Free Too Busy for Your Own Good by Connie Merritt

Train yourself to use it with your nondominant hand. This leaves your dominant hand free to type quickly and accurately, going back to the resting position on your keyboard. (Most keyboards have a little nub on the J and F keys to rest your index fingers on.)
    Copy Stand . A document holder or copy stand right next to your monitor will keep you from leaning and twisting to see a document flat on your desk. It can be as simple as a stand-up clipboard or small note holder, or a more elaborate document holder that hangs off your monitor and tilts, has a line guide, magnifying lens, and a whiteboard.
    Phone . If you are on the phone a lot throughout the day, it’s a good idea to use a headset or speakerphone to eliminate cradling the handset. This makes talking on the phone less of a strain on your neck.
    Lighting . The proper lighting in your office can reduce headaches and eyestrain. I realize that you don’t have much control over this if you’re in a cubicle, but often a swing-arm desk lamp will alleviate any shadows or darkness on your desk.
    Use natural light as much as possible by moving your desk near windows or under skylights.
    Reduce the glare and heat from windows with movable screens or adjustable blinds.
    Move equipment and computer monitor to eliminate glare.
    Use a swing-arm or clip-on lamp to illuminate tasks.
    Use a pole light facing upward or toward the wall to increase room brightness.
    Consider a full-spectrum light if you’ve got seasonal affective disorder.
    Ventilation . Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health found that office employees who work in areas that receive less fresh air from the outside are more likely to call in sick than their colleagues who breathe higher levels of outside air. This may result from the transmission of cold and flu viruses and other irritants that are not removed in ventilation systems with moderate airflow.
    Maintain air circulation, increasing with the number of people in the room.
    Open windows for fresh air from the outside whenever possible.
    Direct heating/air conditioning vents away from blowing on your face or head.
    Use a small desk fan or heater. Place it at your feet for maximum benefits. (Be careful that the heater isn’t too close to furniture or combustibles and the fan doesn’t disturb your papers.)
    Use saline nasal spray in dry months or with high temperatures—it will keep your nasal passages moist and less susceptible to floating irritants. Small humidifiers are great, and the cool-air types are easier on your nasal mucosa.
Coordinating Your Communications
    At work, your communication style can be your greatest asset in reducing busyness. If ineffective, the way you manage your communications with others can cost you much timeand cause many needless interruptions. In today’s working world, face-to-face communication has taken a backseat to technology, making the way you handle e-mail and other online communication critical to your productivity. Fortunately, there are many smart, effective ways to maximize your use of e-mail, voice mail, and other technologies.
E-Mail and Your In(sane)-Box
    In October 2008, the New York–based research firm Basex published a study of a thousand office workers from top managers on down. It found that interruptions (spam, unnecessary e-mail, and instant messaging) now consume an average of 2.1 hours each day, or 28 percent of the workday. The two hours of lost productivity included not only unimportant interruptions and distractions but also the recovery time associated with getting back on task. Researchers found workplace interruptions for those who perform tasks involving information cost the U.S. economy $617 billion a year (based on an average salary of $21 an hour for the 56 million knowledge workers). That is entirely too much productivity lost, hours that our economy could definitely use. Fortunately enough, this is a problem that can be solved on the individual level,