Letters, magazines, bills, flyers, what to do with them all. There should be only two responses to every piece of mail or e-mail, do something with it, or toss it!
The best way, as always, to deal with it all is in an organized fashion.
One of the quickest ways to do this is to have the following folders:
A red one for things that must be dealt with immediately. This would include anything that needs an immediate response, something that has to be done today. A letter you must respond to, a meeting you have to schedule, a report you need to do, a telephone call that needs to be made. Within this folder you will need to prioritize what needs to be handled first, second, etc.
Bills that come in and need to be paid should be placed in your tickler file a couple days before their due date to account for mailing time. So as you are opening your bills that come in the mail, check the due date and place them in your tickler file. If it has to be paid upon receipt, put it in the red folder so you can deal with it immediately.
Meetings (flyers) that have to be attended are placed in a gray folder. Be sure to check the dates, highlight them. Your next step is to be sure to place them on your calendar, and then to tickle them two days before for your review or if there is anything you need to do or prepare for the meeting.
If you receive meeting highlights or minutes by mail, these can be placed in a yellow folder for your perusal at a later date. These are the types of things that can be read during lunch, or while backing up files, printing, etc.
Magazines and articles you receive can be placed in a black folder. This is your reading folder. Take it with you when you go on appointments that you know you will have some lag time. Read during lunch. Schedule time in the morning and weekends. If you make reading a part of your daily schedule, it won't pile up. And remember, once you read it, file it away, or toss it.
Every piece of paper should generate a reaction, the reaction might be to deal with it, file it, or toss it, but one of them needs to occur. If you follow this simple rule, you can keep mail and paperwork under control, and your sanity to boot.
Copyright DeFiore Enterprises 2000
Interested in having your own successful, home based creative real estate investing business? Chuck and Sue have been helping folks start successful home based businesses for over 19 years, and we can help you too! To see how, visit http://www.homebusinesssolutions.com for the latest FREE tips and tricks, educational products and coaching in creative real estate investing and home based businesses. No time to visit the site? Subscribe to our "how to" Home Business Solutions Digest, it's like having your own personal coach: http://www.homebusinesssolutions.com
Clarity brings accomplishmentOne of the most important things you can... Read More
We are constantly inundated with routine (often boring!) tasks around... Read More
Are you a worrier? Do you frequently spend time and... Read More
When a good friend asked me to contribute a little... Read More
I used to think video game addictions were a joke... Read More
This may not sound like a big deal. But it's... Read More
Would you like to know how to get 10 times... Read More
And when you finally sat down to eat breakfast, was... Read More
Work life balance is the new Holy Grail; that search... Read More
If you're like most people, you want to get better... Read More
Whenever you have projects that can't be done in one... Read More
At Home? Keep related items together, for example the coffee... Read More
One of the most challenging aspect in life is time... Read More
My husband and I recently returned from a trip to... Read More
I give presentations on organizational skill building as it relates... Read More
When you decide to become self-employed, you automatically become the... Read More
One of the tried and true organization and time-management tools... Read More
Do you believe that the best way to deal with... Read More
People always seem to be in such a hurry, everywhere... Read More
Does it seem like there is never enough time in... Read More
Whenever I've worked on 'de-cluttering' my living or working space,... Read More
Many of the world's most driven and successful people sleep... Read More
Does choosing which time we do an activity really make... Read More
Does it ever feel like there is never enough time... Read More
How do you know what's the best use of your... Read More
car service from Midway Arena ..One of the most challenging aspect in life is time... Read More
The most powerful resource that we have is time. Everything... Read More
"At my back I always hear time's winged chariot hurrying... Read More
Reflect on the rewards of kicking the procrastination habit. They... Read More
"There is never enough time, unless you're serving it." -Malcolm... Read More
* If you were paying you to prioritise emails over... Read More
An appointment is simply a mutual agreement to meet with... Read More
How you spend the first sixty minutes of your day... Read More
In most organizations, meetings are often the biggest time-wasters. With... Read More
Whenever you have projects that can't be done in one... Read More
Ever feel that you spend too much time shoring up... Read More
My husband and I recently returned from a trip to... Read More
If you can motivate yourself at will to get any... Read More
Work life balance is the new Holy Grail; that search... Read More
I used to think video game addictions were a joke... Read More
Does it ever feel like there is never enough time... Read More
Does choosing which time we do an activity really make... Read More
Many of us spend long hours at our desk. To... Read More
TIME MANAGEMENTWith the creation of the universe, God gave humankind... Read More
Let's look at your time management skills. Most of us... Read More
* spreading yourself too thinTaking on too many things at... Read More
If you have ever missed an appointment, forgotten to pick... Read More
How many people do you know who are so busy... Read More
Sometime ago, my lovely wife woke me up in the... Read More
The biggest time management mistake you can ever make is... Read More
Time Management |