Category Archives: Recommended Products

The Best Time Management Tool Ever

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Time Management’s Greatest Tool Ever

The Internet (especially the blogosphere) is filled with advice extolling every flavor of tip and trick designed to help you manage your time better. New managers are especially vulnerable to the lure of something easy that can help them squeeze more hours out of every day.

The truth is that you cannot effectively, and for the long term, manage your time – you can only manage yourself. Without complete and lasting paradigm shifts, an ineffective individual will always be ineffective.

Given this, you might be surprised to hear that we have discovered the greatest time management tip and trick of all time, and this one really works. Used correctly, this time management tool just might make the transformation into an effective leader unnecessary. Google, it seems, is the greatest time management tool ever.

Google Can Give You Your Life Back

While we mean this with tongues firmly planted in cheeks, the AskTheManager editors do find themselves using Google to complete and manage tasks that, in the past, took much, much longer. And although we’re still not convinced that any tip or trick ever works over the long term for those seeking to become more effective, we are convinced that properly understanding and using all the important tools and jewels available on Google.com can make you (at the very least) feel more productive.

It’s inarguable that search engines in general can save countless hours per query just by the nature of bringing together massive amounts of data and serving relevant results to the user. Prior to Google, however, search was not quite the timesaver we see today. Prior to Google we found ourselves looking to the third, fourth, tenth pages of search results before either giving up or changing the order of our search terms. Search was a mess before Google.

Life in the Year 10 A.G.

Over the past ten years, Google has literally reinvented everything from how we use the Internet to marketing in the new millennium. In addition to these obvious improvements, Google has also created a platform that flat out makes us more efficient. This, we argue, is what made Google “Google.”

Examining months of search engine data, it’s clear to us that less than 1/10 of 1% of the searching public uses any of the great tools or shortcuts Google makes available. Perhaps if you knew that you didn’t have to be a computer geek to utilize these great time management tricks, you’d be more likely to employ them.

As members of the Ultra Busy Professional Leaders Association (pronounced uhb-pluh) we regularly employ the following Google tools and shortcuts to add precious seconds back into our daily schedules:

Search within a Site

Have you ever tried to use the internal search feature when surfing most websites? If so, then you know that the results are often not even close to what you were really seeking. To eliminate the need for unproductive searches within a website, you can use Google to return pages that match your search criteria from any website. In the Google search box, type the term you wish to search and site:sitename.com (or .org; .gov; whatever), and Google will search the specific website for you.

For example, if you wanted to find all of the articles on AskTheManager.com where we mentioned Jennifer Aniston (surprisingly, we’ve included her three times including this post), you would type: Jennifer Aniston site:askthemanager.com and click “search.” Follow this link to see how these results appear in Google.




Search Smarter

When searching for information we know is contained within a government site (like tax information or the hours of our local DMV office) Google occasionally returns results from commercial websites that don’t quite meet our needs and cause us to sort through more choices than required.

By simply including the “site colon” modifier (as we did above) we can limit our searches to just .gov (government) websites.

For example, if we wanted to find the locations of all DMV offices in Arizona we could use the following search in Google: DMV locations Arizona site:.gov. This search will return the official State of Arizona website first and not include any commercial websites. This is important, because leaving off the site:.gov modifier will return a commercial site (dmv.org) that happens to have a better Google Page Rank. Follow this link to see how using the site:.gov modifier improves the search. Follow this link to see the search results without the modifier.

Note: The site colon modifier can be used to limit searches to specific country websites, as well. For example, search term site:.ca would return only Canadian results.

Google Alerts

Google Alerts are the answer to keeping up with what is written on the Internet for topics/people/companies with whom you’re interested. Instead of going to Google periodically to conduct searches for things that interest you (for example, your name), you can set a Google Alert and have the information delivered directly to your inbox as it occurs on the Web. Google Alerts are simple to create and maintain – to set up a Google Alert, follow this link.

Search Your Own Computer

Using the power of Google to search for files on your desktop or laptop is a true timesaver over the alternatives. For whatever reason, Microsoft and Apple just don’t want to make it a quick, painless task to find that Excel spreadsheet from August 2006 where you included the phrase “Housing Meltdown” to predict the current economic turmoil.

Setting up the Google Desktop Search is a snap, and the search functions and results operate precisely as they do with online searches. To set up the Google Desktop Search, follow this link.

Use Gadgets and the Google Sidebar

Like most things Google, the Google Gadgets (and the optional sidebar) were not an original idea from the Google Gods. Google just made them better and easier to manage. Google Gadgets are simply tools/widgets that can be placed on your desktop so you can view important information in real time and at a glance (like weather, stock prices and news).

Some of the news gadgets, as well as the Google Calendar and the Weather gadgets are our favorite timesavers; while the Answer Ball and the HOT or NOT gadgets are our favorite time-wasters. To view the current gadgets lineup, follow this link and use the left navigation to narrow the list of gadgets to those that interest you.

