts to avoid distracting conversations, project management software like Basecamp to collaborate on projects, and tools like TINYpulse and iDoneThis to improve team communication. It also emphasizes the importance of using tech for better communication, not just more communication. The post encourages readers to try out different communication apps to find what works best for them.

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3 Step Plan to Rekindle Stale Business Relationships

This blog post offers a 3 step plan for rekindling stale business relationships. Step 1 involves joining the conversation on social media, following and listening to contacts. Step 2 suggests offering something of value to contacts based on what they've been sharing. Step 3 is to make a date and meet face to face if possible.

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27 Productivity Tips & Lifehacks from the Pros

The blog post provides a list of 27 productivity tips and lifehacks from various experts. The tips range from managing work hours effectively, prioritizing tasks, delegating, minimizing distractions, and staying focused. Readers are invited to share their own productivity tips and subscribe to the blog to receive a free copy of the upcoming eBook.

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Throw Out Your To Do List Right Now (Yes, Really)

This blog post discusses the problems with traditional to-do lists and suggests using a "not-to-do list" instead. It explores the paradox of choice and how too many choices can lead to paralysis and unhappiness. It also introduces the concept of commitment devices to help focus on tasks and increase productivity.

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A Guide to Complex Sales And How to Win the Deal

This blog post discusses the challenges of complex sales and provides a guide on how to navigate them effectively. Topics covered include dealing with multiple decision makers, navigating company politics and power imbalances, finding internal advocates, and treating gatekeepers as potential allies. The post emphasizes the importance of being vigilant and present throughout the complex sales process.

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How head trash can nuke you before you start

This blog post discusses the concept of "head trash" and how it can limit individuals from reaching their goals. It explores how invisible beliefs and limitations can shape our lives and offers tips on how to identify and overcome head trash in order to become a freer and more successful person.

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Workplace Hack: Support a Charity to Boost Morale

This blog post discusses the impact that supporting a charity can have on team morale in the workplace. It suggests that employees, especially millennials, want to feel that their work is making a meaningful impact on the world. The post gives an example of Toms Shoes, who donate a pair of shoes to a child in need for every pair purchased, and how this inspires their employees. It suggests ways in which businesses can get involved with charities to boost engagement and morale.

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How to test remote working (without getting your team’s hope up)

The blog post discusses the pros and cons of remote working and provides suggestions on how to test if it is suitable for a company. It emphasizes the importance of trust and implementing a results-oriented work environment (ROWE) to monitor productivity. The post also suggests introducing collaborative tools and allowing remote working when necessary as a way to test its effectiveness.

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Is Email Working for You or Is It The Other Way?

The blog post discusses the concept of being "always on" with email and questions whether this mindset is self-imposed. The author suggests setting specific times to read and respond to emails instead of constantly reacting to them as they come in. The post also promotes the author's workshop on managing email.

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4 Productivity Lessons We Learned in 2014

The author reveals four important productivity lessons learned in 2014: that a single to-do list is insufficient, that workplace friendships increase productivity, that productivity does not guarantee happiness, and that mindfulness leads to increased productivity.

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27 More Productivity Tips and Lifehacks from the Pros

This blog post provides 27 productivity tips from professionals, including advice on prioritizing, focusing, outsourcing, building routines, and handling emails effectively. The post emphasizes the importance of setting goals and meeting them rather than just managing tasks.

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4 Things Every Manager Should Know About Workplace Happiness

The blog post discusses the importance of workplace happiness and provides four key points to consider. It emphasizes the need to listen to employee feedback and act on it, allowing employees to be themselves at work, fostering positive attitudes from management, and recognizing that happiness and employee engagement are not the same thing.

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5 Motivation Hacks To Help You Get Things Done

This blog post provides five motivation hacks to help improve productivity. The hacks include telling others about your goals to create positive public pressure, using a calendar to track progress and create a chain of completed tasks, surrounding yourself with motivated people, tracking your progress with a "done list," and breaking down large tasks into smaller, actionable steps.

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Why You Need to Give Employees the Freedom to Make Mistakes

The blog post discusses the importance of allowing employees to make mistakes in order for them to learn and grow. It emphasizes the need for managers to create an environment where employees are not afraid to take risks, as this will lead to innovation and productivity. However, managers should also identify areas of risk and protect the business and clients from significant mistakes.

