| |
| |
|
Organizing Information |
|
|
|
Getting Organized For The New Year - Part 1
The following procedures will insure an organized and well run office. 1. Have a daily To Do sheet. This is made up at the end of the day. You might have items left over from the previous day, put those items first and work from there. If you make deposits on a daily basis, add them to the list. Plan to file at the end of the day or before/after lunch breaks. Doing this daily will avoid the "pile syndrome". This list should also include any marketing strategies you employ. This will insure you set time aside to implement them. 2. Have a weekly goal sheet that you review at the end of the work week and finish off any projects hanging, check supplies, make deposits, do invoicing, review the goals you set up in your business plan. This sheet will also include phone calls left to make, marketing or mailings you need to finish. 3. Your monthly goals and routines should include: making deposits, invoicing, bank statement reconciliation, mileage costs, copier costs, postage costs, and income and expenses for the month. Check your supplies and order, if necessary. Comparison of your income and expenses for the month will indicate whether or not you need to make any changes or adjustments to your marketing plan for the following month. Calendar any upcoming events. Make up new income and expense envelopes. Pull your tickle for the following month and place materials in the appropriate day. Make up your chron file for the month. 4. At six month intervals check on your competition. Are they increasing their prices? What kind of marketing are they employing? Are they offering new services? 5. Do one of the following things with each piece of paper that crosses your desk: act on it, read it, file it or toss it. Be sure you need it, before you file it. 6. Set up a mail system. Use different colored folders to categorize the mail you receive. For example, Red - you need to act on (write a letter, make a telephone call, etc.); Gray - for your information; Yellow - meetings, upcoming events; Green - minutes of other meetings, newsletters, reports, etc.; Black - flyers, advertising materials. Remember stamp the date received on all mail, and follow up as quickly as possible, if necessary. This system can be modified for those companies that do not receive a large volume of mail. This system will help staff members set up work priorities. 7. Make up a reading folder. Read or browse this material during lunch, breaks, during slow or off hours. Make up files with specific categories for those articles you want to keep as a reference. Check on these periodically (every 3 months) to see if the information is still up to date. 8. To cut down on filing and paper costs. Set up a chron filing system. A chron file contains any correspondence you have generated for a specific period of time. They are usually made up on a monthly basis. For example, label a file January Chron, and place any correspondence you generated for that month in the file. For most offices, this system avoids having to make up client files with one piece of paper in them. However, some offices keep an additional copy in the client file. Do this only if you have to. Part 2 of this article will discuss what you will need to implement this system. For more organization and time management strategies for your business, check out our Home Business Manual at www.homebusinesssolutions.com/products/products.htm Copyright 2000, DeFiore Enterprises Interested in having your own successful, home based creative real estate investing business? Chuck and Sue have been helping folks start successful home based businesses for over 19 years, and we can help you too! To see how, visit http://www.homebusinesssolutions.com for the latest FREE tips and tricks, educational products and coaching in creative real estate investing and home based businesses. No time to visit the site? Subscribe to our "how to" Home Business Solutions Digest, it's like having your own personal coach: mailto:subscribeHBS@homebusinesssolutions.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Organizing - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
10 Simple Ways to Clear Clutter from Your Home and Office There is nothing worse then spending ten minutes looking for something to accomplish a three minute task. Clear the clutter and clear your mind. Keep, Get Rid Of, Or Not Sure? Cleaning out can seem overwhelming -- especially if it's been a while since you've done it! But there is a very simple process you can follow that will A) help you sort and separate your belongings into manageable piles, and B) keep you from completely tearing up your house while you are cleaning out! When you begin clearing area, you should have three large boxes close at hand. One box is labeled "Keep" -- one is labeld "Get Rid Of" -- and one is called "Not Sure" (we'll talk about other possible sorting categories later on). Overcoming E-mail Overload Using Microsoft Outlook Do you feel like you just get too much e-mail? If you're like me, some days you just don't know where to dig in. Fortunately, I've found a few tips that can help you dig out from under the pile and organize the important e-mails in your life. Be More Productive at Work: Avoid These Eight Traps Obviously, productivity involves producing. Producing widgets, events, reports, sales. The Organized Move: Unpacking with a Plan (This is the third in a series of three articles on "The Organized Move") The moving truck is pulling in the driveway of your new home and soon you will be surrounded by all your stuff. You have dreamed about the additional space. 