“I then go miserably enough to the typewriter and I edit with tiny little pen scribbles until you can't read it anymore. And then, I put it into a word processor.” Campbell Geeslin
Our third week has come and gone in Increasing Productivity Through Technology.
Last night's class made me very thankful that word processing was created. The class was based in Microsoft Word, and as our instructor pointed out many platforms are based on Microsoft Word and this information should work in a platform that recognizes Microsoft Word.
We reviewed many shortcuts for formatting, editing as well as creation of templates and insertion points were covered. Most information shared was refresher (shortcuts for cut, copy and paste are CTRL + X, CTRL + C, CTRL + V respectively) and some information was new to me (F8 extend mode-position insertion point where you want in text, F8 x 2 to highlight a word, F8 x 3 to highlight sentence and F8 x 4 to highlight a paragraph).
We covered Templates, both standard and normal, and learned the difference between .doc and .dot files as well. When creating templates, the drawback to a .doc file is that you have to remember to do Save As in the beginning. When creating a template as a .dot file you have all the benefits of a .doc and no worry about having to Save As when you start out.
The last item covered in class was jump points. After you have your document formatted, go back and insert the jump points using CTRL + F9. The use of screen interactions was a wonderful plus here and really highlighted the jump point feature as a big time saver—look forward to getting comfortable with this feature.
Hot tip 1: If you go to Microsoft Word, HELP, Search for Shortcuts select: Quick Reference for Microsoft Office Word.
Hot tip 2: Editing Commands:
Change case (Shift +F3)
Remove Formatting (CTRL + Q or CTRL + Spacebar)
Undo, Redo (CTRL + Z, CTRL + Y)
Return to previous edit (Shift + F5)
This was a great chapter, especially for those who edit or transcribe directly in Microsoft Word. What has definitely been a plus during the course so far is the way the class is presented. The instructor’s use of screen shots, live action, video clips and live Q + A , syllabus and course outlines have all been a great plus, especially since I have not yet received the text. I did receive word last night that my text was going to be sent via overnight delivery for me to receive today, February 26. I love books-- all kinds -- and the delay in receiving this one is a bit challenging, severe storms in the area of the distributor upon initial shipment and now, in New Jersey, my town is currently under 2 feet of snow (and still snowing) and facing some severe weather related challenges. The plus side to the delay in shipment, is my kids see me anxiously awaiting the delivery of my “school book” and they have joined me in on our daily trips to the mailbox to see if it is there AND this is going to be the perfect weekend to curl up with hot chocolate and catch up on my reading!
Thanks for joining me again and have a productive week!
Friday, February 26, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Increasing Productivity-Week 2
"The little things you do every day - or don't do - are creating the invisible you of the future." Jeff Olson from the book, The Slight Edge.
Weeks 1 and 2 of the Increasing Productivity Course have most certainly focused on the little things. As a note, my notes are taken from the perspective of using Windows XP; if you have questions or want to know about options for Vista or Windows 7, please email me your question at ginamedmond@aol.com and I will do my best to get an answer for you.
As a recap, Lesson 1 focused on Customizing Windows. We learned about the Taskbar and how to customize it, managing files and folders on shorcut menus as well as creating shortcut menus and how to incorporate shortcut icons into one's daily routine (Start Menu, Quick Launch, Links toolbar and Send menu) to work more efficiently. Tne final section covered was customizing the Start Menu by returning to the "classic" style, adding shortcuts and creating submenus.
Every morning I would normally access my programs through the Start menu; going through each icon for the programs needed for the day. First I tried reorganizing my Start menu by customizing the programs I utilize the most. I found this to be a bit cumbersome for me as the text was small on the Start Menu and it was taking me time to read everything therefore, not making much of a difference to my daily routine. However, by reorganizing my Quick Launch area to include shortcuts for Fusion, SoftMed, HBOC, SonicWall, Search engine, AIM, Adobe, My documents, and Calculator all I had to do was point and click on only the programs I needed to utilize for the day. I was pleasantly surprised to see my daily sign-in go from taking 4 minutes daily down to 2 minutes. This little step of making the switch to Quick Launch saved me 10 minutes this week! This got me excited for what we were going to cover in Lesson 2.