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Workplace Hack: Boost Productivity With Internal Customer Service

The blog post discusses the importance of providing great customer service not only to external customers but also to internal customers, such as employees within the company. It suggests extending customer service training to the entire company and adapting existing processes to offer internal support to teams. The post asks if readers have an internal customer service policy.

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How much does CRM cost a small business and what are the hidden costs?

This blog post discusses the hidden costs of CRM for small businesses. It emphasizes the importance of considering the true cost of a system, including ease of use and availability of help. It provides a simple process for assessing and choosing a CRM system based on current and future needs.

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Collaborate on Your Business Contacts to Build Stronger Relationships

This blog post discusses the benefits of collaborating on business contacts within a team. It explains how sharing contact information can make customers feel special, save time, keep contact details up to date, and foster stronger relationships within the team. The post encourages readers to try Contactzilla, an app that allows teams to share address books.

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Workplace Hack: Get More Plants To Increase Productivity

This blog post discusses the idea that bringing plants into the office can increase productivity. It mentions studies that found a positive effect on task scores with plants at the desk and a window view. It suggests introducing more plants into the office and arranging desks near windows for a glimpse of nature.

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How to Build Meaningful Business Relationships That Last

In this blog post, the author provides tips for maintaining business relationships. They suggest using social media to stay in touch and listen to contacts, giving more than you take by offering free advice or referrals, emailing contacts when you see something that reminds you of them, and asking for their advice to make them feel valued.

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Why You Should Stop Seeking Productivity and Start Seeking Purpose

This blog post discusses the importance of working with purpose rather than just focusing on productivity. It explains that efficiency is about doing things right, while effectiveness is about doing the right things. It encourages readers to work on their business, rather than just in it, and suggests several areas to prioritize. The post concludes by emphasizing that quality is more important than quantity and that focusing on purpose can lead to big changes in one's work and life.

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Workplace Hack: Work On Your Hobby At Work

This blog post discusses how hobbies can help relieve stress and recharge your energy. It also suggests implementing a "hobby time" for your team to engage in their favorite hobbies, helping to build relationships and improve mental concentration. The post encourages readers to consider what hobbies they can bring to work.

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An All-Nighter Can Make You More Productive (Yes, Really)

This blog post discusses the idea that sacrificing sleep for work can actually improve productivity and creativity. It debunks the myth that everyone needs eight hours of sleep, and explains that quality is more important than quantity when it comes to sleep. The author also provides tips for maximizing productivity during all-nighters, such as taking naps, staying hydrated, and keeping warm.

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Too Many Features Will Kill You

The blog post discusses the importance of simplicity when developing a minimum viable product (MVP) and the dangers of overloading a product with unnecessary features. It emphasizes the need to ship products quickly, iterate based on user feedback, and focus on creating a minimum delightful product (MDP) that brings something unique to the table. The post also suggests having a clear vision and avoiding competitive analysis to prevent feature overload. The writer concludes by highlighting the benefits of simplicity and urging startups to prioritize user needs over excessive feature building.

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Why Inbox 0 Is a Joke (and How to Deal)

This blog post provides tips on how to become more productive by managing your inbox more efficiently. It suggests not sending email just to receive emails, using the OHIO (only handle it once) method, scheduling dedicated time for email, and keeping emails short and to-the-point. Rather than aiming for inbox zero, it emphasizes becoming the master of your inbox.

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Workplace Hack: The Ultimate Productivity Tool

The blog post discusses the use of pen and paper as a productivity tool, arguing that they offer more flexibility and help in organizing thoughts compared to digital apps. It suggests taking some time away from technology to empty one's mind and write thoughts down on paper, which can lead to better organization and productivity.

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How to Help Remote Workers Fit Into Onsite Culture

This blog post discusses the controversy surrounding remote working and provides tips for managers on how to help remote workers fit in. It emphasizes the importance of clearly communicating goals and deliverables, ensuring open communication, providing tools for communication and collaboration, and adapting management styles to accommodate remote workers. The post also highlights the potential benefits of remote working, including increased productivity and creativity.

