I made a breakthrough on my to do list. The problem was witting on a piece of paper or even putting it on your computer. It is easy then to overlook it. I had a brainwave. What I do now is e mail it to myself and it sits on my e mail until at least the next day reminding me I should the items. I also do not delete it until I have written out another to do list which is of course each day.
I can cut and paste those items that I have not done and bring them forward unto the new to do list.
The other breakthrough is the use of a Google calendar, I put all my appointments in the Google calendar and I can alter it on line. I can access it anywhere and so can my secretaries. It means there are no more pieces of paper
Doing your To do list- just three things
Even on my day off I have a to do list. I only put a maximum of five things on there, I then work my way through it. It is a very satisfying experience and you feel you have made progress.
I get all the usual excuses "oh I have too many things to put on my to do list and even if I did put things on I get so many interruptions that I can’t get them done. As soon as the phones go I have people chasing me and demanding that I do things."
Again I have never seen any of these people succeed. Yes we have a certain amount of interruptions but if we have a framework of what we are supposed to be doing today it gives you a structure.
Also perhaps all these people interrupting you are forcing on you their agenda and not you’re own. If you take on any work that comes through the door you might be subject to constant interruptions.
I gave up doing small unremunerative matters because I found that they gave me the largest number or phone calls for the least amount of money. Do not go home until you have done your three most important things or at least moved them on. Tomorrow put them back on your list and do the same again.
If they are still on your list a month later either you are incapable of doing the job or you need external help. If the job is beyond you are you wish you had never taken it on admit it and get rid of it even if you lose money on the deal.
If you need external help then get that help. I have had some insurmountable problems over the last year. All of them were resolvable and I took appropriate advice to move them on
Now all my problems are day to day problems and I know how to deal with them I just have not got round to doing them They are however on my to do list. They will not go of the list until they have been dealt with.
The three things on your list have to be the toughest things that must be dealt with today.
My current to-do list has one thing that has been bugging me for a couple of weeks. I have the excuse that Christmas came in the way. I can back out of the job entirely if I want to with a slight loss of face but no t to anyone that matters. It is purely a business decision.
The other is on behalf of a friend and is costing him money until I resolve it.
The other is one is something that I have to arrange for tomorrow so cannot be put off.
Two of them will be resolved in a few days and the other needs direct action by me. No amount of excuses is going to cut any ice with any of those, they need to be done
Nothing goes on my list until all three of those have at least been decided on. It is easy to keep stuffing the list with more things and dealing with all the easy ones. This then looks good as you can say but I have done 80 per cent of the items on my list,
The problem is the three that need to be done do not get done. We then become irritable and defensive. But I have been working as hard as possible. Yes you have doing the less important things and making yourself look very busy in deed.
So it is doing the right things in the right order.
Daily- to do list
Each day either last thing at night or first ting put down your three most important items, it has to be daily if you are taking matters seriously.Every day is a gift and do not waste it. Even if you leave the routine matters every day they will all become urgent but not important.
I cannot take seriously a certain number of my clients who I send statements to at the end of transactions. Then during the month of January when the deadline of 31 January start asking me basic question such as how much they paid for their property, when did it complete, how much is there mortgage etc. These people are in business and this is their main residence. How are they running their business?
I am no saint but I collect all my financial paperwork in once file and forward to it to my account a few months before the deadline.
If there are too many things on your to do list that should have been done months ago then you are using the wrong method. As you daily to do list gets done these incidents will be less and less.
Also if your daily to do list becomes easier and easier you will then have time to deal with the crisis’s that come up. That is things that the most well organized have overlooked.
6Weekly-to do list
Each Monday morning my secretary prints out my weekly work diary. This has the effect of reminding me what needs to be achieved by Friday.
It allows an overview of the whole week. Things that are happening on Friday need to be thoroughly checked on Wednesday not on Friday. Two days grace is plenty of time to resolve most cock ups.
You can then arrive at Friday safe in the knowledge that as far as possible thing are in hand.
Also all the surprise things that you had forgotten about can be reviewed such as appointments you need to prepare for lunches you had booked can be taken into account.
I am now using the Google Calendar which has the advantage that all my secretaries can look at the same colander and put in appointments and make changes and we are all looking at the same document. Previously we run separate calendars. That has the habit of breaking down. It becomes very difficult to run two systems side by side. Something is going to get missed.
We put so many brought forward that we try to eliminate the possibility of mistakes.
Nothing goes out of the brought forward system until it has been finally resolves.