Install the Google Pack

Stop wasting money and (especially) time managing your virus and spyware protection software packages – the Google Pack solves this by providing these tools (along with a few others) for free. The time savings occurs when you aren’t continually bombarded with requests for updates – all updates can happen virtually automatically and are free of charge. To install the Google Pack, follow this link. (Sorry, not for Mac, just Windows XP and Vista users.)

Use These Random Google Timesavers (Shortcuts) We Also Love:

Search Ranges of Data – Simply type search term #…# in the search box to limit your results to specific ranges. For example, if you’re in the market for a CDMA phone between $50 and $100, you would enter CDMA phone $50…$100 and click “search.” To see these results, follow this link.

Do Quick Math Problems – A couple of the editors at AskTheManager.com no longer have calculators on their desks at work or at home. They claim that between Google and Excel they can work more efficiently than with an old fashioned ten-key. For Google, they simply enter the math problem they wish to solve in plain language. For example, if you wanted to multiply 750 by 324 you would enter 750*324 into Google and click “search.” To see these results, follow this link.

Get a Quick Stock Quote – Entering stocks:symbol will return the current stock data for any publicly traded company. For example, you would enter stocks:goog to find the current price for shares of Google. To see the current market price for a share of Google, follow this link.

Get a Quick Weather Forecast – Enter weather:zip code (or city, state) and you’ll instantly get a four-day forecast for that area. Viewing the current forecast for Beverly Hills, CA, for example, is as easy as entering weather:90210 and clicking search (or following this link).

Find Movie Times in your Area – Movie:zip code (or city, state) gets you all of the movie showtimes (plus reviews) for anywhere you wish. To see the current showtimes in Beverly Hills, follow this link.

Find the Definition of a Word – One of our favorite Google shortcuts should get even the most ardent paper dictionary supporter to come to the dark side. Typing define:word (where “word” represents the word you wish to define) will get you the definition for any word you wish. For example, to see the definition of the word “leader,” follow this link. 

Of course, there are scores of Google shortcuts, though these are the ones we find the most helpful in making us more productive. Got a favorite shortcut or a way you use Google to save time that we failed to mention? Just leave us a comment below…

 

The Best Rolling Briefcases Money Can Buy – Laptop Cases for the New Millenium

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The Rolling Briefcase – A Leader’s Most Important Tool?

Not since Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) and his coworkers marveled at the color, font and texture of one another’s business cards in 2000’s American Psycho has a business tool garnered as much admiration and created as much jealousy as the rolling briefcases being dragged through America today.

Whether tooling through the airport or navigating their office hallways with their pull-behind laptop luggage, American business leaders have begun to make both coworkers and strangers take notice.

While there are still those who choose to lug a laptop case by the straps, the editors of AskTheManager.com are convinced these bag-draggers and over-the-shoulder-computer-holders secretly suffer from briefcase envy when they spy us with our new Victorinox, Kensington or Wenger.

As with any fad or fashion, the market has become littered with both good and bad rolling briefcases. We did our homework, checked out the bags available at the mall luggage stores and office supply outlets, and we’ve decided that pound-for-pound and dollar-for-dollar, these are the 5 Best Rolling Briefcases money can buy:

  1. Victorinox Werks Traveler 2.0 Expandable Wheeled Computer Briefcase   
    The King of Rolling Briefcases, show up to work with this Victorinox and you’d have Patrick Bateman plotting your death. This one stores up to a 15″ laptop, and comes with two mesh pockets for storing computer peripherals along with lots of other cool and useful pockets and compartments. While the front compartment expands 2.5″, the rear compartment features a file divider which unzips to lie flat when not in use. Comes with a nifty zip-away water bottle pocket. Fully expanded, this great case is monster of storage at 16.5″ x 15.5″ x 11.5″. Retails for around $290.