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Communication Tips for a Happier, More Productive Team

The blog post discusses 5 communication hacks for improving team communication and productivity. These hacks include allowing the audience to arrive at their own conclusions, matching the message with the appropriate communication vehicle, providing necessary background information before important conversations, giving people the benefit of the doubt, and removing barriers in communication to encourage collaboration.

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Bring Departments Together for Ultimate Team Productivity

This blog post discusses the importance of bringing together different departments in a business to improve teamwork and productivity. It suggests hanging out regularly, centralising information, and implementing internal customer service practices as ways to encourage good relations and collaboration between departments.

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How to Organize Your Contacts to Unite Your Team

This blog post discusses the importance of contact management systems for businesses. It explores how these systems can help to bring departments together, build relationships, reduce interruptions, and foster a collaborative culture. The post emphasizes the benefits of using a contact management system like Contactzilla to streamline contact information and improve communication within the company.

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How to Master & Understand the Power of Sales Linguistics

This blog post discusses the use of sales linguistics to improve sales tactics. It emphasizes the importance of speaking the customer's language and understanding their unique preferences. It also highlights the need for active listening and customer-centric conversations. The blog post further explores the cognitive decision-making process and how it can be influenced by somatic markers. The post concludes with tips for effective sales pitches, including building rapport, developing authority, and closing with confidence.

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8 Ways to Win With CRM

This blog post discusses the importance of having a CRM strategy and provides eight tips on how to win with CRM. The tips include understanding why customers do what they do, making customers famous, knowing more than your customers, valuing customer complaints, continuously collecting customer feedback, eliminating inefficiencies, being creative and data-driven, and developing a loyalty program. By effectively managing customer relationships, businesses can keep their brand informed and customers engaged.

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Why Your Team Should Try a 4-Day Workweek

The blog post discusses the idea of a four-day workweek, which is becoming more common in European and Nordic countries. The post argues that shorter workweeks can increase productivity, job satisfaction, and individual well-being. It provides six tactics for working only four days and still being productive. The post encourages readers to try out a four-day workweek and measure the impact.

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How to Do Less and Get More Done

This blog post discusses the importance of slowing down in the workplace in order to increase productivity. It provides 6 ways to slow down, including planning, meditating, reviewing how time is spent, stopping multitasking, saying "no" to tasks, and delegating when necessary.

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13 Things You Need to Give Up to Be Productive

This blog post provides a list of 13 things that can hinder productivity in the workplace and offers suggestions on how to eliminate them. The author emphasizes the importance of prioritizing tasks, getting enough sleep and exercise, minimizing distractions, and taking breaks throughout the day.

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Create a Mental Stamina Budget to be More Productive

The blog post discusses the concept of a mental stamina budget and how it can help with productivity. It suggests waking up earlier, planning breaks, scheduling exercise, planning meals, and unwinding before bed to optimize mental energy and avoid burnout. The main idea is to plan and prepare for the day ahead to stay organized and energized.

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5 Things Your Employees Wish You Knew About Keeping Them Happy

The blog post discusses the challenge of attracting and retaining top talent in businesses. It argues that trendy perks and modern workspaces are not the key to employee happiness and offers five things that employees truly want: recognition, coaching, a sense of belonging, more work, and a voice in decision-making. The post emphasizes the importance of listening to employees and making them feel valued.

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How to Get Out of the Summer Productivity Slump

The post discusses the issue of productivity dropping during summer months and provides tips on how to stay busy at work by taking proper holidays, offering summer hours or flexible working options, reorganising priorities, and changing routines.

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How Music Affects Productivity

This blog post discusses the idea that listening to music can improve productivity. It mentions a study that found listening to music promotes a positive mood change and enhanced perception on design while working. The post also provides tips for choosing music for productivity and introduces a neuroscience-based web tool called Focus@Will that uses instrumental music to increase attention span. Todoist, a task-management software, is committed to leveraging tools that promote productivity.

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Workplace Hack: Write a Stop Doing List

This blog post discusses the concept of a "stop doing list" as a way to be more productive. It explains that being productive is not just about getting things done, but also about not doing certain things. The post suggests creating a list of things you want to stop doing, similar to a to-do list, to help quit bad habits and prioritize tasks. It quotes business writer Jim Collins, who popularized the idea, and encourages readers to try keeping a stop doing list.

