work-life Archives

Thoughtful businesswoman working on a computer while sitting on the floor at home office.

Navigating the Future of Remote Work: Trends and Strategies

Cracking the code on remote work down is essential to succeed today. Here’s a look at what's hot and what's not in remote work. Hybrid Work Cultures: A Strategic Imperative Hybrid work models, blending in-office...

byLucille Adams

March 1, 2024

Laptop in canvas bag to illustrate work live balance

Embracing Work-Life Integration: Advice from Thriving Startup Leaders

In search of the elusive equilibrium between work and personal life, we've gathered 20 insights from CEOs and founders on mastering work-life integration. From embracing time blocking for prioritization to applying the 80/20 rule for...

byBrett Farmiloe

December 27, 2023

Measuring the Body

Here’s an excerpt from Sam Carpenter’s book Work The System: The Simple Mechanics of Making More and Working Less... Eight years ago, in the depths of my workplace chaos, I was also dealing with a...

bySam Carpenter

October 24, 2008

The Cardiovascular Equipment Sign-Up System

Here’s a remove-the-system-altogether scenario. It’s the ultimate in simplifying things. My staff and I take delight in chucking unnecessary Centratel protocols. System-elimination is great to see in personal life, too. The cardio room at the...

bySam Carpenter

October 16, 2008

Paying the Bills: An Illustration of Replacing an Old System with a New One

For years, a nagging problem in my small business, Centratel, was the time and effort it took to pay the monthly bills. The process did nothing for the bottom line and each month required 10...

bySam Carpenter

September 18, 2008

Leader and High Earner

Not too long ago I participated in Cycle Oregon, a weeklong bicycle tour. Seventeen hundred riders pedaled an average of 75 miles each day through remote eastern Oregon. At night we camped in ad hoc...

bySam Carpenter

September 15, 2008

The Curse of the Blackberry: A Subtle yet Virulent Anxiety

"In the past 20 years, the lure of instant gratification has gripped the youngest half of our population. For the hooked-up generation-those born after 1970 who are wedded to iPods and the immediacy/pervasiveness of the...

bySam Carpenter

September 4, 2008

Focus on the System, Not the Product

It seems logical the manager’s total efforts should be focused on the product or service itself; that all energy be directed to the work that must be done, the customers who must be found, and...

bySam Carpenter

August 26, 2008

Point-Of-Sale: The “Do It Now” Theory

"Why? Because I’m the mommy and I said so." - Anonymous mommy Do it now and let’s get on with whatever is next! Point-of-sale is a phrase taken from the cash register industry. It describes action...

bySam Carpenter

August 21, 2008

Five Potent Strategies to Auto-Pilot Your Small Business

The numbers are gloomy. Statistics show that of one hundred new business startups, eighty will be out of business within five years. Too often, the causes of these failures are recurring inefficiencies and their offspring:...

bySam Carpenter

August 14, 2008

Know your mechanical prime time

Most people have jobs, and as of this writing, there is not a general revolt against the concept. In any society, it is a revered position - one that carries a certain “it’s a good...

bySam Carpenter

August 12, 2008

Aim for 98 percent perfection

Time and money wasted is time and money gone forever. And a waste of time and money means some other positive thing that could have happened, didn’t. Apply a “Good Enough” rule to the Working...

bySam Carpenter

August 6, 2008

Be home in time for dinner: Four ways to work less, make more, and increase productivity

Maybe you enjoy working the long hours. Yes, staying late to work on a deadline project or to finish the twenty things on your task list probably makes you feel a bit nobler than your...

bySam Carpenter

July 29, 2008

Ten steps to workplace success

Your employees are not mind readers or fortune tellers, and your business is not a free-form venue for experimentation, or a place where individual preference based on mood, time of the day, or random circumstance...

bySam Carpenter

July 25, 2008

Three tools for seizing control of your business and personal life

In Western culture, the word “control” has an undeserved bad rap. It conjures up the image of a type-A personality gone wild with power, who, headed down the road of personal self-destruction, cuts wide swaths...

bySam Carpenter

July 9, 2008

Five mistakes people make with startup businesses

Whether you've established a small business, are in the midst of launching one, or simply considering it for the future, it's certain you want at least one thing out of this investment: success. Starting and...

bySam Carpenter

June 30, 2008