Ask Debra

Question: How should I organize my day to get things done?

Answer:  You need to find an organizational system that works for you and then stick with it.  Here are a few tips for getting organized that work for everyone:

Use a tickler file.  Get the paper off your desk – if you don’t need it today, put the right date on it and file it in your tickler.  First thing each morning, drink your coffee and review the items in your tickler for that day.  For each item, either act on it or redate it and return it to the tickler.

Prioritize items for each day.

Don’t schedule back-to-back meetings all day.  Leave time between meetings to check email, make calls, think, recharge.

Batch routine tasks.  Update your calendar, return phone calls, read mail and email 2-3 times per day in blocks of time set aside for these purposes.

Block out time on your calendar every day for meeting preparation, catching up, following up, and thinking – and then honor the blocked time.  Consider it as important as any other scheduled meeting and don’t schedule over it.

Write things down.  Free your brain and reduce anxiety by leaving nothing to memory.  Keep a running projects list and, if you need it, a daily to-do list.  Carry these and your calendar with you always and use them to help you focus on what matters most.

Click here for more organizational tips and here for some time management basics.

Question: How do I prioritize my work?

Answer:  Work is comprised of functions and functions are comprised of tasks.  Some task matter a lot, others matter less, and some don’t matter at all.  At work, we all have a tendency to do what we’ve always done or what the person who had the job before us did or what we think the boss wants – as opposed to what makes the most sense in light of what the organization is trying to accomplish.

Prioritizing is essential to achieving both sustainable productivity and lasting job satisfaction.  But it cannot be done in a vacuum.  In and of itself, no one task is inherently more important than any other.  What makes prioritization possible is a clear understanding of mission, purpose, goals and strategy.  Only with a common sense of purpose and an understanding of how each task fits into the whole can you focus on what matters most.  Click here and here for more on mission, purpose, goals and strategy.

What you want to do is focus your limited time and efforts on what matters most.  Here are some tips:

Think about why your work matters in terms of what you’re trying to accomplish.

Prioritize on the basis of what’s important, not only what’s urgent.

Make a to-do list, then use The 5 Ds approach to cull the list down to what you really should be doing.

Categorize the remaining items by urgency and importance.

Recast the list so the most important and urgent are at the top.

Estimate the time it will take to do each important item.

Look at your calendar and make a realistic plan for the day, week, month.

Click here and here for more tools and tips.