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Workplace Hack: The Personal Kanban - More Than Just a To-Do List

This blog post discusses the concept of a personal kanban, which is a visual tool to help boost efficiency and manage tasks. It explains how to set up a personal kanban board and suggests using different colored pens or post-its to group tasks. It also recommends limiting the number of tasks in progress and analyzing the kanban daily to identify patterns and improve efficiency. The post concludes by asking the readers if they have tried using a personal kanban.

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Workplace Hack: Jerry Seinfeld’s Don’t Break the Chain Method

This blog post discusses the "Don't Break the Chain" method of productivity, which is based on a piece of advice given by Jerry Seinfeld to software developer Brad Isaac. The method involves using a big wall calendar and red marker pen to mark off each day that a task is completed, creating a chain of consecutive days. This method can be applied to any daily task and can help to turn chores into habits. The post asks readers if they have tried this method.

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Workplace Hack: Leave a Trail of Productivity Breadcrumbs

This blog post discusses the issue of getting distracted by new thoughts or ideas while in the middle of a task. The author suggests leaving breadcrumbs, or taking notes, to help remember and easily get back to the original task.

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Organising your contacts with labels

This blog post discusses how to organize contacts with labels using Contactzilla. The post explains the step-by-step process of selecting contacts, applying labels, and filtering contacts based on labels. It also mentions the different ways labels are displayed in different views and asks for suggestions to improve the label feature.

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Improving the little things

The blog post discusses a recent maintenance release that focused on improving minor bugs and enhancing user experience. The team is preparing for a full release in May and prioritizing stability and ease of use. Additionally, the post mentions specific improvements made, such as splitting out private and shared address books, making the contact action bar permanently visible, and resolving various issues. The next update is expected to have more significant changes.

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Workplace Hack: Make Some Noise to Be More Creative

The blog post discusses the right amount of noise to have in the office for optimal creativity. It cites a study that found moderate levels of ambient noise can enhance creative performance, while high levels of noise can impair creativity. The post suggests using white noise apps to recreate moderate levels of background noise for increased productivity.

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How to automatically add business cards to address books

The blog post discusses how to upload business cards to Contactzilla using Evernote's business card scanner. It provides step-by-step instructions on how to set up the scanner and scan business cards using the Evernote app. It also mentions that if your phone is synced with Contactzilla, the scanned business cards will automatically be saved in your Contactzilla address book.

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Workplace Hack: Bucket of Love

The blog post discusses the problem of feature creep in projects and provides a solution to stay focused on the task at hand by creating a "bucket of love" to store new ideas. The author suggests going through the bucket after completing a project to decide if the ideas are worth implementing in the future. The post ends with a question asking readers how they deal with feature creep.

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Simple changes, big difference: de-duping contacts

The blog post discusses new updates to ContactZilla, a contact management tool. The main focus is on the new de-duplicating function that intelligently suggests and helps remove duplicate contacts. The post also highlights the addition of a 'Potential Duplicate' tag and the ability to manually tag contacts. Users are encouraged to provide feedback on the new features.

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Workplace Hack: Quick Procrastination Fixes

This blog post discusses the different types of procrastination and provides advice on how to beat each type. The types of procrastination mentioned are anxious, fun, "plenty of time," and perfectionist. The post suggests scheduling in fun and rest time, starting something else on your to-do list, setting deadlines and sharing them, and challenging perfectionist tendencies by reflecting on past experiences.

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Social contact management: connecting the real and the social

This blog post discusses the challenges of managing multiple social media profiles and contact information. It introduces the concept of a social contact management system that connects and merges all contacts on a web-based platform. It then highlights the features of ContactZilla, a social contact management tool, including the ability to share contacts with chosen groups of people. The post emphasizes the simplicity and centralization of this system.

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Product Update: Google Sync, Pricing Changes and Amex Payments

Contactzilla has launched Google Contacts sync, allowing users to automatically sync their Contactzilla address books with Google Contacts and Gmail. The company has also changed its packages and pricing structure, and now accepts American Express payments. Additional updates and improvements to Contactzilla are also in the works.

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Workplace Hack: The No Thanks Journal

This blog post discusses the importance of saying "no" in order to prioritize and be productive. The author suggests keeping a journal of times when you decline opportunities and reflecting on how you said no and how the person responded. This journal can help you improve your language for declining offers and become more comfortable with saying no in the future.

