E. E. E. Volume 13

By Elsie Escobar • Issue #13 • View online

This week I’ve taken my productivity a lot more seriously than I’ve had in the past.

I have ways that I work and get things done. All and all I’m fairly proud of my ability to execute and deliver.

I’m not a user of any kind of project management or a proper system like GTD or anything like that.

I generally cobble things together, push through when necessary and somehow, magically, things “work out.”

It’s time for a change. The stakes have gone up.

I have very important ideas and projects that mean a lot to me that need to be given life, love, and attention, so I’ve gotten serious.

Stay tuned for what I’m working on. Crossing fingers I’ll be able to point to a link next week!!!

Staying on the productivity conversation, the first thing that I needed to do was get a clear understanding of what I do, how long things take me, and the reality of what I am spending my time on.

I needed a tool that could:

Track time
Support multiple projects
Be used for both business and personal
Have a mobile component
Unintrusive and easy to use
Have the option of exporting reports (this was a key component, mostly for streamlining and reporting my work for Libsyn. This was possibly the most important feature I needed)

After I did minimal research aka I googled it 😜 and asked for some suggestions from the She Podcasts FB Group, I made my choice.

Toggl - Free Time Tracking Software

Deeeelicious!

toggl.com • Share

I’m very very very impressed with this tool. It has everything that I wanted PLUS:

It’s aesthetically so pretty 😍
In addition to a mobile app, there’s a minimal desktop app and web interface
I got up and running in less than 30 minutes! This was soooooo nice!
Instant communication between all Toggl interfaces in real time 😎
IT’S FREE!!!
OMG they send you a weekly email with all the stuff you did!

I’ve been using it since March 23 and I’m crazy impressed. It has added no friction to my every day activity. When I’ve had to change things, add things, customize something, it has been fast and intuitive.

The export of data looks beautiful. It’s exactly what I wanted!

Something that I’ve noticed about working with Toggl is that when I have the timer on, I’ve seen myself stick to a task, meaning I’ve really cut down on multitasking.

I have this slightly OCD thing that when I input ‘what I did’ I don’t wanna muss up my data, so if I’m working on Libsyn stuff, I don’t randomly wanna do anything related to She Podcasts or client work. I’ve been focused on one thing! Imagine that?

S-Town by WBEZ on iTunes

Inhaled this in a day

itunes.apple.com • Share

I loved S-Town, the new podcast by the folks from Serial and This American Life.

What a fabulous 7 episode storytelling experience.

My experience of listening to S-Town was so very very very close to listening to a novel via audiobook.

I shared my love of All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr on E.E.E. Volume 5. Reading that book took me to a different world. There were multiple stories, that were interweaved together, that spanned many years. Such an incredible novel!

I was immersed in the characters and their world.

S-Town did that for me. The depth of everything was so much! The way so many themes were layered into this story of humanity was incredible.

I could dive deep into each episode and have conversations about human nature, life, death, meaning, joy, pain, and everything in between.

Just lovely. For me, it was a deeply human experience. I enjoyed it greatly.

BookBook for MacBook | Twelve South

BookBook for MacBook is a lightweight, handmade genuine leather case designed to cushion and protect your MacBook while displaying your unique style!

www.twelvesouth.com • Share

Aesthetics are huge for me. I love things that feel good to me. I’m not sure how to explain that further…kinda like the feel of a favorite pair of jeans, the way my favorite mug feels in my hands, how I feel when I walk into my favorite book/coffee/wine place (it’s actually ONE place, I guess I’ll have to talk about it soon!)

I’m not casual at all about the things that I’m going to use on a daily basis. The way they feel is important to me.

Enter Twelve South and their Book Book covers!!!

For the past 3.5 years, my beloved AppleStar (my Macbook Air) has been enclosed in the above Book Book.

I. LOVE. IT.

It feels and looks great, plus it’s kept AppleStar safe and protected.

The craftsmanship is delicious and every creation is unique! So your Book Book will look totally different than mine!

When I get my iPad Pro, she will be enclosed in a Book Book for sure.

In parting

Have a lovely rest of the week all!

I’ll keep working on my stuff and give you an update next week!

Do let me know if you test out any of the above or past excitements 😜 I love to hear about you.

All My Love,

Did you enjoy this issue?

By Elsie Escobar

Elsie's Emergency Excitement 💙 My latest obsessions and/or excitement about anything & everything (with a GIANT #podcasting industry bias): health, tech, software, books, TV shows, products, food, services, make-up, whatever is floating my boat right now ❇️ Excitement = spontaneous, because in all honesty, my excitement is lost within a few weeks or so...um...#fickle BUT STILL in the moment I am truly o.b.s.s.e.s.s.e.d.

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