2. Get the most out of your day.
Every now and then ask yourself: Am I making the best use of my time? If not, stop what you are doing and begin working on a project that will allow you better use of your time. If you are 'bogged down'
with a specific situation, get up and go for a walk and then come back and tackle it.
3. Work with goals in mind.
It's amazing how differently we work when we have goals to work towards. If you don't know what your goals are, spend some time working out what they may be. Use them as a road map! Examples may be professional (project deadline, sales quotas, career advancement, etc.) and personal (health, fitness, family relationship, financial, etc.).
4. Handle every piece of paper or e-mail only once.
With paper use the '3 D' rule of Do it, Dump it or Delegate it. Never handle a piece of paper twice. Don't even think of placing it in your 'to get to' pile - Handle it NOW! As for e-mails the same rule can apply so you either action it, delete it or forward it to someone else. If you print a copy then use the '3 D' rule.
5. Ask someone who is efficient - What their secret is?
Ask the most efficient person you know what their secret is and how did they develop these habits. Then see if it will work for you.
6. Don't allow anyone to take your time from you.
Set up boundaries around your time. If you are stopped in the hall for a conversation, ask for this person to arrange a meeting with you (if appropriate); don't allow co-workers to infringe on your home time; if someone is late for an appointment and hasn't contacted you -give them 15 minutes past the appointed time and then move on. It is up to you as to how you allow other people to use your time!
7. Build family and personal time into your day.
We all need to have the support of our family or friends - so make sure you build them into your daily habits. You don't want to finish your career and realize that you missed out on the closeness and development of your family.
8. Your health is important - isn't it!
Maintain your health and fitness because this is what will help you through in the long run. There are three things that I feel are valuable to us all - they are time [which we are talking about]; knowledge and energy. Take care of your energy and its levels. At the end of the day being overworked and stressed is only going to hamper your health. So take extra care of this - go for a walk, have a massage, spend time with your family, stop and smell the roses or book in for your yearly medical check up.
9. Dry clean the clutter from your office and home.
Take some time to remove the clutter from your life. The more you simplify your office or life the more time you will have. Clutter zaps your energy and allows you to waste time on non-valuable tasks. So plug the holes today.
10. Work in your peak performance times.
Schedule demanding tasks to the part of the day that you work best, where your energy levels are at their highest. It may be first thing in the morning or early afternoon - work out when it is and then see yourself moving ahead.
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Deborah Sullivan, Corporate Coach, can be reached at deborah@verveintl.com.au.