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ContactZilla V2, Spaces and no CRM

The blog post announces the release of V2 of ContactZilla, a software development company's product. The big news is the introduction of Spaces, a shared address book feature where colleagues or family members can collaborate on contacts. The post also mentions the company's learnings about time management and hints at future updates.

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My Inbox Caused My Startup Burnout (Yes, Really)

The author discusses feeling burnt out and the impact that her inbox was having on her productivity. She decided to make changes, including carving out specific time for creative work in the morning and only checking her inbox at set times throughout the day. This new routine has been a game-changer and has allowed her to be more proactive and productive. The author also shares tips for managing email and achieving "inbox zero."

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Workplace Hack: Why Your Office Needs a Games Area

The blog post discusses the importance of offering something fun for team members to do on their breaks in order to help them relax and recharge. It suggests having a pool table or other games in the office to encourage breaks away from screens and foster relationships among team members. It also provides tips for creating a games area on a budget. The post ends with a question to the readers about whether they have a games area in their office.

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Workplace Hack: Boost Productivity with Regular Web Browsing

This blog post discusses how surfing the web during breaks at work can actually boost productivity. It cites a study conducted by the National University of Singapore which found that participants reported higher levels of engagement and lower levels of mental exhaustion and boredom after a ten minute web browsing break. The post also mentions a previous study from the University of Melbourne which found that workers who browsed the internet for fun at work were 9% more productive. The post suggests allowing regular 5-10 minute web browsing breaks to improve productivity. It also mentions the option of incorporating web browsing breaks into the pomodoro technique. The post ends with a question asking readers if they find web browsing to be rejuvenating or distracting.

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Little-Known Secrets to Hiring a Successful Sales Rep

This blog post explains that hiring an ideal sales representative is not as easy as it seems, and that personality and innate qualities play a key role in finding the right candidate. It provides five strategies and hiring secrets to find a sales representative that will help a company succeed, including filtering based on personality, hiring someone that challenges other reps, telling candidates they didn't get the job, finding someone who possesses the 3Ts (teach, tailor, take control), and hiring someone that can handle rejection.

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Workplace Hack: Start a Wellness Programme

This blog post discusses the importance of offering employees benefits that improve their health and wellbeing. It suggests creating a wellness program that is affordable and tailored to the team's needs, with suggestions including subsidizing gym memberships, providing healthy snacks, promoting mental health, educating employees on maintaining good health, and offering rewards for achieving health goals. The post also invites readers to share their own office wellness programs on Twitter.

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Kick Consumer Contact Management Out of the Workplace

This blog post discusses the importance of managing your network and introduces Contactzilla as a well-organized contact management system that can save time, improve communication and collaboration in a professional setting. The post also highlights the limitations of consumer contact management systems and emphasizes the need for a solution that integrates seamlessly with one's workflow. Contactzilla is presented as a middle ground between expensive CRM software and free consumer contact management, offering simple and collaborative contact management for businesses and organizations.

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7 Tips For Communicating With Remote Workers

This blog post discusses the challenges of keeping in touch with remote workers and provides seven tips for effective communication. The tips include being mindful of written communication, utilizing technology to collaborate, fostering strong relationships, being transparent, managing expectations, being available for support, and providing feedback.

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The One Word You Need To Become More Productive

This blog post discusses the importance of saying "no" in order to become more productive. It explores the reasons why people struggle to say no and offers tips on how to effectively use this word. The post also emphasizes the need to be courageous and prepared to miss out in order to prioritize what truly matters.

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4 Science-Backed Office Hacks to Increase Productivity

This blog post discusses how the right environment can improve productivity in the office. It offers four tips to optimize the office: dim lights for creativity, introduce plants to restore attention, keep the office warm for fewer mistakes, and bring a dog to improve team collaboration.

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That old chestnut: "what's Mr Smith's email address again?"

This blog post discusses the common problem of not having access to contact details when needed and introduces an online shared address book solution called ContactZilla. It allows individuals and teams to store all their contacts in one central place and easily share them with others, increasing efficiency and productivity.

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Is Productivity The Key to Workplace Happiness?

