Today we’d like to introduce you to Monisha Longacre.
Hi Monisha, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I didn’t start out as a productivity expert. I started as someone who was drowning in to-dos, burning the candle at both ends, and wondering why “doing it all” never seemed to equal “feeling accomplished.”
I was a vice president managing weather.com at The Weather Channel, which was a top fifteen consumer website at the time. I had two very active young children. My husband was a partner at Ernst & Young, traveling weekly to one client or another. While we were living in Atlanta, my extended family still lived where I grew up in Northern Virginia, so I didn’t have much local support.
While I had a full and very fulfilling life, I didn’t sleep much, didn’t work out, and didn’t eat very well, but I was happy. After all, I was doing all the things I had dreamed of in terms of achieving the goal of “having it all.” I was checking off all the “necessary” boxes – family, education, friends, career, marriage, cars, children, house, vacations, beach condo, and so on.
One day, over lunch a colleague of mine looked directly at me and thoughtfully asked, “How do you do it all?” Well, that was a very interesting question. I honestly hadn’t given it much thought. My immediate reaction was, “I don’t know. I just do it.”
A few days later, I thought about this question again. I realized that there were some things that were innate. For example, I am never late, I don’t procrastinate, I make my bed every day, and I can’t remember a time when I didn’t have a to-do list. On the other hand, I had to learn other techniques through trial and error. And, as my life became more demanding and complicated, I certainly had to train myself and practice how to juggle and prioritize tasks, how to stay focused, when and how to say, “no,” and how to accept that it is OK to let a ball drop every now and then.
As I spent more time thinking through how I approached my days, I started to realize that over the years, I had cobbled together various systems and processes that enabled me to manage my life. I grew more conscious of how I was prioritizing my tasks and focusing my time and energy. I also became more aware of the things that were wasting my time and tried to find smarter ways to tackle them. For me, it was a game – identify a problem or opportunity, and then find a better way to do it.
Through years of trial, error, and a lot of reading, I discovered that true productivity isn’t about cramming more into your day — it’s about being intentional with your time, energy, and attention. Today, I share these hard-won lessons through my book “Practical Productivity,” the priorigami app, keynote speeches, workshops, and my work as a fractional COO for growing organizations.
My goal? To empower people to do things efficiently so they can spend more time doing things they love.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Not at all. Most of what I share now is skills I have learned through hard-earned lessons by making a lot of mistakes along the way. As I mentioned, for many years, I was trying to do it all, being everything to everyone, and then realizing that I wasn’t making time for the things I enjoyed or prioritizing taking care of myself.
With technology and high expectations for being available and delivering 24/7, these lessons are more urgent than ever. I had to reframe my mindset to recognize that being “productive” isn’t always about doing more and more but making sure you’re doing the things that matter and learning that it’s OK to let the rest go. I also had to stop trying to manage time which we really can’t do anyway, and focus on your priorities, energy, and attention which you can control.
We’ve been impressed with Productivity 101, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I am an author, speaker, and operations consultant helping individuals, teams, and organizations accomplish what matters most. I am the founder and CEO of Productivity 101. (https://productivity101.biz/). Whether you’re looking to boost your personal productivity, energize your team, or transform your organization, I focus on helping with personal productivity (book and the app), team efficiency (workshops and speaking engagements), and operational optimization (fractional COO consulting).
I am most proud of the feedback and comments I get from those I have worked with:
“Having witnessed Monisha masterfully balance her family, career, personal life, and service to others for over 20 years, I can attest to her exceptional productivity skills.”
Lisa Chang
EVP & Global Chief People Officer, The Coca-Cola Company
“Monisha stands out for having the discipline and energy to bring her ideas to life, having mastered the very productivity skills she generously shares.”
Vandana Sharma
Chief Risk Officer, Citibank, N.A.
“It’s one thing to try every time management app; it’s an entirely different thing to create your own. Likewise, most people are content with reading time management books. Monisha, seeing a better way, decided to write one.”
Jeff Hilimire
Serial entrepreneur and author of The Turnaround Leadership Series
Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
Everyone talks about being more productive and while there are so many tools and strategies, there’s no silver bullet or one-size-fits-all solution. Getting more done is about diligently experimenting and finding approaches that work best for you. It’s not very different from working out to improve your health and physical well-being.
Finding joy and balance, while still accomplishing everything that needs to get done isn’t impossible. It just takes a mindset shift and commitment and I want to help people find that for themselves.
Pricing:
- Paperback book is $19..99 or $9.99 on Kindle
- priorigami task management app is free
- Speaking pricing varies
- Consulting pricing varies
Contact Info:
- Website: productivity101.biz
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/monishalongacre
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/monisha.longacre and https://www.facebook.com/productivity101
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mlongacre/
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@mlongacre
