The Office Gal

Just a quick tip: Large companies do it, small businesses do it, one-person teams should too. What is it? Have a weekly meeting with yourself. Why? Because even though you are a one-person team, taking time out to review and update will keep you on top of things and in check.

Yes, I do have a weekly meeting. On Friday, I pull together my calendar, notes, projects, and sit down with the phone to voice mail to concentrate on my review and follow-up.

Current Week:

• File completed projects
• Update timelines on open projects
• Layout timelines for new projects
• Update dates on my calendar
• Review any notes
• Rewrite sticky notes into my notebook

New Week:

• Begin To-Do list for new week
• Prioritize projects
• Highlight priority follow-ups
• Highlight priority e-mails
• Highlight priority calls

Yes, there will be things that might need to be updated throughout the week, but you should never miss a week without a complete sit down and review. Regardless if it is 30 minutes to two hours, it will be the best time spent of the whole week. You never know what you might have missed during the week. This is definitely the catch time!

Do you have any tips on a weekly meeting? How do you review your week? We would love to hear your tips - let us know!

This is an original The Office Gal post.

Popularity: 53% [?]

Sounds easy enough. Open your e-mail and start going through it, right? Wrong. That is why your e-mail is on overload now, you hate the thought of cleaning it out. Old e-mails, forgotten e-mails, and the e-mails you forgot to read. Time to go through it!

Now your e-mail is your land. You make the rules, but I have a few suggestions that might become habit-forming. My first suggestions - take care of it as it comes in. Don’t read the e-mail when it first comes in and then get back to it later. No, do it now.

Timing. The easiest way to tame the lion is to choose two or three set times during your work day to check your inbox. At that time review e-mails, reply where needed, and process any work that needs to be done. Control the e-mails now, so they don’t get out of hand later.

Think. When you are going through your e-mails, think before replying. Does the e-mail really need a reply, or is it more for informational purposes? Not everyone needs a nice e-mail saying “Thank you.” This takes your time and the receivers time. Always think before replying to make the most use of your time.

Quick. Replying to e-mails doesn’t have to be lengthy and windy. Be straight forward and to the point. Always be kind with an opening, but then get to the purpose of the e-mail. Save small talk for a weekly lunch with the colleagues.

File. I know it is easy to just file away because you never know what you might need, right? Well, honestly, 99% of what you file, you may never need again. This is important because you take up time searching through all of those e-mails to find the right one. Think about what you truly need to file for work purpose - otherwise get rid of it.

Do you have a tip or suggestion when it comes to taming the e-mail inbox? Share it with the readers of The Office Gal. Leave a comment or contact me and I will add it to our list!

This is an original The Office Gal post.

Popularity: 33% [?]

We lay them on the counter, on the desk, across a hook, anyplace to keep cell phones out of the way when charging. If you are like me, you quite possibly forget where you have even placed your cell phone to charge. Wouldn’t it be nice to keep your cell phone tidy and noticeable?

Wouldn’t it be great if someone introduced a product that would hold your phone while charging, but also keep it in a convenient spot so that you always know where your cell phone is and within easy reach? Driinn™ Mobile Phone Holder is that product and is available now for purchase.

Made of a sturdy plastic and rubber combination, Driinn Mobile Phone Holder is available in eight fantastic, bright colors. You can purchase on-line at the companies Web site or through various on-line retailers, such as RevDesign.biz, X-treme Geek.com, and of course Kikkerland.com.

Not only convenient for you cell phone, you can also use it for charging an MP3 player or even a PDA. Various options, one little nifty product. The Driinn Mobile Phone Holder would also make a great gift idea to for the family member or friend that constantly forgets where their phone is, or include in the package when you buy your child their first cell phone.

Step over to Driinn’s Web site for a complete view of the product.

Popularity: 38% [?]

Are you the organized pile filer that knows exactly where every piece of paper is until you need it? I am too, but no need to worry, it is easy to convert your creative filing style to a simple, basic filing system.

Filing products galore can be found virtually everywhere, from national chains like Office Depot and Staples to your local office supply store. There are also a ton of web sites that offer a great amount of office supplies including furniture that is both stylish and functional.

Choosing the best filing system all depends on how you work. Do you like to keep current projects in front of you? Do you like to have a clean, uncluttered desk at the end of the day? Using your personal preferences will help you determine the best way to file to keep you current, yet uncluttered.

1. Choose your filing system. Using a desk filing system will keep current projects or client in front of you at all times. This will also allow for easy access to your files. Using a filing cabinet will help you to keep projects as you complete them, as well as archive older projects and clients that are hardly to never accessed. Make sure which ever system is chosen, will stand up to wear and tear and constant abuse from opening and shutting.

2. Location. You should be able to easily access your files, but not to the extent that your system is in your way; your system should not interfere with your work. Pick a location in the corner of your desk or under your desk, so files are kept close, but out of the way. If you use a cabinet for only archiving, you may want to keep it located in a basement, unseen.

3. Filing. Instead of filing throughout the day have a drop location where finalized projects and work can accumulate. Then once per week or month, take your drop location and file. If you notice you are spending too much time at your scheduled filing time, you may want to move to a more frequent filing schedule.

4. Review & Recycle. Pick a schedule, maybe every two or three months - more or less - and review your files. Decide what really should be kept, the rest can go through the recycle program - shred it and then take it to a local vet or recycling center.

5. Archive. Again, on a regular schedule, remove those files that are a must keep, but are no longer looked at and move them to a drawer or cabinet reserved for archived folders. This is the out-of-the-way cabinet kept in the basement, unseen.

Popularity: 49% [?]

Poor personal and professional scheduling is something many of us have issues with. When is the sales meeting at work? When does Caitlyn have her soccer practice? What time is my hair appointment? We have all suffered from the forget syndrome that lurks within the deep reaches of our brain, but thankfully there are a select few out in the world that have recognized scheduling issues within their own daily lives and struck out to create the ultimate one-size-fits-all planner.

Enter: The BusyBodyBook and Joan Goldner.

Seeing her own need to blend her entire life - work and family - Joan Goldner created a simple weekly grid form that allows for a column for every member of the family, with clear side by side and coordinating access to what everyone is doing at one time. There are no scheduling conflicts, no flipping back and forth, and all of the appointments are in one easy to remember location for the entire family.

The BusyBodyBook is made by a mom, but not just for moms. The planner will fit any lifestyle from parents that - stay at home, work at home, work in a corporate office, or even the professional without children just wanting the best tool for organizing time.  

 The BusyBodyBook Format

You can purchase the BusyBodyBook planner in either a spiral bound book or a refrigerator pad. You have two choices with the spiral bound, either the calendar year or the academic school year.  

The spiral bound gives you a page to create your to-do list and any notes that need to be taken, as well as 5 roomy columns to keep track of daily events. Uses for the spiral bound planner don’t just stop at family scheduling. The planner can also be used for school, life goals, business projects, and even an exercise log. The ideas are limitless.

The fridge pad is a great option for larger families which gives you 2 more columns, for a total of 7 columns to schedule your day and still gives you the added to-do list to keep you on track. This option would also be a great tool for the office as a group calendar to hang within your pods, either as a schedule tracker for members of the team, or a project tracker.

Joan was right on track when creating The BusyBodyBook. There are just so many features that make it the attractive fit within your life - ease of use, plenty of space, complete scheduler, organizer, tracker - I am surprised not everyone has one already!

Order your BusyBodyBook here.

Popularity: 46% [?]