This blog post discusses the relationship between happiness and productivity, arguing that happiness is the cause of productivity, not the other way around. It suggests that making work a 'happy place' can help improve happiness and productivity, and gives tips on how to achieve this, including understanding your team's needs and creating a culture of growth and progression.

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Companies can now be contacts

The blog post announces the latest release of Contactzilla, which includes enhancements such as the ability to set a contact as a company, improved search functionality, the option to sort contacts by surname or forename, the ability to invite team members during onboarding, and the ability to create a default team address book. The post also mentions that several issues with data integrity on import have been fixed. Interested readers can find these updates on the live site at [www.contactzilla.wpengine.com](http://www.contactzilla.wpengine.com).

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How tea breaks make you more productive

This blog post discusses whether tea breaks at work are a waste of time or actually beneficial for productivity. It argues that tea breaks can be social and help break up the monotony of the workday, as well as allowing for mental rest and improving alertness. It also mentions the chemical effects of tea and how regular breaks can reduce stress and fatigue. The post ultimately concludes that tea breaks can have a positive impact on productivity.

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Workplace Hack: Prepare for Precision Meetings

This blog post discusses the common problem of boring and unproductive meetings in the workplace. It suggests that better agenda management and leadership can improve meetings. The post recommends creating a tight schedule for the meeting agenda, keeping meetings to 30 minutes or less, and scheduling additional time for important items. The post ends with a question asking readers how they prepare for meetings.

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Product Update - Notes and reverse name display

This blog post discusses recent updates to the contact management system Contactzilla. The updates include the ability to add notes to contacts, with each note displaying the time, date, and user who made the note. The post also mentions the option to set the display format for first and second names in the contact list. The author asks for suggestions on what other functionality users would like to see.

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Workplace Hack: Make Friends at Work to Become More Productive

The blog post discusses the importance of workplace friendships for employee engagement and productivity. Research shows that people who have close friendships with colleagues are happier in their jobs and more likely to receive promotions. Managers are now recognizing the significance of fostering workplace friendships and are encouraging employees to take steps towards befriending their colleagues. The post suggests simple actions like commenting on a photo or inviting someone for a game of pool to initiate relationships. It also emphasizes the benefits of becoming friends outside of work in creating a happier and more productive team.

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Workplace Hack: Move Fast Break Things

The blog post discusses Facebook's decision to kill off its motto "Move Fast Break Things" and Mark Zuckerberg's explanation for this change. The post argues that while the motto may not work for Facebook anymore, it is still important for tech entrepreneurs to adopt a similar mindset in early stages of development. It emphasizes the importance of moving quickly and being willing to make mistakes in order to learn and grow.

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Reaching Your Peak Productivity: How to Achieve Your Goals

The blog post discusses the importance of setting goals in order to achieve peak performance. John Meyer, CEO and Co-Founder of Lemonly, shares his daily habit of evaluating goals and how it helps him reflect on the process and grow. The post also includes an infographic by Lemonly on setting important goals for maximum productivity.

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Workplace Hack: Boost Creativity With an Ideas Board

This blog post discusses the idea of creating an "ideas board" in the office as a way to inspire creativity. The post highlights the effectiveness of a whiteboard in Silicon Valley and suggests dedicating a whiteboard in the office to encourage the sharing of ideas. It emphasizes that even though these ideas may not be realistic, they can still stimulate conversation and fresh thinking. The post concludes by asking readers to share their own methods of inspiring creativity in the workplace.

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Workplace Hack: Pause, Don’t Procrastinate

The blog post discusses the topic of procrastination and offers a simple response by Leo Babauta of Zenhabits. Babauta suggests that when you feel the urge to procrastinate, you should take a moment to turn inward and reflect on your actions. This mindfulness can help you overcome procrastination and regain focus to get things done. The post ends by asking readers how they deal with procrastination.

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Introducing...The Contactzilla Mobile App!

Contactzilla has introduced the Contactzilla Mobile Importer app, which allows users to easily add contacts from their mobile devices to their Contactzilla address books. The app is also a convenient way to backup contacts and is available for free on iOS and Android devices.

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Workplace Hack: Use the Priority Matrix to Make Productive Decisions

The blog post discusses the importance of prioritization for productivity. It introduces the priority matrix, attributed to President Dwight D. Eisenhower, that balances urgency and importance of tasks. The post explains the four categories of tasks in the matrix and provides tips on how to prioritize to-do lists effectively.

