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Organization Equals Increased Productivity posted on Monday, 05 May 2008

Get organized! It’s one of the simplest and most cost effective ways to increase your businesses productivity and bottom line.

By Andrea Korogi
Director of Small Business Development at the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce

Tax time is over, summer is on its way and there are about two more months before client schedules become erratic. If you organize your work space, the next two months could be very productive for you and your business. Follow these tips to get organized now to improve your work productivity:

• Organize your office.
Schedule a weekend to completely clean up your office. Make it relaxing by dressing comfortably, playing your favorite music and bringing snacks. Also bring cleaning supplies and a lot of trash bags.

Take everything off of your desk and set things on the floor. The rule of thumb is to throw away any piece of paper that you haven’t touched for a month. Go through your in basket and distribute or file everything of value. Scan through your stacks of magazines, newspapers and articles. File, discard or distribute the items to clients.

Go through the files in your filing cabinet. Remember, you don’t need paper copies of everything that is in your computer as long as the files have a proper backup. Be ruthless.

Determine what nifty supplies will help you stay organized. Everyone has a different style of organization. Wander around a big office supply store and select items that will help you stay organized on a daily basis.

• Sort through your piles of business cards.
Throw out the ones you’ll never use and either put the remaining cards in a rolodex file or a business card album, or scan them into a business card database.

Consider making notes on your business cards when you receive them to help you remember the client and the conversation. These notes also can be scanned into a business card database.

• Buy a calendar that works for you.
Do you like one that shows the whole week, month or each day individually? Write in all the important reoccurring dates and consider keeping track of client birthdays, special events and etc. Consider using index cards when you’re traveling or have a busy day scheduled. You can write down your schedule, client notes and directions.

Once you’ve cleaned up your office and established new ways of keeping organized, try to avoid the paper pile up. Set aside a couple of hours to catch up each month. You will find your productivity goes through the roof when your office space and systems work with you – not against you.

Consider scheduling in days and out days. Schedule several appointments for your out days and choose days when you may also have committees or events so that you really utilize your out of the office time wisely. On in days, stay in your office and work hard. Set aside an hour or two to make phone calls and take advantage of voice mail for early morning or after-hours messages.

Posted by John Lincoln