How to Become More Efficient by Leveraging Your Productivity Style

·24 min·2 clips

Rob reveals how a planned interview turned into a personal coaching session on his productivity style.

This episode of Leadership Jam Session features host Rob Fonte and productivity consultant Carson Tate, founder of Working Play. The planned interview about Tate's new book transforms into a live coaching session based on Rob's results from her Productivity Style Assessment. Carson Tate works with leaders to enhance workplace productivity and employee engagement. The core topic is the Productivity Style Assessment, which categorizes individuals as Prioritizers, Planners, Arrangers, or Visualizers. Rob Fonte discovers his primary style is "Visualizer," characterized by thinking in pictures and preferring big-picture ideas over linear details. Carson explains each style has unique strengths, processing preferences, and potential productivity pitfalls. She states Visualizers, like Rob, are holistic thinkers who can struggle with step-by-step planning and linear task execution. A key insight is that individuals often have a secondary style influencing their work; for Rob, this is the "Arranger" style, focused on relationships and group dynamics. Carson claims forcing someone to use a system misaligned with their style, like a detailed planner for a Visualizer, creates friction and reduces effectiveness. She advises Rob to leverage his visual nature by using mind maps, imagery, and whiteboards for project planning instead of traditional lists. The session reveals Rob's realization that his perceived disorganization is actually a mismatch between his innate style and conventional productivity tools. An interesting moment occurs when Carson suggests Rob reframe his self-criticism about missing details as a natural trait of his big-picture orientation. She proposes he build a "support team" of people with complementary styles, like a Planner or Prioritizer, to handle detailed implementation. The assessment framework implies there is no single "right" way to be productive, but rather an individualized approach based on cognitive preferences. The tone is conversational, instructional, and personally revealing, as the host becomes the client. The style is a practical, interactive coaching demonstration rather than a theoretical discussion. Leaders and managers seeking personalized productivity strategies beyond generic advice would find this episode valuable. Listeners preferring a traditional interview format or seeking a direct review of Carson Tate's book might want to skip this particular episode.

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Leadership Jam Session