3 Simple Filing Guidelines One of the most basic ways to find papers when you need them is to retrieve them from an effective filing system. A good filing system will allow you to find what you're looking for in 10 seconds or less. Get Organized -- Every Home Needs An Office EVERY HOME NEEDS AN OFFICEYes, it is true that every home needs an office to handle the business of running a household. There are bills to pay, health records to maintain, an assortment of receipts, bank and financial statements all with tax implication. Spring into Spring Hasn't time flown? Already we're into the last quarter of the year and isn't it perfect timing to clear out the cobwebs of winter and prepare yourself for the next few months of sun, sand, surf or is it work, work, work?You know it's time to take action when:You have difficulty finding thingsYour colleagues make comments about your messYou can't see your desk for the messYou cut your fingers in the filing cabinet when you try to dig out a fileYou have to push your body against the cupboard door to close it.The bookshelves are beginning to break because of all the weight. Digging out of Paper Clutter - part 1 Digging out from under stacks of paper might seem like a daunting and insurmountable task. Let's face it, paper can be intimidating and overwhelming. New Business? Changing Careers? Youve Got a Whole New Ball Game When you embark on a life transition, the skills that brought you success in a former life will no longer work. It's like trying to play football on a basketball team. Spring Makeovers: Organizing Tips for the Home and a Virtual Makeover for You Winter is starting to retreat, and hints of Spring are everywhere. Time to clear away the clutter and get you and your house in order. Addiction to Clutter Clutter is a big problem for many people. At a lecture that I gave, I asked for a show of hands regarding how many people had problems with clutter and disorganization. The Love It Or Lose It Principle: One Simple Key to Living Clutter-Free Forever It wasn't long ago that you spent an entire weekend "decluttering" - and now you are expecting guests in two days, and the guestroom is full of "stuff" again!According to a study by the U.S. Finish in Style - Organizing Works! One of my mother-in-law's many oft-quoted and wise declarations was "Finish in style." It has been on my mind lately, as I contemplate the end of another year, and the end of the first fifty years of my life. Home Organizing Tips & Gizmos Staying organized can be a constant battle. The following organizing tips should help you in various areas of your home, even if you are "organizationally challenged":? Entryway: To avoid chaos whenever you have to leave the house in a hurry, designate a "place" in the entryway for essentials to be stored (keys, purses, wallets, etc. Getting Organized - Getting Fit In a speech entitled "Organized Living in a Disorganized World" I made the statement "Getting organized is much like exercise and healthy eating. It is something you incorporate into your daily living. Organizing - Time is of the Essence! What does "time" have to do with getting organized? Everything! Our society today keeps us running and constantly inhaling, seemingly never allowing us to stop and "exhale"!De-cluttering our workspaces, whether it is our office, our kitchen, or our garage, enables us to be more productive in our daily lives. Once we organize our physical environment, our minds naturally become clearer. Three Effortless Ways to Win the Paperwork Battle Buried under mountains of paperwork from your company? Do the projects seem to never end? Imagine how good you would feel if every day you could start with a clean and organized desk? Well dream no further! By following the three powerful tips listed below, your dreams will become reality!Setting up your system: Start by ordering two 8 ½ x 11 "flat desk files". A flat desk file looks like an accordion file, except it lays flat on your desk and can be easily carried with you. Life Lessons - Get What You Want; A Lesson from a Green Sea Turtle! Sometimes major life lessons come from the most unlikely of sources. As strange as it may sound, I learned one of my biggest lessons about the importance of knowing what I want out of life and the best way to get it, from a green sea turtle. Thinking Outside the Box Much of my time as a Professional Organizer is spent helping people to put things into containers and boxes. But, success in this business requires as much thinking "outside the box" as it does about putting things into containers.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
