The 14-Day Google Challenge

Girl, get focused. Get organized. Get it done. Get sanity. Get your time back, honey.

How? Get Google.

I was conducting my normal end of year strategic planning process. As part of the process, I typically look at what I can reorganize in my life for higher levels of efficiency in the new year. I took a look at my inefficiencies in scheduling, filing and note-taking. Girl, I have two words for it. Messy boots.

I was keeping notes in two different paid Evernote accounts, files and materials and notes in google drive, a CRM system in capsule, my goals and project plans in Smartsheets. I had some random projects in Asana. I recalled how often I was losing documents in 3 overloaded email accounts and managing 3 different calendars across them. I have e-sticky notes all over my desktop, notebooks in every purse and – whew – need I say more? When did this even happen to me? I don’t even get down like that.

I had all these fancy folders organized in google drive, but then when I needed a document, I went searching through email for it, instead of quickly going to the file it SHOULD be in.

I decided that enough was enough with all my administrative shenanigans. I also decided I was going to fix it for free or next to free.

So I created the Black Female Entrepreneur’s 14-Day Get Your Life Google Challenge. I switched out Evernote for Google Keep. I switched out Smartsheet for a gantt chart template in Google Sheets. I streamlined to one google calendar. I redesigned my Gmail contacts and tags to manage leads.

Why? I’m not the head of the Google Beyhive or anything. It’s just that the tools in Google are free or near free. I already have Gmail accounts and Google Drive and it just made sense to say goodbye to everyone else. Yes, there are things about the other platforms I love. But I gave up my small preferences for the ability to streamline and use tools that are already integrated. It just made sense. If you are inspired, then join me.

I’m so happy. I absolutely love my new-found sanity. And I’m I’m just getting started. I plan to master every google secret about calendar, gmail, keep and drive that there is.

And I’m inviting you to go for the ride and become Googlicious with me! For 14 days, take steps to set up, streamline and make the most of the features offered in gmail and google drive, keep, docs, calendar and tasks.

Every two days for two weeks, I’ll release an email challenge with ONE function in google that you can set up and list of ways to rock out using it.

In each email, I’ll share tips, tools and a major step to take for these 7 pillars of productivity for GoogleGirls:

Get Your Goals Met

Track your progress. No more losing track of your goals and getting swept into the fires and chaos. Use a google project sheet monthly to make sure you are focused on business goals. In this email, I share a cool google template for you to manage weekly and monthly benchmarks and progress on goals.

Get Your Time

Be on time to meetings. Real talk, “CP” time is wack and in 2016 the early bird gets the client. Use google reminder tools and check your calendar daily. I share ways to organize, color code, tag and share your calendar and keep your schedule in check and arrest those time bandits.

Get Your Results

Meet deadlines. You make money when people can depend on you to deliver when you say you will, so strive to meet deadlines. Use the Google tasks functions in the calendar and add deadlines. I’ll share great tips for remembering to add, use and clear your tasklist.

Get Your Money

Master follow-up. Follow-up is where your big sales are. Manage gmail and google contacts to follow up and check on your leads and partners weekly. Learn how to code, group and organize contacts so that you are able to communicate with groups and segments effectively. I’ll share resources for how to tag your emails effectively so that you’ll stay on top of leads, new partners and opportunities that need a reminder, a check-in or an update to move the relationship or the sale to the next phase.

Get Your Clarity

Keep a highly organized filing system. When documents are sent to you, send them straight to your filing system from google. Stop searching your emails for documents. It’s really not a time saver if you have an organized filing system. I’ll offer ways to create folders and file names so that you find things in a giffy.

Get Your Focus

Get the most out of meetings. I’ll show you how to manage meeting notes that are easy to refer to Google Keep. PLUS, I will share my own google doc meeting template to help you easily find your meeting notes. I’ll share tips for how to keep your notes all in one place. Don’t let meetings become the place where talking happens absent action. Use Google Keep and meeting notes to stay on track with meeting deliverables.

Get Your Sanity.

Don’t get punked by your email. Unsubscribe from lists. Clean it daily. I share ways to find time to clean your email quickly, and to create and use labels effectively.

So see, this 14-day challenge is truly designed to help you get your life back Sis. I know, you need freedom too. Plus, you’ll save time and money, and show up like that Boss that you are in meetings, in business communication and transactions.

14 days. One login. Get it, Sis. Join our SistahCircle on Facebook Group to find out more about the 14-day Challenge coming up January 26. This challenge is FREE. It’s simply a gift to Sistahs who are ready to be productivity ninjas once and for all.

Sistahpreneurs is the Business Haven for the Black Female Entrepreneur. For more on sistahpreneurs, visit www.sistahpreneurs.com.