We have two back up systems which is the accounts which will show if there is any money outstanding in the system, a physical check of the files.The ultimate back up system which you do not want to rely on and is embarrassing when it happens is when other people contact you or the client themselves phone and ask what is going on.
The idea is to be one step ahead of the clients that is what they are paying you for your expertise in doing the job.
Monthly -to do list
It gets more difficult the longer the period. The daily to do list is those matters that have to be done today.
The monthly to do list obviously includes those things that are in the diary for that month. All your appointments need to be covered. You have time to prepare the paperwork.
I am as guilty as the next person but I now try to
1 Make sure I know where the venue is
2 How do I get to the venue?
3 What do I need when I get there?
4 Take everybody’s phone numbers in case of emergencies
5 Contact everyone the day before to double check it is in their diaries and that things are still going ahead.
You cannot prepare too much. It avoids a lot of embarrassment things go wrong. You will also save the embarrassment of the others going to the meeting if you have reminded them and they have forgotten.
If you can avoid the meeting and settle before hand try and do so. Right up to the last minute.
All deadlines should be in the diary and false deadlines. Better to review the file today to see if you should be doing things in the meantime. This is a job you can delegate to your secretary to read the last few letters to make sure noting has been missed. Once she has done it you must check she has it right. No point turning up at the venue with the wrong papers as the wrong place and blaming your secretary. Yours is the ultimate responsibility.
Monthly to do lists should also start to work on more fundamental matters such as
1 Clear a certain number of outstanding accounts
2 Move dead files out of the current system
3 Chase up a few recalcitrant clients who have not paid.
4 Bill matters that have gone temporally quiet. This usually either results in payment or more instructions to move the matter on.
I have no more than three overall aims for the month. They may be the same aims each month but they are background activities that must be achieved and not left indefinitely.Try to treat the beginning of each month as a new beginning so as to re launch you for that month.
It is very easy to become complacent and think it is OK to work on years or quarters. Monthly reviews and relaunches will resolve most problems before they arrive.
Setting goals - six months goal
This is more strategic thinking. I have all my personal goals stuck to my fridge. They are for public consumption and are about doing things around the house. Each item in itself may be quite small but by putting it in the programme it gets thought about and looked at.
If it is decorating type jobs a copy goes to my handyman and he puts that into his programme so that he is aware of what we are thinking.
He is allowed to bring them forward or let them slip by a month or so.If they are not done they go into the next programme.By publishing and making them public they will be done.
For your work goals they can be such things as buy a new computer, redecorate office, send someone on a training course, improve account gathering etc.
Nothing is too small or too big to go on the list. Just six spread over six months.I don’t tend to refer back to it until I need to write another one. I am always amazed how many we have achieved. Some become redundant as things move on or become impossible to do because the task was too big. Best to keep it to smaller achievable tasks.
I have been doing this for about the last two and half years and using this method alone I have made amazing strides. I know now what I am doing roughly for the next six months. Again it is not a strait jacket but a plan. It can be changed but gives you peace of mind that things are getting done when you review your year.
I get everyone in on the process; everyone can have some in input. In fact insist that they give you art least three ideas of what they would like to see happen. That includes all the staff and your partners.
Telling people your goals
Goal setting is a controversial subject. The knowledgeable will tell you that they have a goal or a set of goals but they have not written it down. It is all in their head. They can then keep it secret. This is because of fear of failure or being shown up in front of other people.
When I started I was subject to a certain amount of ridicule.
This has died down as they now know that I am achieving the goals that I have set. Also if they get too clever I ask to see their goals or for them to tell me what they achieved last year. They soon change the subject. The answer is of course nothing.
Monday, 12 February 2007
Sunday, 11 February 2007
DOING THE RIGHT THINGS IN THE RIGHT ORDER
I'M PLAYING ALL THE RIGHT NOTES BUT NOT NECESSARILY IN THE RIGHT ORDER.
For the last five years at work I have been producing good figures. My biggest drawback was that I could not get enough letters out in any one day.
Traditionally I had dictated every letter with some standards letters. I would also do the work in strict chronological order. This resulted in all the work getting done but there was always a backlog of typing. I had three people typing for me but it never seemed to resolve itself.
I am told other firms of solicitors have now dispensed with secretaries and that fee earners type their own work. They do this through the use of technology, and standard letters.
Also I believe by not sending many letters going over to e mails and phone calls.
