AMiable Solution #219: Time Cheats

Trying to fit 10 hours of work into eight?  These 12 time-saving shortcuts will help you get through your day and on your way home:

·        Recycle.  Reuse text, headlines, formats, layouts, even graphics from older, successful campaigns and promotions.

·        “To-do” tonight.  Don’t wait until morning to make your to-do list.  Create your list at the end of each day so that you’re ready to start tackling your tasks as soon as arrive the next morning.

·        Say no.  Helping a colleague is great, especially since you’ve likely asked for help once or twice before, but don’t fall into the habit of doing others’ work.  Make sure you and your colleagues know that you have responsibilities and priorities that come first.

·        Go team!  You may be able to delegate a task or two of your own, but you can’t expect to be able to dump all of your work on someone else’s lap, so why not find a co-worker or two to work with?   As CIPHR, a U.K.-based provider of software and services for people and data management said in its February 13, 2014, blog, by working as a team you’ll be able to complete tasks efficiently and in less time than an individual might.  “Not all tasks are suited for a team to work on,” CIPHR warns, “but if you require assistance and the use of a colleague’s particular skills, then ask them if they can book some time to assist.”

·        Do the dreaded tasks first.  Jonathan Long, Founder of Market Domination Media®, says in his August 11, 2014, Entrepreneur.com article that unattractive tasks will “consume your thoughts until they are completed.” He suggests doing them first so that you “have a clear head to plow through the rest of your tasks.”

·        Address problems right away.  Again, putting off problems not only complicates them, but it also distracts you from other tasks you’re working on.

·        Write it down.  If something crosses your mind that you want to remember to do or research, or someone you need to call or follow-up with, make yourself a note.  We’ve experienced the frustration of trying to remember what you needed to do and wasted precious time doing it.

·        Work from home.  If your office permits it, try to work from home once a week or pay period.  You’ll save time lost to commuting and to regular office distractions.

·        Go to work earlier.  We tend to have our most productive hours in the morning.  Take advantage of that energy and focus--and of fewer colleagues/distractions at that hour--and get more done while you can.

·        Eat lunch later.  Just like getting in to work earlier buys you some more quiet and alone time, eating later than most of your colleagues can have the same effect.  Plus, you’ll get more done before the post-lunch slump hits.

·        Focus, focus, focus.  Multi-tasking isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be.  Pick one task and focus on it only.  You’ll do a better job in less time.

·        Keep up with the Joneses.  Identify the achievers in your office and try to keep up.  No one said peer pressure is always bad.