Quick Steps to Get Organized
Getting organized takes some time, but once you get into the habit, life becomes much easier. You can be more productive—and less frustrated!
- Organize your space. Whether it is your home, office, closet, desk or file cabinet, go through it and throw away, put in storage or archive anything you do not use often. Then organize the rest in convenient, clearly designated spaces.
- Put it back where you got it. Make a habit of putting things back in their designated space as soon as you are finished using them. This means you need to designate documents for specific areas. Generally, documents you use most often should be stored nearest your work area. Documents you use less often should be farther away.
- Keep track of follow-up items. Calendars, planners and smartphones are excellent options for tracking what needs follow up. Whatever you use, just use one system, and use it regularly to make sure nothing falls between the cracks.
See my blog post Color Coding as a Tracking Tool for one way to manage follow up.
Help Employees Clear the Clutter
In my GO System classes, I often hear participants state that they want to clean up their offices and workspaces, but they just do not have the time to get organized. If your staff is buried under stacks of unfiled paper, try hosting a monthly Clear-the-Clutter hour.
Choose one day a month and set aside one hour when your employees focus on getting organized. Have employees focus on clearing stacks of papers, filing and archiving documents, shredding sensitive material, organizing emails and computer desktops and so on. Make it fun by serving pizza or rewarding the person who clears the most clutter in the time allotted.
See these blog posts for more information you can share with your staff: Simple Approach to Eliminating Clutter and Email Management.
Fast Isn’t Always Best
Often, frantic motion is confused with constructive action. Yes, you’re busy, but what are you really doing? Working faster isn’t necessarily better. In fact, the faster you work, the more you leave yourself open to errors. The key is not working faster; the key is working on the right things. You do this by using the 80/20 Rule or Pareto Principle.
The 80/20 Rule says that most of your results come from a small portion of your actual work. If you spend too much time and energy doing things that are not very important, you cannot be positively productive, even if you are working as fast as you can!
Which activities support your highest priorities and produce the greatest results? Focus your energy on those activities. See my blog post What Are Your Three Top Priorities? for some tips on choosing your top three priorities for the day. They represent the best use of your time and ensure the Pareto Principle works for you!
Show Your Appreciation at Work
We usually associate Valentine’s Day with romance and love, but I want to take the idea in a slightly different direction. I think this is a great time to tell people you work with that you appreciate them.
Remember back in elementary school when Valentine’s Day rolled around? Teachers made sure every child got at least one valentine—even the kids no one liked very much. This kind of recognition is, in fact, kind and generous. So, how do you translate it to the workplace?
- Since sending adult Valentine cards might communicate the wrong message, send a warm, gracious email or thank-you card to those you work with.
- Host a Valentine’s party for your staff with treats and a longer-than-usual morning or afternoon break.
- Let staff leave early to prepare for evening Valentine festivities.
- Just say, “Thanks for a job well done! I appreciate all you do!”
A little appreciation goes a long way to keep people motivated and productive.
Get Out of Your Own Way
Did you make a New Year’s resolution?
Did you keep it?
Why do we so desire to make positive changes and fall short of actually taking action?
Sometimes, we do not know where to start. The key is to start anywhere! If you want to lose 50 pounds, you cannot lose it all at once! Aim for two pounds and then another two.
Often, we just do not want to do something. This is the reason many resolutions fail. The pain of making a change is greater than the pain of living with the status quo, or the reward is not worth the effort it takes to achieve it. If this is your reason for not taking action, revisit what you really want and reframe your reason. For example, maybe losing 50 pounds for your high school reunion is not enough of a motivator. However, losing 50 pounds to avoid diabetes or a heart attack just might be.
If you aren’t making the changes you say you want, look at why you want to make them. Try reframing your motivation and see how fast change can happen.
Tax Documents
In my last blog, I discussed getting ready for tax time. Here is a list of common documents many taxpayers will need. You can print out this blog post and check off the items that apply to your situation and make sure you have them when you or your tax preparer are ready to file your forms.
