Being an effective business owner can start by adding these seven habits of highly effective people to your business organizing efforts. If you can incorporate these seven elements into your work life you will be an effective employee or business owner.
Have a Plan
When you have a plan you can focus on the priorities in your day. Have you heard the 80/20 rule? Simply put 80 percent of your results come from 20 percent of your efforts. Put your effort into things that are ACTUALLY important, and watch the results.
Plan Your Day, Week, and Month
Let your calendar be a huge stress reducer for you. Your calendar will keep you on time with your plans. Set appointments with yourself during the day to work on projects. Setting aside time and honoring that time will help you get your time sensitive work done on time.
Invest time in High-Payoff Tasks
This brings you back to the 80/20 rule. That 20 percent is where you want to focus your real energy. Ask yourself what can I do that will have the biggest impact today? These high-payoff tasks should get a priority spot on your calendar. That means if you are the most productive in the morning you should schedule your work time for the morning hours on these activities.
Use their time wisely
When it comes to business organizing highly effective employees have procrastination beat! It is a habit that you need to break. Find the source of your procrastination and diligently work on it whether it is perfectionism or too many distractions.
Batch your work to make the best use of your time. Set aside time to make phone calls, return emails, ect. throughout your day. Making 5 phone calls in a row will go faster than if you stop what you are working on to make 5 phone calls throughout your day.
Limit Interruptions
Unnecessary interruptions can become a HUGE timewaster in your day. Create a work environment where it is not easy to become distracted at the drop of a hat. If other people are the problem consider making a “off limits” time in your office while you work on your high-payoff projects. This is time scheduled in your calendar so it should be easier to make it “quiet time” in your office.
Lead a Balanced Life
Go on vacation. It is important to keep yourself fresh and excited. In order to do that, you need down time.
Schedule 24-48 hours of “unplugged time”. No work, tv, computer, phone app.s you may find your brain and family and friends thank you!
Do not live in the “urgent” Reactive Mode
Being an effective employee means you have a plan every day. Keeping to that plan means your time sensitive work gets done. This puts a break on the panicked urgent mode that rules many people’s days.
You will still be interrupted by “urgent crises”. It is up to you to determine how urgent they are. Sometimes things are important, but not urgent. This is where planning comes in to play. Planning out this important work makes sure that by its due date the work is complete.
Assess whether this urgent work can be delegated, or wait. Remember there are consequences to saying “Yes”. By working on the new project you will be putting off work you had previously scheduled, so make certain you rework your calendar.
Embracing business organizing is a fantastic goal for 2012. Creating plans and embracing your calendar will not only help you grow more effective, but also reduce your stress which is certainly a good thing.
Sherry Borsheim has been creating business organizing systems to help businesses and individuals get organized for over 23 years. She specializes in organizing Microsoft Outlook, and streamlining paper, email, time and space issues. Sherry is president of the International Association of Business Organizing which provides like-minded female business owners with the tools they need to grow their businesses, get organized, and be highly productive. To learn more and get instant access to YOUR free business organizing toolkit go to www.bizorganizing.com.