Book excerpt: In this groundbreaking guide, Stephanie Winston explains how she discovered, after more than two decades as a leading organization expert and bestselling author, that senior executives and CEOs seem to possess unique conceptual skills in the areas of time management and organization that enable them to dramatically increase their productivity. Intrigued by this revelation, Winston set out to interview dozens of senior executives in an attempt to better understand the work habits and mental discipline of the supersuccessful, and to quantify their skills and translate them into techniques that will enable managers and ambitious workers at all levels of an organization to develop their own productivity and time management style. The result is a concise, practical, inspiring, and information-filled book that will help any reader get organized for success. Among the strategies that Winston uncovered are two that may surprise—and give heart to—many readers. First: top executives deal very differently with the day-to-day interruptions that cause most of us to lose focus and get sidelined. They view them not as a menacing obstruction to workflow but instead as a means to connect with fellow workers and enable more work to be done. Second: supersuccessful businesspeople do not multitask; they focus their complete attention on each task at hand until it is done, and then move on to the next thing. And they employ powerful delegation strategies to enhance their own productivity and that of their team. Among the many other lessons Winston brings to the reader are insights on how to: • conquer e-mail and paperwork gridlock • run and participate in meetings more effectively • develop your own best productivity and time management style • create techniques to find valuable private time in the middle of a hectic day • use follow-up strategies that ensure you respond to others consistently and complete all necessary tasks Throughout Organized for Success, Winston shares practical tips and tested techniques geared to helping workers and managers at every level to adopt the strategies that highly successful executives have employed on their way up the corporate ladder. Even more, she helps us all—not just those who aspire to the senior executive ranks—to adopt an organized and disciplined mind-set in every aspect of our professional lives.