Lesson 2 was all about Keyboarding Techniques.
Ah, yes, the life of a transcriptionist centers around "The Keyboard" and all the little things that one knows (or in my case, did not know), in order to maximize efficiency and speed.
Tonight's objectives were straightforward: Apply keyboarding techniques to your daily work to increase efficiency and speed, learning how to utilize the keyboard in place of the mouse to navigate Menus, Dialog Boxes, and Explorer windows, moving the insertion point and select text and finally controlling windows (not Windows) with shortcut keys, universal shortcut keys and recognizing patterns in the shortcut key assignments.
Lots and lots of information packed into tonight's class, so much so that class went over 10 minutes! It seemed most of us had discoveries about the various topics ranging from use of the Application Key (to the right of the space bar with a list and an arrow), to Menus formatted as Menu Bars versus Ribbons, Dialog Boxes and Universal Keys.
I often found my eye drifting back to the first statement I wrote at the beginning of class. "When utilizing techniques for implementing shortcut keys, transition gradually." While it did not feel like information overload, there was a great deal of information covered and do agree in learning a few shortcuts a week at a time as the best approach. Working smarter and not harder with your keyboard will definitely yield greater results.
My "ah-ha moment" occurred while looking in Word 2007. I had a new blank document open and the along the top of the document, this area is referred to as a "ribbon". By simply pressing the ALT key it activated the menu bars. For example, new blank document, ALT + F, a drop down box appeared in the upper left hand corner with the options of New, Open, et cetera along with My Recent Documents. Before I would take my hand to the mouse, click, read, select; now 2 keystrokes ALT + F in Word 2007 and I got the same results. Using the ALT key with Menu Bar in the Ribbon was an instant shortcut and use of the mouse was not necessary.
Two "Hot Tips" for you this week!
1. Logo key + D minimizes everything on your PC and brings you to your desktop; Logo key + D again, and everything returns--great way to toggle to desktop if you need to!
2. The "F" and "J" keys on most keyboards has a raised mark on it to help you realign to the home row when you have to take your hands off the keyboard. I am sure your keyboard is like mine, these marks are worn down and did not even realize they were there anymore. The instructor gave a great tip. At the hardware store, purchase a small piece of felt (the kind you might put on the bottom of a chair to prevent scratches on the floor) and cut a small piece off and place it on your "J" key. While it may make the keyboard look a bit odd, it will save you time by returning to touch and not sight when returning to the home position.
Something else I was excited to learn, M-TEC provides a recording of the class that can be accessed on the Forum; something I will absolutely be utilizing as there has been a delay due to last week's inclement weather on the arrival of the course book. Once I am in receipt of the course book, I am looking forward to be able to provide you with more detailed examples and ways to save you time and will incorporate the examples with my next posting.
Little things practiced daily will lead to great results. I look forward to implementing these new techniques and updating you next week.
Be well and make it a great week!
Gina
Weeks 1 and 2 of the Increasing Productivity Course have most certainly focused on the little things. As a note, my notes are taken from the perspective of using Windows XP; if you have questions or want to know about options for Vista or Windows 7, please email me your question at ginamedmond@aol.com and I will do my best to get an answer for you.
As a recap, Lesson 1 focused on Customizing Windows. We learned about the Taskbar and how to customize it, managing files and folders on shorcut menus as well as creating shortcut menus and how to incorporate shortcut icons into one's daily routine (Start Menu, Quick Launch, Links toolbar and Send menu) to work more efficiently. Tne final section covered was customizing the Start Menu by returning to the "classic" style, adding shortcuts and creating submenus.