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Workplace Hack: How To Measure Happiness

This blog post discusses the importance of measuring workplace happiness and suggests using anonymous staff satisfaction surveys as a method to measure employee happiness. The author also mentions using TINYpulse to collect feedback and insights from team members on a regular basis to continuously improve the work environment. The post ends with a question asking readers how they measure employee happiness.

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Workplace Hack: The 30 Second Test

The blog post discusses the difference between productivity and busyness and suggests using the 30 second test to identify and prioritize important goals in life. According to the author, most people only come up with around 3-4 goals within 30 seconds, and this quick exercise can help eliminate unnecessary tasks and focus on what truly matters.

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Workplace Hack: The Power of Negative Visualization

The blog post discusses the concept of negative visualization, which involves considering the worst-case scenarios in order to achieve productivity. It explains how to use negative visualization in the workplace and includes an example of how Tim Ferriss utilized it to make a significant decision in his life. The post concludes by encouraging readers to try negative visualization and see how it can help them achieve their goals.

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How a Startup Mentality Increases Productivity

Startups have a distinct mentality that can teach businesses of all sizes important lessons. From allowing flexible working hours and remote working to creating a fun workspace and trying new technologies, there are many ways in which companies can increase productivity by adopting the startup mentality. Other lessons include embracing creativity, being transparent with employees, and remaining connected with the team as the company grows.

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Workplace Hack: Break It Down

The blog post discusses the problem of setting large tasks without a clear plan, resulting in procrastination. It suggests breaking down larger projects into smaller steps to make them more manageable and achievable. The author recommends creating a to-do list with smaller tasks to help complete the project efficiently.

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Workplace Hack: Keep On Learning

The blog post discusses the importance of continuous learning and suggests incorporating it into workplace culture. It explains how learning activities not only improve employees' skills but also enhance their well-being and job satisfaction. The post recommends using online learning platforms like Udemy and Grovo to boost team creativity.

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What We Learned About Collaboration in 2014

The blog post explores the importance of collaboration in the workplace and suggests ways to create a collaborative culture. It discusses the benefits of compassionate love in the workplace, the significance of forming communities, the value of peer to peer feedback, and the importance of letting employees have a voice in decision-making.

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Workplace Hack: The SuperFocus Method

The blog post discusses Mark Forster's SuperFocus method for managing a to-do list. The method involves using pen and paper to split the list into two columns - one for all tasks and another for urgent ones. Tasks are moved between columns as they are completed or become urgent. Recurring tasks are re-entered at the bottom of the list. The process is repeated until all tasks are complete, with column 2 being the priority. The author asks readers to share their own methods for managing to-do lists.

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Workplace Hack: The “Unschedule”

The blog post discusses the concept of procrastination and how it is a mechanism for coping with anxiety. It suggests that chronic procrastinators struggle with scheduling and may benefit from "unscheduling" by prioritizing fun activities. The post concludes by asking readers how they deal with the urge to procrastinate.

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Workplace Hack: Move Your Desk

This blog post discusses how disrupting your routine and changing your workspace can help to boost creativity and productivity. It suggests moving your desk or finding a different place to sit in the office to stimulate new thinking and gain fresh insights. The post also mentions writer Truman Capote who believed that changing his workspace improved his work.

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Workplace Hack: Read Fiction as a Form of Meditation

This blog post discusses the benefits of meditation for productivity and suggests that reading a novel can have a similar effect. The author shares their experience of using reading as a way to escape reality, empty their mind, and focus on the present moment, ultimately improving their productivity. They also provide a tip to choose a book that is both easy to read and thought-provoking.

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Workplace Hack: The Procrastination List

The blog post suggests that rather than trying to completely eliminate procrastination, individuals should find ways to make their procrastination productive. The author recommends creating a "procrastination list" consisting of tasks that can be done during moments of procrastination, such as scheduling social media posts or reading work-related articles. The key is to include a wide variety of tasks to cater to different moods.