- W-2 forms from employers
- 1099-MISC forms for self-employment income
- 1099-INT forms for interest
- 1099-DIV forms for dividends
- 1099-B forms for brokerage trades in stocks and bonds
- K-1 forms for income from a partnership, small business or trust
- 1099-SSA form showing any Social Security benefits received
Gather documents for any income not reported on an IRS form, such as rental income or alimony, and all canceled checks, receipts or spreadsheets for any tax-related expenses. If you paid federal and/or state estimated taxes, bring canceled checks and a summary of your payments.
It happens every year, so be prepared and be positively productive!
Get Your Tax Documents Organized
Tax documents begin arriving in our mailboxes from now through early February. Make a file folder or checklist to keep track of the documents you receive and need before your taxes can be prepared. Even if you have a tax preparer, they will need you to organize your documents.
- Sort receipts into categories, such as travel expenses, office supplies, memberships, clients gifts, etc.
- Put everything in large manila envelopes or folders that will hold a variety of different-sized paper documents.
- Update your tax software if you do it yourself.
- Go to irs.gov and your state tax website to review any changes to the tax laws.
- Save electronic records, such as calendars and expense and income logs, on an external drive to keep them safe. In case of an audit, you will need them.
- Set an appointment with your accountant or tax preparer now before they get too busy.
- Remember to file any local and business taxes also due this time of year. These are often lost in the crush to handle federal and state taxes.
Tax time doesn’t have to be a hassle if you are prepared.
Email Management
In my last blog, I wrote about cleaning up your office. Now, let’s tackle email!
- Is your in-box jammed with emails you have read and taken care of, but have not filed away?
- Are you getting alerts that your “in-box is full,” and no more emails can be delivered?
- Do you wish you could just trash it all and start over?
Well, you can. Here’s how:
- Sort all those old, already-read emails cluttering your in-box into two lists—One to-keep list and one to-trash list.
- Trash the ones you don’t need to keep and empty the trash can.
- Set up a folder labeled: 2011 Archive. Move the emails you need to keep into that folder. If you have time later, you can organize them. For now, they are out of your in-box, and you can still access them if you need them.
What about managing incoming email? Here are some easy tools:
- Sort and read emails based on your priorities for the day. Emails related to your highest priorities should be handled first.
- After you have responded to an email—
- File it in a folder you have labeled for easy retrieval.
- Trash it if you don’t need it.
- If you can’t completely handle an email, put it in a pending folder for follow up.
- Set an intention to empty your in-box daily.
Keep your email under control and have a positively productive day!
Simple Approach to Eliminating Clutter
Look around your office. What do you see?
- Are there stacks of papers waiting to be filed?
- Is your in-box overflowing?
- Do you have “stuff” everywhere?
If so, take fifteen minutes right now and tackle one small part. That’s all. Just fifteen minutes.
What if you took fifteen minutes every day? That adds up to 75 minutes a week or 300 minutes a month. Can you get organized in five whole hours a month? Sure, you can!
Set an intention to spend fifteen minutes every day improving your office, so you can be more positively productive in 2012. Make the words of Albert Einstein your motto: “Out of clutter, find simplicity.”
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year! May this year be your best year yet!
Now is the time when many people set resolutions—knowing that they aren’t likely to be kept. The idea of setting resolutions is almost a joke, so don’t do it. That’s right, skip the resolutions this year. Instead, set an intention.
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary at m-w.com, the definition of INTENTION is: “a determination to act in a certain way.”
When you set an intention, you are determined to take action to bring it about. An intention is more motivating than a resolution is, and you are more likely to take it seriously. It requires commitment—determination—to realize it.
Fill in the blank: In 2012, I intend to .
Focus on an intention to improve your strengths in one area. For example, you could set an intention to take a workshop to improve your communication or leadership skills. Whatever your intention, take one action step every day to achieve it.
Try it, and see how much more you can accomplish by setting an intention!
Have a postively productive 2012!