Every morning I would normally access my programs through the Start menu; going through each icon for the programs needed for the day. First I tried reorganizing my Start menu by customizing the programs I utilize the most. I found this to be a bit cumbersome for me as the text was small on the Start Menu and it was taking me time to read everything therefore, not making much of a difference to my daily routine. However, by reorganizing my Quick Launch area to include shortcuts for Fusion, SoftMed, HBOC, SonicWall, Search engine, AIM, Adobe, My documents, and Calculator all I had to do was point and click on only the programs I needed to utilize for the day. I was pleasantly surprised to see my daily sign-in go from taking 4 minutes daily down to 2 minutes. This little step of making the switch to Quick Launch saved me 10 minutes this week! This got me excited for what we were going to cover in Lesson 2.
Lesson 2 was all about Keyboarding Techniques.
Ah, yes, the life of a transcriptionist centers around "The Keyboard" and all the little things that one knows (or in my case, did not know), in order to maximize efficiency and speed.
Tonight's objectives were straightforward: Apply keyboarding techniques to your daily work to increase efficiency and speed, learning how to utilize the keyboard in place of the mouse to navigate Menus, Dialog Boxes, and Explorer windows, moving the insertion point and select text and finally controlling windows (not Windows) with shortcut keys, universal shortcut keys and recognizing patterns in the shortcut key assignments.
Lots and lots of information packed into tonight's class, so much so that class went over 10 minutes! It seemed most of us had discoveries about the various topics ranging from use of the Application Key (to the right of the space bar with a list and an arrow), to Menus formatted as Menu Bars versus Ribbons, Dialog Boxes and Universal Keys.
I often found my eye drifting back to the first statement I wrote at the beginning of class. "When utilizing techniques for implementing shortcut keys, transition gradually." While it did not feel like information overload, there was a great deal of information covered and do agree in learning a few shortcuts a week at a time as the best approach. Working smarter and not harder with your keyboard will definitely yield greater results.
My "ah-ha moment" occurred while looking in Word 2007. I had a new blank document open and the along the top of the document, this area is referred to as a "ribbon". By simply pressing the ALT key it activated the menu bars. For example, new blank document, ALT + F, a drop down box appeared in the upper left hand corner with the options of New, Open, et cetera along with My Recent Documents. Before I would take my hand to the mouse, click, read, select; now 2 keystrokes ALT + F in Word 2007 and I got the same results. Using the ALT key with Menu Bar in the Ribbon was an instant shortcut and use of the mouse was not necessary.
Two "Hot Tips" for you this week!
1. Logo key + D minimizes everything on your PC and brings you to your desktop; Logo key + D again, and everything returns--great way to toggle to desktop if you need to!
2. The "F" and "J" keys on most keyboards has a raised mark on it to help you realign to the home row when you have to take your hands off the keyboard. I am sure your keyboard is like mine, these marks are worn down and did not even realize they were there anymore. The instructor gave a great tip. At the hardware store, purchase a small piece of felt (the kind you might put on the bottom of a chair to prevent scratches on the floor) and cut a small piece off and place it on your "J" key. While it may make the keyboard look a bit odd, it will save you time by returning to touch and not sight when returning to the home position.
Something else I was excited to learn, M-TEC provides a recording of the class that can be accessed on the Forum; something I will absolutely be utilizing as there has been a delay due to last week's inclement weather on the arrival of the course book. Once I am in receipt of the course book, I am looking forward to be able to provide you with more detailed examples and ways to save you time and will incorporate the examples with my next posting.
Little things practiced daily will lead to great results. I look forward to implementing these new techniques and updating you next week.
Be well and make it a great week!
Gina
Friday, February 12, 2010
Increasing Productivity Week 1
Introduction
Hello and Welcome to my first Blog post for ExecuScribe Inc.
