Significant Career Lesson From a Partnership Manager at Island Press
Jen, a Partnership Manager at Island Press, combats a tendency towards distraction—"I like the shiny new thing"—by strategically organizing her inbox to prioritize oldest unread emails first. This clever method tricks her brain into focusing on tasks, thus improving attention and productivity.
Overcoming Challenges, Time Management, Prioritization, Task Management, Motivation
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Jen Hawse
Partnership Manager
Island Press
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
N/A
Anthropology, Sociology
Climate, Environment, Sustainability & Waste Management, Nonprofit, Foundations & Grantmaking
Communication and Marketing
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. Prioritize tasks by focusing on the oldest unread emails first to manage distractions and improve focus.
2. Employing strategies to overcome the tendency to get distracted by new and shiny things.
3. Develop techniques to manage attention and stay on task, such as sorting emails by unread and oldest first to create a structured to-do list.
Transcript
What is one lesson that you have learned that has proven significant in your career?
I struggle with ADHD. I like the shiny new thing. I think, "What can I do now?" Oh, that's an email I really want to answer right now. That's not what I should be doing all the time.
So, this is kind of a trick I use to trick my brain. I sort my inbox, which is like my task list or to-do list, by unread. If I read it, I'm done. If it's unread, it's a to-do.
So, I sort it by unread, and then by oldest first. It feels more like, "Oh, I'm doing the first thing on my task list," even though it's a really old email. This tricks my brain into thinking I'm doing something new, rather than something I'm not good at. I need this to keep my attention on my tasks.