I had to totally rethink how I was doing the work. I then moved over to standardise all the letters. Now 90per cent of my letters are standard letters. That means I hand the file to a secretary and she can do it without prompting
I also strictly prioritise the work. All urgent work is turned round or acknowledged that day. This has the effect of keeping people off the phone. This allows us time to do all the work without having to keep talking to people about why we have not done the work.
This improved our productivity out of all proportion. We were doing the right things in the right order.
My one remaining problem was my main secretary who does the larger bills which require more thinking time and get put of because they are more difficult. I relieved her of all routine work and I said I would do so until she had cleared all the backlog.
I the tempted her one week by saying that she could have a half day off if by the end of the week she had cleared everything on her desk. She achieved at and as a result as reminded up to date every since. Now our most important and best paying matters are shifted on a daily basis.We are now pressing people for answers rather than just reacting to the work.
When I spoke to her about the idea she said "But I can't work any harder."
This is a common misconception. I am working as hard as I can. How can I possibly do any more? You have to agree with them they are working very hard indeed in fact too hard. The backlog is because of their work methods. It is building up and giving them stress which is not helping as they are working hard. it is their lack of method.
When we changed it round she is now working less hard but the important work is getting done and our turnover and profit is going up.
You have to ask yourself all day long "Am I doing now what is going to get me to my goal today" You will have devised a to do list and that is what you should be working on all day long. You have created this at the beginning of the day so it is your road map for the day.
There will be changes as new things come in but they should not let you deviate from your main task of shifting all on that list.
I will deal with interruptions and other urgent things that come in to push you off track. The biggest excuse that I hear is "Oh people ring me and give me things to do that are an emergency and I cannot get that day's work done"
The right things in the right order.
For the last five years at work I have been producing good figures. My biggest drawback was that I could not get enough letters out in any one day.
Traditionally I had dictated every letter with some standards letters. I would also do the work in strict chronological order. This resulted in all the work getting done but there was always a backlog of typing. I had three people typing for me but it never seemed to resolve itself.
I am told other firms of solicitors have now dispensed with secretaries and that fee earners type their own work. They do this through the use of technology, and standard letters.
Also I believe by not sending many letters going over to e mails and phone calls.
I had to totally rethink how I was doing the work. I then moved over to standardise all the letters. Now 90per cent of my letters are standard letters. That means I hand the file to a secretary and she can do it without prompting
I also strictly prioritise the work. All urgent work is turned round or acknowledged that day. This has the effect of keeping people off the phone. This allows us time to do all the work without having to keep talking to people about why we have not done the work.
This improved our productivity out of all proportion. We were doing the right things in the right order.
My one remaining problem was my main secretary who does the larger bills which require more thinking time and get put of because they are more difficult. I relieved her of all routine work and I said I would do so until she had cleared all the backlog.
I the tempted her one week by saying that she could have a half day off if by the end of the week she had cleared everything on her desk. She achieved at and as a result as reminded up to date every since. Now our most important and best paying matters are shifted on a daily basis.We are now pressing people for answers rather than just reacting to the work.
When I spoke to her about the idea she said "But I can't work any harder."
This is a common misconception. I am working as hard as I can. How can I possibly do any more? You have to agree with them they are working very hard indeed in fact too hard. The backlog is because of their work methods. It is building up and giving them stress which is not helping as they are working hard. it is their lack of method.
When we changed it round she is now working less hard but the important work is getting done and our turnover and profit is going up.
You have to ask yourself all day long "Am I doing now what is going to get me to my goal today" You will have devised a to do list and that is what you should be working on all day long. You have created this at the beginning of the day so it is your road map for the day.
There will be changes as new things come in but they should not let you deviate from your main task of shifting all on that list.
I will deal with interruptions and other urgent things that come in to push you off track. The biggest excuse that I hear is "Oh people ring me and give me things to do that are an emergency and I cannot get that day's work done"
The right things in the right order.
Saturday, 10 February 2007
TIME MANAGEMENT
We all have the same amount of time but some people do a lot more than others. Most of the time I am in the others category.
I am now a student of time. Maybe because I have used up most of my allotted amount. I don't brood over it but I like to think about it withe view to achieving something with it.
We have never been taught to use it. We go to school and it is organised for us. We go to work and most of the time we do as we are told. Once you become self employed or further up the corporate ladder we are more in charge of our time.
We are still not fitted to use it properly.
I now achieve a lot more than I used to but I am still a great waster of time. I have a few things I would like to achieve in the next few years and I need to get organised.