My name is Gina Edmond and I have been a home-based medical transcriptionist for ExecuScribe, Inc for the past 3 years. When I first interviewed for this position, in doing my research about ExecuScribe, Inc, I read an article on-line titled, “The Well-Balanced Life: The Turnaround-How a life plan charted the course of one company and its owner” by Donna Fenn in the February 2004 edition of Inc.com. I discovered something that I have never forgotten. When Linda Yaniszewski first started in this industry she was running a very successful business, but it was interesting to note, while she was enjoying great success in the business; personally, other areas of her life were sacrificed. What has stuck with me was that Linda took a very bold move and closed this business while it was successful, reflected upon what worked and what did not and then restructured the company leading to the development of ExecuScribe, Inc. Today, ExecuScribe, Inc is a leading edge provider in its industry and I feel very grateful to be a part of a company that was founded by someone of Linda’s integrity.
Now, you might think it is a big leap in comparing starting over a business to taking a course in improving productivity, but I don’t think so. While I am a home-based employee, I make an effort to run my day as if my job was my own business. In that respect, I am in the process of rebuilding an area that is vital in my career as a successful medical transcriptionist—productivity. The reality of being a medical transcriptionist is that one’s salary and benefit eligibility are directly connected to how much is produced. I am successful in many areas of my career in terms of knowledge and accuracy, but, productivity is where I falter. My struggle with productivity can occur hourly, daily or weekly or some days all of the above and it is the most frustrating aspect of my job. However, I love what I do and remained hopeful there would be a solution out there to help me turn this around.
Facing this issue, I had two options, stay frustrated, throw in the towel and move on to something different or be willing to do whatever it takes to improve my productivity and make this issue a thing of the past. I have been stumbling across the phrase “dream, struggle, victory” quite often lately and find it applicable here; my dream is to be a successful and productive member in the ExecuScribe, Inc workforce; I am struggling with consistent productivity; I now have available a course on improving productivity and I feel very confident I am close to victory!
They say timing is everything, so when an e-mail was sent out recently regarding a course on increasing productivity, I was glad to be in the right place at the right time, and that brings us to where we are today.
I would like to invite you over the next 5 weeks to join me on my journey towards increasing my productivity. The goals of this blog will be to inform you about my experience with the course content and design, as well as sharing any “ah-ha” moments, specific comments or productivity boosters that will allow me (and hopefully you also!) to move forward and attain increased productivity as well as updates on my actual productivity increases.
In closing, I would like to share a quote by one of my favorite motivational speakers, Mr. Jim Rohn, “Don’t just let your business or your job make something for you, let it make something of you.”
I am excited to be on this journey and look forward to sharing more with you next week!
February 11, 2010: Notes from Webinar:
The first class of Increasing Productivity Through Technology is complete!This was my first experience taking an on-line course and was very pleasantly surprised.There were about 80 participants in total and the overall response was very positive from those who commented. It was also surprising to our instructor, Laura Bryan, MT (ASCP), CMT, AHDI-F, that most of us are still transcribing on a Windows XP platform. Ms. Bryan was very thorough in her explanations and often utilized screen shots from Windows XP and Vista along with video tutorials utilizing Windows 7 to further exemplify the screen shots. Questions were taken during the course, which was extremely helpful. Technical questions were addressed right away as well.All in all, I felt very supported in my virtual classroom and the hour and a half flew by!
Our first lesson focused on Taskbar, Shortcuts and the Start Menu. There was some basic information covered regarding all three (location, accessibility) to definitely some new tips and techniques learned, especially in regards to the Start Menu. The area from this lesson that is definitely going to be a timesaver is learning how to customize your Start Menu. I was unaware that this could be customized to contain all of the programs, files and folders that you utilize throughout the day. It was exciting to see time can be saved from the minute you “Start” your day. I am definitely going to work with this feature this week and post my results on the changes I made as well as time saved.
The “hot tip” that was shared in class: When renaming a shortcut F2 is the Universal Key to do this!
Time to get busy and put the lessons in week 1 into action and looking forward to a more productive week!
See you next Friday with my next update!
Hello and Welcome to my first Blog post for ExecuScribe Inc.
