Fall Tips for the Office
1. Drop the Ball!
– Choose not to "juggle” so many jobs each day.
Look at your schedule. Is there
anything on your "to-do” list that can be accomplished by your assistant or
another person in the office? Drop that
Ball! Let another person, who isn't
juggling, accomplish those things that you are tired of juggling.
2. Make
a daily appointment with yourself! – Block out a 15-minute chunk of time on
your schedule for personal time. (Be brave and set one in the morning and one
in the afternoon!) Use these minutes for you.
If you need to close your eyes and rest, do it! No guilt.
If you want to read e-mails, read away!
No guilt. If you want to call
your spouse or children and share some moments, do it! No guilt. Setting appointments with yourself gives you
the freedom to take care of those things that are constantly pushed to the back
of your mind throughout the day. Now
that you've done it, your mind is un-cluttered and you will be able to tackle
the important business of the day.
3. Purge the Paper
Pile! – Do you know that research suggests that 80% of paper that is filed
will never be looked at again? Look at
your "to file” stack and spend a few moments going through each paper. Ask yourself:
Will I need this soon? If you do,
go ahead and file it in your hanging files near your desk. Can I get this information on-line easily? If the answer is, "yes”, toss it. Do I need to respond to this? If "yes”, then make a note on your "to-do”
list and file any necessary info in your hanging files near your desk. What is the worst thing that will happen if I
loose this? If the worst thing is you'll
have to get it off the net again, or you'll have to print a new one, toss
it. Chances are you are keeping hard
copies of things that are stored in your computer. Purging papers for a few minutes each day
will prevent you from wasting hours later in searching for a certain paper.
4. Plan a "Fall
Purging Party” for the Office! – Give the employees a specific day and time
to clean out the extra papers and supplies they've collected in their own work
spaces. Making it an office party
atmosphere causes the adrenaline to surge and produces a much better outcome. Make a list/schedule that includes: desk top, desk drawers, desk files, computer
area etc.
Send out a notice with the details:
"Friday, October 8th is our annual
Fall Purging Party. Required attire is
casual. Required attitude is excitement
and joy. Schedules are to be cleared, make no appointments for 10:00 to
12:30. Lunch will be provided”. (Most
full-service grocery stores have a deli that provides sandwich and vegetable
trays for a very reasonable price)
Gather the employees together and explain the plan: "You will be given 20 minutes for each ‘purge
session'. Listen for the ‘bell' (kitchen
timers work well). When it rings, bring
your trash can back to the central meeting area. (provide a large dumpster ready for
shredding. Look in your yellow pages for
‘paper shed' companies; they come to your office with a large shedder and shred
your papers on site). Keep up the schedule until all areas have been
purged.
Enjoy lunch and share stories. You will find a new excitement spread
throughout you office!