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Workplace Hack: Follow the 30-10 Rule

This blog post suggests a workplace hack to curb procrastination. It involves setting a timer for 30 minutes and working uninterrupted until the timer goes off. After that, you can reward yourself with a 10-minute activity before setting the timer again. Sticking to this 30-10 rule can significantly increase productivity. The author asks if anyone has tried this approach and how it worked for them.

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Workplace Hack: Archive Unimportant Emails

The blog post discusses how email messages in your inbox can be a distraction from your important tasks. It suggests creating a separate folder for low-priority messages and checking it only once or twice per day. The post also recommends using tools like Boomerang and Mailbox for better email management. It ends by asking readers for their own inbox zero tricks.

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Workplace Hack: Two Screens Are Better Than One

This blog post discusses the benefits of using multiple monitors for increased productivity. It includes anecdotal evidence from a multitasker who uses three monitors in her home office, as well as research from Microsoft that shows a 9 to 50 percent increase in productivity when using multiple monitors. The post concludes by asking readers if they have ever tried using multiple monitors.

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Workplace Hack: Schedule Meetings in the Morning

The blog post suggests scheduling important meetings in the morning to prevent distractions and split focus. It advises following an agenda and being mindful of time to ensure productivity. The post asks readers when they schedule their important meetings.

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Workplace Hack: Share Knowledge Over a Beer

This blog post discusses the importance of team collaboration and knowledge sharing in the workplace. The author suggests holding weekly "tech talks" where team members can share their expertise and learn from one another. The post provides tips on how to implement this practice and encourages gathering employees from different departments to participate.

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Product update - export contacts and social login

The blog post announces two new features for Contactzilla: the ability to export contacts in a CSV file for use in other platforms, and the option to register and log in with Facebook, Twitter, or Google+ accounts. The post encourages users to share their ideas for future features in the support forum.

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Workplace Hack: Boost Productivity and Feel Good With the Guilt Hour

This blog post discusses the issue of procrastination and suggests a workplace hack called the "guilty task" to overcome it. The hack involves setting aside one hour per week to work on the task that has been put off. By openly discussing it with colleagues, the guilt associated with the task is reduced. Delegating tasks when possible is also suggested as a way to alleviate guilt.

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You’re Not Productive, You’re Just Busy

This blog post discusses the difference between being busy and being productive. It highlights the negative effects of busyness on business and provides three ways to become more productive: tying tasks to business goals, focusing on one task at a time, and keeping a productivity journal.

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Workplace Hack: The Shout About It Method

The blog post discusses how sharing your goals with others can help in staying motivated and accountable. It mentions how working out with a friend can make exercising easier, and applies this concept to work as well. By telling people about your goals, they can encourage and support you, and you will feel more motivated to achieve them. The post suggests setting up calls with colleagues to discuss and review your work, as it increases productivity when someone else is aware of your progress.

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How to Create a Collaborative Culture at Work

This blog post discusses five things that can be done to establish a culture of collaboration at work. The suggestions include setting team goals, appointing a collaboration coordinator, encouraging socialization, designing workspaces to foster collaboration, and rethinking rewards to focus on teamwork.

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Workplace Hack: The Daily Interruption Memo

The blog post discusses the technique of using a daily interruption memo to stay organized and avoid distractions. It suggests cutting yourself off from interruptions once or twice a week and compiling emails, to-do lists, and messages into four categories: tasks for tomorrow, questions, information, and long-term reminders. It encourages readers to try this technique and disconnect from distractions to make real progress with work.

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Workplace Hack: Embrace Kaizen

This blog post discusses the concept of Kaizen, a Japanese term for continuous improvement. It emphasizes the importance of applying Kaizen principles in the workplace and suggests ways to do so, such as explaining Kaizen to co-workers, encouraging problem-spotting, and creating a list of next steps. It also suggests that implementing Kaizen is more effective as a team effort and recommends keeping a list of flaws to be addressed by anyone with spare time. The post concludes by asking readers if they use the Kaizen method in their businesses.

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How a digital agency manages client contacts with their team

This blog post discusses how Simpleweb, a digital agency in Bristol, uses ContactZilla, a contact management tool, to solve their contact sharing issues. The post explains the problem they faced with flexible working and the solution they found by centralizing their contacts in ContactZilla. It also describes how they set up their account and use the shared address books feature to organize their contacts. The post concludes by encouraging readers to consider how they could use ContactZilla for their own businesses.