| ADVICE |
"I'm an
intelligent, successful person, but I can't seem
to get myself organized! I'm desperate!" a prominent
business owner revealed. Sound familiar?
Over the years, I've heard this more and more,
and have come to realize that the answer is very
basic. Many people were never "taught"
the fundamental principles of organizing in their
offices or their homes.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that the average U.S. business
person loses six weeks each year retrieving misplaced
information from messy desks and files. At
$75,000 in annual earnings, that equals over
$8,500 worth of time wasted. |
In these
busy times, professionals often live and work with too
many papers and possessions and too little time. They're
involved with their businesses, finances, associations
and personal lives. Prioritizing is vital.
As a Professional Organizer (since 1984), I've worked
with corporate, entrepreneurial, and residential clients
to organize their space, time, paperwork and other
information. My philosophy is: "If
you can't find something in 30 seconds, it's in the wrong
place."
Although organizational skills are not part of a formal
educational program in most occupations, numerous books
and magazine or newspaper articles can be tapped for
informative organizing tips.
Now, you don't have to do it alone. If things are out of
control, one good investment is to hire an experienced
Professional Organizer for personalized assistance and
training. These specialists offer unique solutions for
chaos control, plus for saving your time and money.
Members of the National Association of Professional
Organizers (NAPO) help clients bring order to their homes
and offices. Most work with clients one-on-one and
teach techniques to become and stay orderly. ( Contact us
for details - 310-391-7392 or email:
info@organizer4me.com )
EVERYTHING NEEDS A
"HOME"
Are there are too many "homeless" supplies,
clippings, and unpaid bills floating around your home or
office? To eliminate disorder, I recommend finding
"a home for items to live, and take them home after
use."
Information, which floods homes and offices from various
sources, needs a safe place to dwell, whether it be in
paper or electronic format. Also, certain people
(including you) must be able to access data effortlessly.
The "ideal"
filing system is one customized for your own personal
needs. Begin organizing yourself by
following a weekly routine for recordkeeping
(input) and filing:
- Categorize income
and expenses in a
filing system and accounting software.
Frequently review your profits and losses
(P&L) and stay on top of your
financial status. Intuit's Quicken and
Quickbooks are quite effective for
personal financial records and small
businesses. Industry-specific programs
are also available.
- Make
names, addresses, and vital details on
personal and professional contacts
readily accessible in a contact management
program. I use
LeadCommander by DataBasix Technologies,
but Symantec's Act, GoldMine, and others
are excellent as well.
- Sort e-mails
(Compuserve, AOL, etc.) within the
program by topic or person for easy
accessibility. Limit printing e-mails
whenever possible, and delete unwanted
messages.
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DIVIDE AND CONQUER
To help yourself stay focused, presort
paperwork into four categories using Donna's "4D's
Principle" ... Do It,
Delay It, Delegate It or Dump It.
Group papers that need to be filed into categories and subcategories. For major sorting, I
recommend records storage boxes (stackable, cardboard or
plastic, with handles and lid). On these boxes, use
labels for categories such as magazines, newspapers, paid
bills, and tax records. Always
toss junk mail immediately.
If
you feel you cannot get started by yourself, help is just
a phone call away 310-391-7392.
This
article was published in Physician's Money Digest, Feb.
1-15, 1998 issue.
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