Most people are busy. Really busy these days. Here are a couple things I’m working on to help my work day be more productive.
- Checking email- Check your email at set times throughout the day. (i.e. first thing in the morning, before lunch, and 4pm). This helps you control your day rather than responding to others to do list for you. I have fallen guilty to having my email open all day to make sure I’m accessible, but then I find that I hardly get anything done because I’m just responding to emails, or having people IM me all day.
- Sort your email. I sort my email into three different folders- immediate attention, follow up, or future interest. Immediate attention are things that I need to respond to ASAP, and they are usually quick emails, but I don’t have the time right then and there to answer them. Follow up is just that. I need to email them back, but it’s not as pressing as the immediate action folder. Future interest is something I want to follow up on in the future and work on. Having a system like this keeps me organized and allows me to prioritize my emails.
- Time yourself- Do get sucked into different tasks like updating twitter, or your Facebook? These are important tasks and great for networking and building your brand. Limit your time on these. I usually schedule 3-5 tweets via hootsuite on various accounts first thing in the morning. {I spread them out so it appears that I’m online throughout the day… tricky, huh?} Then I usually log on for 2 other 5-10 minute periods during the day — usually after lunch, and in the evening.
- Use Google Reader to subscribe to your favorite sites so you’re cutting back on surfing the net. If you subscribe to a lot of feeds, you can organize them into different folders so if you only have a few minutes to read them at a time, they are prioritized for you.
- Write it down. Have a central location (i.e. Tasks in Gmail, Notes, etc) where you can write things down while you’re out and about. This will save your brain power for the issues at hand, while also helping you remember things you need to do.
These are just a few tips to help you stay on task and make the most of your day. How do you structure your day for success?
