Fifty ways to manage time - Part II

Dealing with Paper Overload

21. Read with a highlighter in hand. Highlight any actions required (due dates, appointments, etc.) or important information as you read your mail, reports, articles.

22. Keep a file of quick tasks - catalogs to review, short articles to read, forms to sign - and take care of them while you wait for something to print or a meeting to begin.

23. Sort through large paper piles efficiently. Sort them: priority mail, junk mail, magazines, bills, etc. before acting on any of it.

24. Deal with paper as you receive it. On an everyday basis, go through your mail, in-box, e-mail, etc. and sort into the following files: trash/delete, to do, to file, to read and to delegate/refer.

25. Establish a place just for paperwork. Keep it accessible and free of clutter.

26. Make a holding file. Use it to store information when you are awaiting follow- up from someone. If you need to follow-up with someone, mark the followup date and name in your calendar with an (H) after it.

27. Schedule a certain amount of time everyday. To keep up with your ever-growing paper piles, set a time each day, without interruptions, to process.

28. Use a master list. Get rid of those small slips of paper and sticky notes that accumulate on your desk, in your car, on your computer, and add all information to your master list. Review it daily.

29. Think about it. As you go through your day, really think about the way you do things and ask yourself if there is a better way.

30. Utilize lists. Keep running lists in your planner or in a notebook of the following: gift ideas, i.d. numbers, books to read, clothing needs, web sites to review, general ideas, etc.

Filing Pointers

31. Make a list of your current file headings. Can you delete or combine any? If a file is over 2" thick, break it down into sub-headings.

32. Start each file heading with a noun. E.g., not "house insurance" but "insurance - house."

33. Think about where you would look to find a certain piece of paper. That should be its file heading.

34. Keep an alphabetized list of all your file folders. Attach it to your filing cabinet for easy reference.

35. Buy a step file organizer for your desk top. In it, place files labeled "to do," "to file," "to read," etc. Other options include: "e-mail to send," "to enter (computer)," and reference files for associates, employees, spouse.

36. Keep any current project or work in progress in your standing vertical file. Out of sight many times means out of mind.

37. Treat your computer files (especially e-mails) like paper files. Delete if possible or separate into "folders."

38. Remember this rule: The important part is not how you file but being able to find what you want when you want it.

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Fifty ways to manage time - Part I

50 Ways to Manage Your Time

12 Top Time Savers
1. Reserve an hour each day. Close your door, turn off the phone and concentrate on priorities. It's amazing what you can accomplish in one uninterrupted hour.

2. Write it down. Making a master list of everything you need to do will de-clutter your mind and reduce your stress level. Each day, move a few of these items to your daily to-do list.

3. Keep a running list of errands to do. Group them together by location and do everything at once.

4. Delegate! Taking the time to teach someone else to complete a task for you will ultimately free up your time for more important things. For one week, analyze each thing you must do and ask yourself, Am I the person who must do this or should I find someone else to do it.

5. Develop forms. Is there a sales letter that you write every week? Make a master on the computer. Think about things you do daily and ask yourself if there is a way to standardize them.

6. Make a list of things you can do in five minutes or less. (Examples: write a note to a friend, straighten a drawer, make a quick phone call) The next time you have a few minutes to spare, choose something from your list to do.

7. Prioritize, Prioritize! It is better to accomplish three very important projects in a day than it is to finish 20 low priority tasks. Think about this as you plan your days.

8. Stock up on supplies. Keep the basics such as stamps, envelopes, notepads and favorite pens in your desk and ready to go. Buy in bulk to save money and time.

9. Keep a reading file. Place in it, letters, memos, reports, newspaper articles (cut out from the paper), magazine articles (removed from the magazine), etc. When you are stuck in traffic or sitting in a doctor's office, pull out your file and read something meaningful to pass the time.

10. Do like tasks together. Make all your phone calls together. Run all your errands during lunch hour one day per week. Write thank you cards to customers once a week. Have a daily, 15-minute meeting with your assistant.

11. Reduce interruptions. Have everyone in the company learn and use these time-saving tips. Some businesspeople put a flag on their door or their cubicle when they are not to be interrupted.

12. Get organized! You can save an hour per day by de-cluttering and organizing your desk, your files and your paperwork.


Organize Your Desk in 8 Steps
13. Start at the beginning. Remove everything from your desktop. Put back only the necessities and keep a large clean space for current projects. What are the necessities? Phone, notepad, calendar, step file organizer, current project. Keep the cutesy items in sight but off your desk.

14. Place your phone. Place your phone on the left side of desk if you are right handed and on the right if you are left handed.

15. Keep a spiral notebook by the phone for messages. Start with the date each day. By doing this, you will have reference info when you need it.

16. Keep or delete? If you use something every day leave it in your desk; if you use something once a week, you should be able to reach it from your chair; if you use something once a month keep it in your office or work area. If you use something less than once a month, keep it elsewhere.

17. Look for ways to daily improve your life. Www.ineedmoretime.com offers various organizing services and products to help you have a better quality of life.

18. Keep your office supplies in one drawer. Keep only the supplies you use frequently in your desk. Do you really need 25 pens and 15 packages of salt?

19. Sort through your desk files. Keep only personal files and files that you refer to weekly in your desk drawers.

20. Look around. End each day (or at least each week) by tidying up your desk and returning everything to its place. (Yes, everything should have a place.)

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Michael Jordan and Bhagavad Gita

Michael Jordan on Fear

I never looked at the consequences of missing a big shot. Why? Because when you think about the consequences you always think of a negative result.

Some people get frozen by that fear of failure. They get it from peers or from just thinking about the possibility of a negative results. They might be afraid of looking bad or being embarrassed.

I realized that if I was going to achieve anything in life I had to be aggressive. I had to get out there and go for it. I don't believe you can achieve anything by being passive. I'm not thinking about anything except what I'm trying to accomplish. Any fear is an illusion.

You think something is standing in your way but nothing is really there. What is there is an opportunity to do your best and gain some success. If it turns out my best isn't good enough, then at least I'll never be able to look back and say I was too afraid to try. Failure always made me try harder the next time.

That's why my advice has always been to "think positive" and find fuel in any failure. Sometimes failure actually just gets you closer to where you want to be.

If I'm trying to fix a car, every time I try something that doesn't work, I'm getting closer to finding the answer. The greatest inventions in the world had hundreds of failures before the answers were found.

I think fear sometimes comes from a lack of focus or concentration. If I had stood at the free-throw line and thought about 10 million people watching me on the other side of the camera lens, I couldn't have made anything. So I mentally tried to put myself in a familiar place.

I thought about all those times I show free throws in practice and went through the same motion, the same technique that I had used thousands of times. You forget about the outcome. You know you are doing the right things. So you relax and perform. After that you can't control anything anyway.

It's out of your hands, so don't worry about it.

Lord Krishna to Arjuna

"Man must do his duty. Do not think of the fruits, the results. 'These are mine, those are not mine' -do not have such thoughts. A wise man treats all alike. Anger and desire dull your intelligence. Accept pain and pleasure in the same way. A man must understand and do what is right. Everyone that is born must die. Justice is more important than human beings. Partha, give up this base faint-heartedness, arise and do your duty."

Wasn't there a bit of Bhagavad Geetha from Michael Jordan?

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