A lot of people have suspension file holders in drawer units in their desks, and they use them for a myriad of different things, but right now I’m going to give you an idea of how to use them to organise your time more effectively by setting up daily & monthly rotating files. It’s a simple idea but it works well, and you can use this same philosphy on emails too.

• Take 12 suspension files, label them January through to December, and place a document wallet into each, for your monthly file.
• Take a further 31 suspension files and label them 1-31, for your daily file

Everytime you come across something that doesn’t need actioning just yet, you place it in the appropriate monthly file. At the beginning of every month you empty the current monthly file into the daily files based on when they need actioning. Give yourself a few days breather by placing each item in a date a few extra days ahead of when it’s due. The monthly folder can now go to the back of the section.

Get in the habit of checking your daily file first thing every day by setting yourself an email reminder, or putting a warning tape over the PC on button until it becomes a habit! You will likely find you check it several times throughout the week, and on going this system should enable you to become more disciplined with paperwork too. Getting into the habit of using the RAD system; Read, Action & Delete for all paperwork will also help declutter your desk.

Working with a clear desk helps you concentrate.

This process can be used to aid invoicing and bill paying too. By writing out your payment cheque, placing it in an envelope and putting it in the day file three days before it’s due to be paid, then posting it on that date means it will get there on time, but the cash is in your account until the invoice or bill to be paid.  

Just think how lovely it will be to always be able to find that document when you need it!

Organising your emails increases productivity and improves time management. In the last two days I have spoke to two people with email fatigue! One of whom had just returned from their two week holiday and it’s taken them 2 days just to shift through the mountain of emails they received, and the other had over 1500 unread emails in his inbox!

There is a better way!

Most Virtual assistants offer an email filtering service, where, for a relatively small fee, they have access to your emails and they sort and organise them for you, keeping you up to date with any urgent messages, responding to requests for standard information on your behalf, and deleting any unnecessary spam. You even get a summary at the end of the day of what you’ve had in, and what action has been taken. Imagine freeing up the time you spend on emails to be able to get on with your real work!

Of course, If you really can’t bear to hand over control of your emails, then you can organise emails yourself easily by utilising the functions your email client (such as outlook) provides. Here are some tips to help you get started:

• Be strict when responding to emails. There isn’t a need to answer each email as it comes in. If you want an instant answer, pick up the telephone. You won’t get much more instant than that!
• By setting rules for each newsletter you’ve subscribed to so that it goes into its own folder means they’re not clogging up your inbox and you can read them at your leisure.
• Set aside a couple of hours each day to go through your emails, say 1 hour at 11:00am & 1 hour at 4:00pm. If you are really concerned about delaying responses to people, put an auto responder on your email informing people you will respond within a set time.
• When you do check your emails, be strict! Look at every email with RAD in mind – Read, Action, Delete. If you don’t need to keep it, then delete it straight away. If you have to take action, consider whether it is going to be a quick action (in which case action immediately), or whether you need to schedule it into your diary

So now the big question is: once you’ve organised your emails, what will you do with all that spare time?

Planning

Nothing arranged in the last minute will ever be a true success. For any event you need to start planning ideally 5 months in advance. Put it all down on paper first. Work out what your final outcome will be, what you want to see at the event, and what value you want people to gain from it and then work backwards until it’s all written down. Every last detail.

From that point you can work out what it will take to get you there. You can work out who you need quotes from, who you can delegate to, who is on board. Think of your worse case scenarios and how you would combat them. Write it all down. The devil really is in the detail with events, and nothing should come as a surprise.

Accountability & Responsibility.

Know who is responsible for what areas of the event, from planning and organising through to hosting and ushering the actual event itself. People are like sheep, they need herding. If you are lucky enough to have a team of organisers then make sure you allocate according to strengths and that everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet. Specify all tasks to ensure that everyone is where of their own areas of responsibility.

Timing

Timing for your event is crucial. Not just on the day, but on the days leading up to it. With a fully documented time plan everyone can be aware of exactly which tasks will be completed by which date. Don’t forget to allow contingency planning. Think about how much time you will need to rearrange certain aspects of the event if issues arise. Don’t be afraid to plan for someone to stand in, in the event of a no show. It’s certainly best to have all the bases covered before you get to the day and find your main act hasn’t shown up. On the same note, it’s crucial that you get firm guarantees from the main acts if you have them and to also keep in regular contact with them, and getting a final confirmation one week before.

Budgets

When working out your budget for an event, make sure that you include as much information as possible. It’s surprising how many people do not account for their own travelling expenses when organising their event. As a rule, if at all possible book the venue without paying a deposit, as a preliminary booking, and get the payment date as close to your event date as possible. There are many hotels which will allow you to pay a deposit a week before, then say 50% on the day and 50% after – negotiate. Your own cash flow is the important one here.

Of course this should mean that you can cancel should you fail to sell enough tickets although that shouldn’t be a problem if you follow the advice detailed in my event planning e-book. Available from Bizpro shortly. Click here to register your interest.