Getting Organized at Work – 24 Lessons to Set Goals, Establish Priorities, and Manage Your Time
The Employee Handbook for Enhancing Corporate Performance
McGraw-Hill Professional Education series
By Ken Zeigler (2005)
This is a really easy to read book of 24 lessons (as suggested by the title) and there is a simple consistent format to each lesson:
- 1 double page spread per lesson
- The old thinking
- A to-do action for new thinking
- A short explanation of the problem
- 3 tips or suggested actions per lesson and
- An inspirational quote at the end refuting the old thinking
Where to start? The author suggests starting with a time audit for a week to see the patterns of how you use your time. Then pick one or two strategies and implement them until they are a habit.
Take control of your day and set (realistic) goals, plan your work and take action on it (there’s no time for procrastination so get on with it – 3 tips – work on the tasks in the morning, motivate yourself from within and relax ie by being less of an adrenaline junkie).
Create a master list of all you want to get done, including personal items. This is a brain dump for the week. Each afternoon prepare tomorrow’s daily list.
Plan 2-6 items each day and schedule them in amongst meetings, deadlines, and commitments. Then do them! This may take some discipline until it becomes a habit. Use a noon deadline and apply the “veggie principle” (do the tasks that are good for you first even if you don’t like them – think of children not eating their veggies). Use your concentration cycles, take a break between each task and allow time for interruptions & the unplanned. Prioritize by choosing smart and break projects down into pieces.
Handle extra requests by asking for specifics and check against your master list for priority before committing. Focusing on one task is more productive than multitasking. You can find more time for you by anticipating problems and batching similar tasks to do at one sitting.
Conquer your desk keeping only what you’re working on right now and control it by filing daily and leaving a clean desk at the end of your day.
Limit interruptions, including those you do to yourself eg phone & email replies.
Manage emails by setting convenient times to act on them and deal with them once, filing as you go. Put the purpose of your email in the subject line. Include your email signature and contact details. Make sure your email is complete, concise and organized logically. It takes only a moment to review it before you press send. Manage phone calls similarly – let others know best times to call you, set aside times to return calls, keep calls brief and to the point.
Delegate confidently and provide relevant information, a clear outcome, and a specific time frame or deadline. Manage and track the tasks to make sure they’re done right and on time.
Meetings – are they necessary? If yes, then schedule them at appropriate times so everyone can be focused on the purpose of the meeting. Start on time, have an agenda and stick to it, so you end on time.
Although designed for the employee the lessons are easily applied to anyone who wants to become more efficient, get more done in less time and have balance in life.
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