⏳ quit managing your time like this

learn time management tips from algorithms, improve your storytelling game, and lead with sugarcoated steel.

Subscribe here | Unsubscribe here | #ThirstyThursday May 29, 2025 Click the image for the punchline 👆. 😂 See all May 2025 Thirsty Thursday jokes here. ✅ Today's Checklist:  Here's how to manage your time better, according to machines Improve your storytelling by 176% How to be sugarcoated steel 5 milestones to celebrate more in our 30s 🗓️ Free upcoming events: Today 5/29 1PM ET: Practical Productivity (w/ NextArrow) Today & Tom (Multiple Times): Learn Excel Dashboards (w/ Miss Excel) QUICK LINKS 🤹‍♀️ Work like you don't have kids. Mother like you don't have a job. Make it make sense. 🏆 Goodbye turnover, hello loyalty—these recognition tools actually keep people around. ☕ Your slump doesn't need more caffeine, it needs a midday wellness reset. 👋 Onboarding software that helps you nail the first impression. PRODUCTIVITY     How To Manage Your Time More Effectively (According To Machines) Takeaways: Don't over-prioritize at the expense of action. Constantly reordering your to-do list can become a form of procrastination. Sometimes, good enough is more productive than perfect. Minimize interruptions to protect focus. Every time you switch tasks, you lose momentum. Blocking off uninterrupted time is crucial for deep, high-impact work. Batch similar tasks to work smarter. Grouping low-priority items like email or admin into dedicated time slots reduces context switching and boosts efficiency. Watch the TedTalk on Youtube. TRAINING     Transform Code Policy Into Binge-Worthy Training   Is your Code of Conduct training making an impact, or just checking a box? Traliant's latest course flips the script, reimagining your Code of Conduct as an episodic drama series. Employees aren't just watching; they're immersed in real-world dilemmas where the right choice isn't always obvious. Think: cliffhangers, podcasts, and suspenseful storylines that bring your policies to life. From accepting gifts and navigating conflicts of interest to protecting data and speaking up—each scene is designed to stick, spark reflection, and drive real behavior change. Built around DOJ guidance and fully customizable to your org, this training meets the moment: culture expectations are rising, and outdated training just doesn't cut it. No eye rolls. No forgettable slides. Just compliance training they'll actually remember. 👉 Start watching now. COMMUNICATION     Improve Your Storytelling Skills By 176% Takeaways: Zoom into one specific moment, not a summary. Starting with a vivid location and action grounds your story and creates instant momentum. Let your thoughts and emotions be raw, not polished. Share what you really felt and thought in the moment to make your story more relatable and human. Use dialogue to make it real. Quoting exactly what was said keeps your audience engaged, and adds authenticity to your storytelling. Catch the 9 min YouTube video. CONFIDENCE     How To Be Sugarcoated Steel In The Workplace Takeaways: Lead with softness, stand with strength. Emilie Cotter's motto, "Be sugarcoated steel," proves you can be both kind and formidable, and it's a formula that's worked at every stage of her career. Embrace duality in leadership. You can be warm, funny, and bubbly and be results-driven and resilient. Emilie's story is proof that authenticity and impact aren't mutually exclusive. Bold moves can still build trust. Even a decision once labeled "career suicide" turned into a career-defining opportunity when grounded in values and carried with confidence. Read the LinkedIn post. SALES PROCESSES     🔁 The CRM Habits That'll Save Your Sanity   If you live inside your CRM (and let's be real, most of us do), keeping it clean is essential. But it's not just about deleting outdated contacts or logging your last call. The real magic happens when your CRM becomes a tool that actually works for you. Here's how to make that happen (with some help from tools we'd happily bet our pipeline on): ✅ 1. Turn Your Pipeline Into a Dashboard, Not a Dumpster When every deal is "active" and every lead is "warm," nothing is prioritized. Use color-coded stages, statuses, or tags to make your pipeline visually useful. Try this: With monday.com's fully customizable pipelines, you can add urgency tags, priority