FOCUS is
the free on-line newsletter which gives you the tools and strategies to
achieve greater success at home and at work.
2008
5 Ways to Finally Get Organized
“This year, I really have to
get organized.”
We’ve all said it.
“Get Organized” is
right up there with “Go on a Diet” and “Start to
Exercise” as popular New Years resolutions. Resolutions: we make them and then
break them.
So how can you have more success
with organization than you may have had in years past with diet &
exercise?
Here are 5 recommendations gleaned
from several “productivity pros”:
#1 Use your calendar to
maintain your “to-do” list:
Whether you use the calendar in Microsoft Outlook or a series of
folders marked with the months of the year, get in the habit of
putting your to-do items on your calendar rather than on a scrap of
paper, bottom of your grocery list or the back of the envelope the
electric bill came in.
Check your
calendar the beginning of each month, week and again daily for to-do
items and then force yourself to do what’s listed for that day,
week or month.
Sounds obvious,
doesn’t it? Well, some
complex problems have simple solutions. The key is to just do it.
#2 Call yourself to add items to your
to-do list:
Most of us carry our cell phone with us wherever we go; so, when
you’re away from home or not at your desk at work and think of
something you need to do, call yourself and leave yourself a brief
message to be added to your calendar when you get home or back to the
office.
#3 Keep a communication log:
Set up a journal on your computer, on 3 X 5 cards or in a 3
ring binder of everyone at home and work you talk to regularly
(friends, relatives, coworkers, clients, committee members). When
there’s something to discuss with one of them that is not
urgent, make a note on his/her page.
Next time you’re speaking with them, check their page and
discuss everything you need to cover in one call or meeting.
#4 Twice a day preset contact times:
To limit
interruptions, set aside two blocks of time (30 to 60 minutes each)
when you will return calls and email from family, friends, coworkers,
etc. At other times of day,
let voicemail or your email inbox hold messages until your next
preset return time.
This is another
simple solution that sounds obvious.
Again, the key is to just do it.
#5 Use the 3 bucket system to avoid
procrastination:
When a new to-do
item comes up, imagine there are 3 buckets in front of you. Bucket #1` says Do It Today, Bucket
#2 says Do It Soon and Bucket #3 says Don’t Do It at All.
Put the to-do
item in the appropriate bucket and use tips 1,2,3,
and 4 to get it done at the appropriate time.
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