My name is Gina Edmond and I have been a home-based medical transcriptionist for ExecuScribe, Inc for the past 3 years. When I first interviewed for this position, in doing my research about ExecuScribe, Inc, I read an article on-line titled, “The Well-Balanced Life: The Turnaround-How a life plan charted the course of one company and its owner” by Donna Fenn in the February 2004 edition of Inc.com. I discovered something that I have never forgotten. When Linda Yaniszewski first started in this industry she was running a very successful business, but it was interesting to note, while she was enjoying great success in the business; personally, other areas of her life were sacrificed. What has stuck with me was that Linda took a very bold move and closed this business while it was successful, reflected upon what worked and what did not and then restructured the company leading to the development of ExecuScribe, Inc. Today, ExecuScribe, Inc is a leading edge provider in its industry and I feel very grateful to be a part of a company that was founded by someone of Linda’s integrity.
Now, you might think it is a big leap in comparing starting over a business to taking a course in improving productivity, but I don’t think so. While I am a home-based employee, I make an effort to run my day as if my job was my own business. In that respect, I am in the process of rebuilding an area that is vital in my career as a successful medical transcriptionist—productivity. The reality of being a medical transcriptionist is that one’s salary and benefit eligibility are directly connected to how much is produced. I am successful in many areas of my career in terms of knowledge and accuracy, but, productivity is where I falter. My struggle with productivity can occur hourly, daily or weekly or some days all of the above and it is the most frustrating aspect of my job. However, I love what I do and remained hopeful there would be a solution out there to help me turn this around.
Facing this issue, I had two options, stay frustrated, throw in the towel and move on to something different or be willing to do whatever it takes to improve my productivity and make this issue a thing of the past. I have been stumbling across the phrase “dream, struggle, victory” quite often lately and find it applicable here; my dream is to be a successful and productive member in the ExecuScribe, Inc workforce; I am struggling with consistent productivity; I now have available a course on improving productivity and I feel very confident I am close to victory!
They say timing is everything, so when an e-mail was sent out recently regarding a course on increasing productivity, I was glad to be in the right place at the right time, and that brings us to where we are today.
I would like to invite you over the next 5 weeks to join me on my journey towards increasing my productivity. The goals of this blog will be to inform you about my experience with the course content and design, as well as sharing any “ah-ha” moments, specific comments or productivity boosters that will allow me (and hopefully you also!) to move forward and attain increased productivity as well as updates on my actual productivity increases.
In closing, I would like to share a quote by one of my favorite motivational speakers, Mr. Jim Rohn, “Don’t just let your business or your job make something for you, let it make something of you.”
I am excited to be on this journey and look forward to sharing more with you next week!
February 11, 2010: Notes from Webinar:
The first class of Increasing Productivity Through Technology is complete!This was my first experience taking an on-line course and was very pleasantly surprised.There were about 80 participants in total and the overall response was very positive from those who commented. It was also surprising to our instructor, Laura Bryan, MT (ASCP), CMT, AHDI-F, that most of us are still transcribing on a Windows XP platform. Ms. Bryan was very thorough in her explanations and often utilized screen shots from Windows XP and Vista along with video tutorials utilizing Windows 7 to further exemplify the screen shots. Questions were taken during the course, which was extremely helpful. Technical questions were addressed right away as well.All in all, I felt very supported in my virtual classroom and the hour and a half flew by!
Our first lesson focused on Taskbar, Shortcuts and the Start Menu. There was some basic information covered regarding all three (location, accessibility) to definitely some new tips and techniques learned, especially in regards to the Start Menu. The area from this lesson that is definitely going to be a timesaver is learning how to customize your Start Menu. I was unaware that this could be customized to contain all of the programs, files and folders that you utilize throughout the day. It was exciting to see time can be saved from the minute you “Start” your day. I am definitely going to work with this feature this week and post my results on the changes I made as well as time saved.
The “hot tip” that was shared in class: When renaming a shortcut F2 is the Universal Key to do this!
Time to get busy and put the lessons in week 1 into action and looking forward to a more productive week!
See you next Friday with my next update!
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