fields, or automation that flags stagnant deals in real time. Bonus: You can see exactly where bottlenecks happen at a glance. ✅ 2. Write Like You're Not the Only One Reading It One day you'll go on vacation (manifesting it 😎). And someone else will need to jump into your CRM. Will they be able to follow what's happening? Do this: Summarize convos in deal notes. Include context like: "Client prefers texts" or "Wants to revisit in Q3." Use templates for follow-ups so messages stay consistent. Tools like Close make this easy with built-in calling, email, and SMS—all tracked directly inside the CRM. No more digging through inboxes for that one line they said last week. ✅ 3. Automate the Boring Stuff Set it and forget it (but not really). Smart automations = fewer dropped balls. Here's how: Create a task every time a deal hits a specific stage. Auto-send intro emails after an initial discovery call. Remind yourself to follow up if there's no reply in X days. Tools like monday.com's automation recipes can handle this with no-code workflows that keep your team humming. Or use Close's built-in follow-up sequences to make sure prospects don't ghost without a nudge. ✅ 4. Check Your Data Hygiene Like It's Your Skincare Routine A clean CRM is a productive CRM. Quick wins: Merge duplicate contacts weekly. Archive dead deals instead of leaving them in limbo. Standardize tags and custom fields (e.g., "Partner Lead" vs. "Partnered Lead"—pick one). Set a recurring Friday calendar block for your "CRM Glow-Up." Even 20 minutes helps you spot junk before it snowballs. If your current tool feels more confusing than helpful, it's time for an upgrade. monday.com and Close are built to help you stay on top of deals, stay in sync with your team, and actually move things forward. ADULTING     5 Milestones We Should Be Celebrating In Our 30s Takeaways: Your 30s are filled with quiet courage. From living solo to relocating cities, these bold moves often go unnoticed—but they're powerful signs of self-trust and growth. Let go to grow. Friendship breakups and relationship endings aren't failures. They're brave acts of choosing alignment over obligation. Redefining success takes guts. Career pivots, fresh starts, or choosing rest are all valid milestones. Reinvention deserves just as much celebration as achievement. See all 5 milestones on IG. STAFF PICKS Stuff We're Loving This Week   🧳 Wrinkles don't stand a chance with this mini steamer. 🌸 Finally, a program that gets women 40+—balanced, sustainable, and built for real life. 📅  All your tasks, docs, and goals in one place that actually makes sense. 📘 Managing People from What Matters is the people-first playbook for coaching better, leading smarter, and getting results that stick. JUST FOR FUN JOB LEADS   Your Next Gig = One Click Away HEPCO, Inc. is hiring for an Associate Financial Analyst (Brooklyn, NY). STS Aviation Services is hiring for a Human Resources Generalist & Compliance Coordinator (Melbourne, FL). STS Technical Services is hiring for a Quality Director (Milwaukee, WI). Impactable—B2B LinkedIn Agency is hiring for a Digital Marketing Account Coordinator (San Antonio, TX). Career Group is hiring for an Executive Assistant To Partner (San Francisco, CA). ⭐ View more jobs here > SPILL THE TEA Take Our Poll     Have more feedback? 💌 Reply to this email and tell us. ✨ P.S. Want more inspiration and positivity to kick off your week? Sign up for our Motivational Monday texts (U.S. only). 👀 Want to see if your company is a good fit for our 100k+ ambitious readers? Join our Sponsor Waitlist here. UPDATE YOUR PREFERENCES Only Get What You Want  Here's how to update your preferences in just a few quick steps: Click the link below and on the "Update Your Preferences" page, click the "Email me a link" button. Open the email with the subject line "The Assist Subscribers: Update Profile" and click the link inside. Choose the weekly email newsletters you'd like to receive from us (Tues, Wed, Thurs, Sat). Click "Update Preferences" to save your changes—and you're all set! 👉 Update my subscriber preferences here. Catch up on all Thirsty Thursday newsletters here. We send 4 emails a week — update which issues you receive at any time. Never want to hear from us again? Break our hearts and unsubscribe. Visit our Etsy shop for awesome templates. THE ASSIST, LOS ANGELES, CA 90045, UNITED STATES