Category: Development and Training

Most of our lives are run by time, but do you know how long your common tasks actually take? Today HRD facilitator Lois Wolfe-Morgan is back to give us another technique for time mastery. See if her tips can help you as you prepare for upcoming projects and work towards deadlines. Check out the video with the tips here.

For more help with time management, check out upcoming HRD classes on the SpartansLearn Portal. Lois also has a two-hour goal setting class coming up on Tuesday, February 28!

Your tech team says it’s time to replace your computer and poof!  One day there’s a shiny new computer on your desk and everything you’re used to seeing is different.  Train.msu.edu/lynda to the rescue!

With the University’s access to Lynda.com, you can get basic or advanced training on many software programs you use every day.  In the course Word 2010 New Features, you can watch a 3 minute video on the differences between Word 2007 and Word 2010.   Did you know you can customize the ribbon of tools at the top of your screen with the options or even Macros you use most?   Editing images in your Word documents is easier, too.  Word 2010 moves the image editing tools right into your document, from cropping the image to touching it up without ever leaving your document.Continue Reading… My tech team just installed a new computer at my desk, now what do I do?

Remember TrapperKeepers®?  Before backpacks became the norm for students to carry everything, there were TrapperKeepers.  One big spiral notebook that snapped closed so papers could not fall out and contained folders and dividers so you could keep all of your school notes in one handy place.

OneNote is part of most Microsoft Office Desktop software packages and is kind of an online TrapperKeeper.  This program allows you create notebooks for projects, meetings, tasks or just screenshots of web pages.   Create a notebook, then add headings and notes, insert  a screen capture from any program on your computer, add audio, video, and other files from your computer or use a screen capture in a document, Outlook emails and meeting requests.    Continue Reading… OneNote – your own electronic TrapperKeeper®

Sounds impressive doesn’t it?  Maybe even a little intimidating?  Not at all, with MSU’s access to Lynda.com you can take a free course to learn the Power Shortcuts in Excel 2010.

For example, did you know you can copy values, formulas or text  from one cell in a column then duplicate that information to every cell in that column with just a double click?  No copy and pasting in hundreds of lines, no scrolling with the shift button held down, just double click on the lower-right corner of your original cell and the formulas, values or text in that cell populate the entire column.Continue Reading… Excel 2010 Power Shortcuts

Are there phone calls you’ve been putting off? Or a task that you just can’t decide where to begin? We’re all guilty of procrastination! Today’s time mastery tip explains Lois Wolfe-Morgan’s “do it now” principle. Check out the video with her tips here!

Look for classes on time management and other offerings by Lois-Wolfe-Morgan this spring in the SpartansLearn catalog.

Useful link: Time Mastery Tips, Part One

Nobody wakes up in the morning thinking, “Today at work, I’m going to make some uninformed decisions that blindside my team and create chaotic unintended consequences for my unit!”  Some days things just turn out that way.  But having good employee engagement practices can help limit the time your team loses grappling with or grumbling over the consequences of poor decisions.

“Employee engagement means involving people in decision-making processes when the results of those decisions will affect them,” said Dawn Hecker, who leads MSU Human Resources’ organizational development team and consults with units on participatory management practices.  “It also means understanding that the best ideas don’t always come from the top.  When you take the time to seek input from others at all levels of the organization, you often are rewarded with creative and innovative ideas you might have otherwise missed.”Continue Reading… Employee Engagement Leads to Better Decisions