Dear Ken,

I wanted to thank you for coming up to Austin, MN last week in order to teach the newest Hormel supervisors time and organizational management.  I took so much away from the lesson and realized how much easier I could ( and should) be doing things.  It never occurred to me that it could take such a minimal effort in order maximize my efficiency at work, as well as in my personal life, and to free up so much time out of my schedule.

I’ve already started implementing many of the things we covered and have already started seeing results.  It may sound corny, but for some reason I am extremely excited about utilizing the techniques that you trained us on. I can’t wait to see what’s to come out of further implementation in the future.

It was great meeting and talking with you, as the last person I was expecting to see in Austin was a fellow Charlottian.  I hope you enjoy the beautiful South, I wish you the best in your future endeavors, and thank you so much for the literally life-changing lesson.

Best regards,

Tyler Macik

Hormel Foods

Mornings, especially Monday’s, can be incredibly challenging. Even this morning I had a hard time not snoozing my alarm clock for the third time. I made a big mistake with my weekend and it is already affecting my veggie time on this important morning: I pulled out my laptop at nine last night to just quickly check some appointments. Before I knew it, it was 1 am and I was replying to emails, doing a little research and generally being all too awake.

I know I have been exhorting you guys to leave work at work, keep the mental separation and keep a healthy work/life balance. I am the first to admit that it is incredibly difficult at times to maintain. Luckily, time management is not a one-shot kind of deal. It is a daily process; with every day that you consciously try to better manage your time, you will get better at it and make each part of it more of a habit.

Keep on trying my hints and don’t give up hope!

I am a big believer in honesty. In every facet of your life, it is incredibly important to do what you say AND to say what you do. It does not matter if it is in regards to your family, your friends, your co-workers or your bosses: honesty is the best policy.

When agreeing to help co-workers, to be home for dinner or to head a new project, it is vital to communicate openly your expectations, your limitations and your vision. Your significant other will be much happier to hear “Honey, I don’t think I can be home until 8:30 tonight” than to hear platitudes and then have wasted an evening cooking you a dinner that is ruined. In the same way, if you promise your client or boss that you can have these three deliverables by COB Friday, you better be able to deliver them by that time. It is acceptable (in most cases) to communicate to your boss or client if you absolutely cannot make your deadline, provided that you do it early on in the process (noon on Friday is NOT acceptable) and that you have a good reason for missing the deadline. Otherwise, you’re violating their trust and undermining their opinion of you. Next time your client is looking to book a job or your boss is looking to staff a new project, they will both hesitate to pick you again.

View all of your promises as “veggies”. Abiding by them will significantly increase your employment/home life health.