Technology TransactionsSystematize and Simplify
During thirty years as a time management speaker and
consultant, I have learned and shared a lot of simple
practices that help my audiences to increase their daily
results. A lot of time is wasted because we don"t have a
system in place for many of the repetitive tasks we do so
that we have to pay over and over again, with our time, for
the same results.
So here"s one neat tip: systematize. (I don"t think this is
really a word, but hey, if no one invents new words, how
will our language grow?) Systematize is the simple procedure
of creating a routine way of responding to a myriad of tasks
that will free our time for more important things. We can
systematize in all areas of our life. Here are a few places
you may wish to begin.
Standard text documents.
I have dozens of documents in "My Documents" section of my computer. These include a lot
of the articles that people request through our website and
standard letters I send out for business and personal
contacts, standard information documents (like directions to
our office). Most of the information I need to send to
respond to my emails is there or easily modified and
tailored so that I don"t have to type out a lot of
repetitive information.
A single calendar system.
Some people use as many as a
dozen ways of tracking their appointments and scheduled
events and their "To Do" list items. There"s a calendar for
work and one for personal things. There"s stuff lying out on
the desk reminding us what needs to be done. The dentist
appointment card is on the bathroom mirror and the dry
cleaner claim slip is hanging from the visor in the car. The
softball schedule is on the refrigerator and we have several
other commitments in our heads. Boil this all down to a
single system. I use Daytimer products, but whatever product
you feel comfortable with is fine. Just make it a simple,
singular, master system from which you take control of
appointments and scheduled events and your "To Do" list
items.
Clean desk or work area.
Studies have shown
that the person who works with a messy desk spends, on
average, one and a half hours per day looking for things or
being distracted by things. That"s seven and a half hours
per week! ("Out of sight, out of mind." And the reverse of
that is true too, "In sight, in mind".) And, it"s not a
solid block of an hour and a half, but a minute here and a
minute there, and like a leaky hot water faucet, drip, drip,
drip, it doesn"t seem like a major loss, but at the end the
day, we"re dumping gallons of hot water down the drain that
we are paying to heat. If you have ever visited the office
of a top manager, typically, that person is working with a
clean desk environment. Many would attribute this result to
that person"s access to other staff members. While there may
be some truth in that conclusion, in most cases, if we went
back some years in that person"s career, they probably were
working with a clean desk back then which gave them the
focus they needed to become promoted to where they are
today.
Have adequate supplies.
Some people spend a lot of their
productive time looking for a pen or a pad of paper or
staples for their stapler. Have enough pens, pencils, yellow
markers, "sticky notes", writing pads, fax paper, printer
cartridges, updated telephone directories, staples, "Wite
Out", report forms, index cards, paper clips, rolls of
adding machine tapes, etc., etc.
Make your physical surroundings workable.
Move the fax
machine closer (or further away!) from your desk. Have the
most frequently used and needed files within arm"s reach and
the less frequently required items further out. Have
adequate space at your desk to do what you need to do.
Remove some unnecessary items, if necessary, to make room.
Set up a functional briefcase.
I travel a lot and am out
of my office at seminars or meetings with clients requiring
that I tote along a briefcase. In addition to the stuff I
need for where I am going, I have my briefcase stocked with
a lot of neat things like a calculator, a pocket map of the
United States, basic office supplies (writing pads, pens,
yellow markers, small stapler, paper clips, stamps and a few
envelopes), blank checks, a few deposit slips, a paperback
book I have been intending to read, and at least one project
I can work on if I get stuck in traffic or am waiting for
the meeting to begin. It gives me more choices.
Schedule maintenance.
The equipment you use, your car,
stuff around the house, and oh yeah, you. You know your car
needs to be serviced. Why wait for a breakdown to get it
done and spend more time on what could have been
accomplished in less time. (You still need a tune-up, but
now you have to wait for the tow truck to arrive.) Regular
medical and dental checkups save huge amounts of time in our
future by fixing small conditions before they become major
costly issues.
Catalog contacts.
Develop and maintain your contacts list
so that networking can enhance your future with the contacts
you make. A computer-based program such as ACT is excellent,
but even a simple 3x5 card system will work. Keep track of a
growing list of contacts, help them at every turn and they
will be there to help you.