We give ourselves many excuses as to why we do not achieve what we are perfectly capable of achieving with a bit of application. On television at the moment there is a series claiming that you can pay your mortgage off in two years.
The presenter claims that 85% of people in Britain feel that having a mortgage is holding them back. They think that if they could pay off their mortgage they could achieve what they want to in life and they would be relieved from the pressure.
It is a convenient hook to hang your problems on. If you present a problem that is supposedly insurmountable then you are giving a problem that you think that you cannot resolve as a good reason for all your failings.
He then gives the selected group two years to pay off their mortgages. he gives them help and coaching.All of them are capable of paying off their mortgages as they have the skills and the help they need.
Two years is not very long but they are getting a lot of help and with that help and their skills it impossible. can they do it. They are obviously a self selecting group in that they have volunteered and they are getting help
So far out of about four groups only one has succeeded. They were hippies to start with but they did have the skill of being a blacksmith and the bloke invented a type of cooker by cutting up a gas cylinder. It was unique and he was able to make about one thousand pounds per cooker. He only needed to sell about one hundred in two years which he did.
The others have given it the talk and more talk. They do something then do not follow it through. They sit around for months making no decisions or sticking at the wrong things.
They have wasted time by being frozen by lack of confidence. They want the answer but they are no prepared to go and look for it or work towards it.
The answer is that you can pay your mortgage off in two years if you want it enough and you are prepared to work at it.
The competitors are all too middle class. They know how to reason and discuss and that is what they do. If they had no choices but to make money to get out of the mire they would have to do it.
They have a comfortable life and they do not like to fail at what they do. It is better not to have tried than fail as you can then withdraw with honour. You can then tell people that the task was too big and everyone will sympathise with you and secretly be pleased. We are all OK we cannot pay off our mortgages
We can now fail in peace.
It is all entire cobblers of course. We can succeed and the only person holding us back from our success is ourselves. It is not because we are lazy. we can be very busy dong noting working the whole day through but it gets us nowhere unless we are doing the right things.
Time management is doing the right things in the right order. It is easy.
I am now a student of time. Maybe because I have used up most of my allotted amount. I don't brood over it but I like to think about it withe view to achieving something with it.
We have never been taught to use it. We go to school and it is organised for us. We go to work and most of the time we do as we are told. Once you become self employed or further up the corporate ladder we are more in charge of our time.
We are still not fitted to use it properly.
I now achieve a lot more than I used to but I am still a great waster of time. I have a few things I would like to achieve in the next few years and I need to get organised.
We give ourselves many excuses as to why we do not achieve what we are perfectly capable of achieving with a bit of application. On television at the moment there is a series claiming that you can pay your mortgage off in two years.
The presenter claims that 85% of people in Britain feel that having a mortgage is holding them back. They think that if they could pay off their mortgage they could achieve what they want to in life and they would be relieved from the pressure.
It is a convenient hook to hang your problems on. If you present a problem that is supposedly insurmountable then you are giving a problem that you think that you cannot resolve as a good reason for all your failings.
He then gives the selected group two years to pay off their mortgages. he gives them help and coaching.All of them are capable of paying off their mortgages as they have the skills and the help they need.
Two years is not very long but they are getting a lot of help and with that help and their skills it impossible. can they do it. They are obviously a self selecting group in that they have volunteered and they are getting help
So far out of about four groups only one has succeeded. They were hippies to start with but they did have the skill of being a blacksmith and the bloke invented a type of cooker by cutting up a gas cylinder. It was unique and he was able to make about one thousand pounds per cooker. He only needed to sell about one hundred in two years which he did.
The others have given it the talk and more talk. They do something then do not follow it through. They sit around for months making no decisions or sticking at the wrong things.
They have wasted time by being frozen by lack of confidence. They want the answer but they are no prepared to go and look for it or work towards it.
The answer is that you can pay your mortgage off in two years if you want it enough and you are prepared to work at it.
The competitors are all too middle class. They know how to reason and discuss and that is what they do. If they had no choices but to make money to get out of the mire they would have to do it.
They have a comfortable life and they do not like to fail at what they do. It is better not to have tried than fail as you can then withdraw with honour. You can then tell people that the task was too big and everyone will sympathise with you and secretly be pleased. We are all OK we cannot pay off our mortgages
We can now fail in peace.
It is all entire cobblers of course. We can succeed and the only person holding us back from our success is ourselves. It is not because we are lazy. we can be very busy dong noting working the whole day through but it gets us nowhere unless we are doing the right things.
Time management is doing the right things in the right order. It is easy.
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