The burdens are increasing at work, you are feeling pressure at home, and internally, you are putting pressure on yourself.  This doesn’t even account for the additional Holiday season pressures.  What can we do to manage all the stress life brings? 

               As a leader, the hardest person to lead can often be ourselves.  You may have read this title and thought . . . “technology increases my stress, not reduces it!”  I understand.

               The idea is to leverage a few simple tools to help you manage some of the stressors we all face.  Technology can be a great stress reducer by helping create systems where we may not have them.  Let me provide a few examples of how technology could increase effectiveness and decrease stress.

Digital Calendar

               When I was younger, I would just remember everything and keep it all to myself.  Then life got more complicated with more people involved.  This created an opportunity to use a new tool.  Over time, my technology calendar tool of choice has become Google Calendar.

               This use of technology enables others to schedule themselves which I’ll cover in a minute.  It allows my family to see and add important personal events to my calendar.  This also gives me a quick glance of priorities.  By using color coding I can see where I invest my time.  Finally, it enables me to take my to-do list and put it on the calendar as an item to execute.

CRM Tool

               There are many tools available to help us manage our contacts and communicate with them.  Over time I have met many people, and an Excel spreadsheet quickly became an ineffective tool for organization.  Now I use the free version of Hubspot for a few simple purposes.

               First, I enter people’s contact information which can be done quickly with a card scanner.  Often I use it to send e-mails because it provides feedback on whether people have received and opened them.  This helps with continuing conversations.  Finally, I use it to include notes and to-do items in one place.  The tasks have reminders so I can successfully continue to move forward.

               This may not be the best solution for you, but some type of system you can create to easily access this information will take the stress of remembering off you.  Whether it is an Excel spreadsheet, Hubspot, or another CRM tool, the tool takes the information out of your brain and into an external source.

Appointment Scheduling

               I mentioned that people can access my calendar and schedule appointments.  I have found Appointlet to be a great tool because I can set up multiple types of meetings and provide the link for individuals to schedule a meeting.  This decreases the stress of back-and-forth e-mail communication.

               Two tips, set up parameters for when you want people to be able to schedule meetings.  Also block your calendar to prevent double appointments.  Combining these two tools creates a system for scheduling without the cost of an assistant or frees an assistant’s time for that will be a more effective use of their time.

Project Management

               I have a client who has found Monday to be an effective technology tool for project management.  I personally do not use project management tools, but when you have teams working on a project, technology can help you quickly see how the project is progressing and provide a central location for communication.  This helps both the team and the leader.

               Technology can be frustrating in the beginning, but if we push through the discomfort of change, the tool can free us up to be less stressed and more effective in our leadership.  Which tool could you start using this week?  Need help thinking into prioritizing your time and self-leadership to reduce stress?  Check out this digital course Prioritizing for Success to help you more effectively lead yourself and reduce stress.  Use coupon code 75OFF to get it for 75% off the regular price.  Lead Well.

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