Dam the paper!
If you’re drowning with paper see the blog post just before this one. Once you’ve caught up on your backlog of paper and sticky notes you’ll want to use some of the following tips to keep on top of what comes into your office.
Special note: These are habits to develop. Anytime you want to create a new habit, you’ve got to work at it consciously for a period of time before it becomes automatic.
Step 1 – Look at the sources of your paper.
Mail coming in – your in-box (paper from others) –… Continue reading
Drowning in paper!
I received the following email message from a dear friend and client as she was about to go on vacation. I had just visited her office and saw paper everywhere. I felt chaotic just walking in, I couldn’t imagine being there every day.
Here’s what she wrote: You are so right! I am drowning in little bits of paper. Thank you for your offer to help out! I’m ready anytime.
I am leaving for the beach Saturday morning, but even if you had some time today or tomorrow to give me a… Continue reading
“I can do this better myself!”
I know you can, so can I.
“It’s faster if I just take care of it!”
Yes it is, in the short term.
With each new job or assignment I tend to keep some of those duties that I’m really good at, that I can do better and faster than others. What I notice is I have more and more to do and less time to do it – old tasks and new tasks.
Hanging on to familiar tasks is natural, it’s about staying in the comfort zone. It also reinforces that I’m good at something – I seem to… Continue reading
Lessons from a champion!
I attended the Open Championship in July (the British golf tournament). The winner was a forty-two year old man from Northern Ireland, Darren Clarke. If you saw him on the street, or in a pub, you may not have picked him to be an elite athlete. He had planned to start a weight watchers program right after the tournament – perhaps he has.
I heard an interview from his coach – Dr. Bob. Dr. Bob explained that Darren has been a tremendous talent since he was 12 year old. With this talent and experience for the last 30 years, he… Continue reading
Time Robbers
Email and Phone Calls
Email – this is a hard one for so many. Are you addicted?
Tip 1: Stop checking your e-mail every second. It takes up enormous chunks of time. This is a huge drain on energy and productivity. Schedule when you’ll look at your email. Perhaps it’s three times a day. Turn off the “ding.”
Tip 2: Here’s a tip that you may want to check with your boss first. Use this tip if you are addicted to checking email and you are not required by your job to check as it comes in. You… Continue reading
Connect with Me!