  2. SwissGear by Wenger Black Rolling Briefcase
    This great SwissGear by Wenger lists for over $270, but generally can be had for under $100. We found this one on Amazon for $85 with free shipping. Wenger makes a very durable bag; in fact one of our editors has pulled his through airports for more than three years and over 300 flights – and it still works and looks great. Wenger, for those of you who don’t know, is considered the “Genuine” provider of Swiss Army Knives and Victorinox is considered the “Original” provider of these. Long story short, both are great brands and both have been around for more than 110 years. In fact, Victorinox purchased Wenger in 2005, but decided to keep and market both brands. You cannot go wrong with either, though Victorinox is a bit more durable and certainly more respected in the water cooler discussions.
  3. Kensington 62348 Contour Roller Carrying Case
    Kensington is one of the original providers of protective laptop cases and unlike the other top maker (Targus), they’ve done a terrific job of taking what they learned with the old sling-style cases and converted them into great rolling briefcases. This case is huge (19” x 17” x 9.5”) and is great for the road warrior who takes most of their office with them when they travel. As for bags with list prices under $100, this one is the best. We found it on Amazon for $65 with free shipping. 
  4. Samsonite Business One Mobile Office   
    Not many wheeled laptop bags can handle a 17” laptop, but this great Samsonite can do this and still provide plenty of room for virtually everything else you need for the short or long trip. A durable bag from a great maker of durable luggage – it won’t turn heads like a Victorinox, but it’s well worth the money. We found it on Amazon with free shipping for under $120 ($200 list).
  5. Patriot from SwissGear by Wenger
    A very deep and rugged rolling briefcase, the Patriot is probably the most common of the great bags that you’ll see in airports today. Because of its depth (11”) and the removable laptop tote (included at no charge) this is the most versatile bag available. You’ll never have to pack a second bag for that overnight trip, since you can fit a change of clothes and your toiletries in the rear compartment. A great buy at its $129 list price; though you can find it for under $90 (like we did at Amazon).

The Ten Best Warren Buffett Books of All Time

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The Best of Warren Buffett

With the recession looming, the stock market in the tank, and worldwide economic uncertainty, it’s nice to know America has a man like billionaire Warren Buffett to turn to for investment advice. Buffett is to the stock market what Tiger Woods is to golf. He’s the best and second place really isn’t that close.

Unfortunately for American readers looking to learn from the Oracle of Omaha, there are 47 books about Warren Buffett still in print today. Since it would be impractical (and a bit redundant to read all 47), you have to wonder how in the world would someone know which book to choose?

The truth is; they wouldn’t. That’s where the editors of AskTheManager.com come in. We decided to do the homework for you, and we picked our Top Ten Best Warren Buffett Books of All Time.

In no particular order (because these are all great reads), here are the 10 Best Buffet Books (still in print):

 

Do You Need a Presentation Projector?

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The Good, The Bad and The Ugly with Presentation Projectors

A colleague commented the other day that he was presenting a sales proposal to a medium-sized company and their conference room was not equipped with a projector.

He had not prepared any handouts in advance and had to deliver the entire presentation from his laptop. (Imagine eight people all huddled around a 14.5” laptop screen.)

Of course, this is something he should have known about his prospect before he showed up to present. It seems my colleague forgot some of the Consultative Sales Training 101 Rules. For example, you never, ever go into a sales presentation without knowing a few important facts:

 

  1. Your audience (is the decision maker going to attend?)
  2. Their needs (and how your product meets their needs)
  3. The dress code (suits are not always a great choice)
  4. Presentation room dynamics (like, do they have a projector?)

Needless to say, he didn’t get the sale. This is probably because he knew little about his prospect and less about not having a projector, though he swore to get a good business projector and carry it with him to every presentation.

While I’m not sure that’s necessary, I do find it curious that the medium-sized company did not have one in their conference room. How do they train or present to their own employees?

What’s the Very Best Projector for the Money?

Because the range of business presentation projectors can vary by hundreds of even thousands of dollars, we put some of them to the test to see which projectors are good values for you and your business.




Primarily, you need to decide whether you want a portable unit (something that can travel and generally weighs less than 6 pounds) or a stationary unit. (If you’re reading this, then I assume you’re not trying to mount something to the ceiling and control it from a room down the hall – for that we recommend a professional.)

What the Heck Does DLP Stand For?

You will want to buy a DLP projector. DLP is an acronym for Digital Light Processing and it is superior to LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) in our opinion.

All of the recommended projectors use DLP technology to deliver crystal clear images:

ViewSonic PJ513D DLP Projector
This highly portable projector delivers amazingly clear images with the digital clarity of DLP technology with Brilliant Color. This is a great choice for small offices, classrooms or home use. It weighs under 6 pounds and produces 2,200 lumens (which is important when you want a projector). MSRP $725, though you can find it on Amazon for $435.

InFocus Work Big IN10 Ultramobile DLP Projector
This truly ultra portable DLP Projector weighs just 2.4 lbs and easily fits in your hand. While this is an unbelievably nice projector for the money, it’s not cheap. MSRP runs about $1,250, though Amazon lists it for under $1,000.

Epson PowerLite 77c 2200 Lumen Multimedia Projector
The best feature of the Epson PowerLite 77c is that it powers up in about 5 seconds. Like the ViewSonic PJ513D, it weighs about 6 pounds. Great image and great projector for the money. MSRP is $750, though Amazon sells them for less than $600.

InFocus IN24+ DLP Projector SVGA  
While this DLP Projector weighs less than 6 pounds, it’s not as portable as the other three on this list. It is, however, a great office projector at a great value. While it retails for about $660, Amazon stocks it for under $590. The colors are unbelievable; the images are crisp and clear. It’s a high performance projector that’s built for rock-solid reliability.