Guide to Productivity for Managers, with Patrick Juan

In another one-to-one session with our community members, I had the pleasure of interviewing Patrick Juan and hearing his insights on productivity for team managers and the future of work. 

Patrick is the Head of Marketing and Operations at ACIT Global, an out-of-the-box network for scholars and experts worldwide. The initiative aims to spread free education and endorse a community of interdisciplinary and critical thinking. 

ACIT’s Career Starter Program allows brilliant students from the best universities worldwide to contribute to the project’s mission. Over the next few lines, Patrick describes how his productivity routine helps him keep up with his management obligations at ACIT. 

Hello, Patrick! Thanks for taking the time to talk to us. Tell us: how do you feel about working remotely?

I think it’s a great way to allow people worldwide to work at organizations without the need to relocate. 

Realistically, working remotely will only work for people who are able to create a productive workspace in their homes. Some people are likely to work more effectively in an office rather than at home, and many even prefer on-site jobs!

But personally, I like that I don’t have to transit long distances and that I can use that extra time to have more time for personal projects and mental rest. Most of my work is heavily computer-based anyways, so working remotely is an effective setup for me!

As a remote worker and team manager, how do you organize your tasks and schedule?

I use three key platforms for organizing my tasks and schedule: Google Calendar, Notion, and Akiflow. 

Google Calendar keeps track of my meetings, appointments, and classes, as I’m also an undergrad student. My calendar also marks my working hours so that I can separate them from my personal time. 

Notion hosts the task board that I share with my team, so we can stay updated on what the team is doing while keeping track of important information linked to tasks. 

Then I use Akiflow to link these tasks to my personal calendar.

Do you use any productivity methodologies?

I’m a big fan of time blocking. 

I’m prone to overworking myself when I feel like I can keep doing more. Hence, time blocking allows me to create boundaries for my work so I don’t burn myself out and allocate a sufficient amount of personal time for recovery.

What’s your biggest productivity challenge?

One of my biggest challenges is definitely getting distracted. I sometimes find it hard to maintain focus, especially when I get tempted to check my messages. I try to address this with time blocking and setting aside time for specific tasks. By having my tasks scheduled in advance, I always know what I’m supposed to be working on at any given time, which helps me remain more focused.

How does Akiflow help you overcome this challenge?

One of my favorite things about Akiflow is that it lets me visualize all my tasks on my calendar, giving me a better idea of how much time I truly have to get my stuff done. 

The ability to separate to-do dates from their actual deadlines has been super helpful, so I can prioritize tasks more easily and work on stuff in advance of their specified due date. The ability to quickly create tasks on the spot with the pop-up toolbar has also been super helpful, so I don’t feel too distracted from my ongoing work when I realize I have something new to add to my to-do list. 

The ability to snooze tasks has been super valuable as well, so I don’t have to see a task on my to-do list until I know I’ll be ready to work on it. This prevents me from getting overwhelmed with the work I need to do!

As a manager, how would you like your work routine and setup to be in 10 years?

Personally, I’m a fan of remote work, so I hope I can continue working remotely in the future! I’m also a big fan of structure, so I’d like to continue having access to tools like Akiflow to help organize my day and manage my tasks. By having predictable times for work, I can separate that time from my own personal time to maintain a healthy work-life balance as well!

To end our conversation, how would you describe the future of work in general?

In general, I think work will continue becoming more accessible and globalized with the help of remote work! It’s popular already, and I’m sure it will continue growing in popularity.

Learn more with our community: Productivity For Hybrid Work, With Ohad Ronen