Steeling focus, less printing

Steeling Focus

I have often been told that I do an extraordinary amount of work in a short period of time. Those same individuals have told me that there is no way they could accomplish as much as I do in the same amount of time. I believe the difference is in the way we work. 

If you spend many hours "after hours," then you need to work more efficiently. What that means is that any task you undertake needs to be done with clear purpose and focus. And the way to have clear purpose and focus is to stop thinking and start doing. 

We've all heard of 'to do' or 'action' lists. When I was younger, I balked at the thought of keeping such lists because I was quite adept at remembering everything I needed to get done every day plus the next few days or weeks. But that was then and this is now. To my rescue: lists.

Lists serve a useful purpose and are especially freeing for the mind - decreasing or eliminating the latest and loudest issues so you can increase your focus. Keep your list on paper, on computer, on your BlackBerry, whatever makes sense for you - just as long as it's in a location where you know you'll see it every day. My list, for instance, is in my email calendar.

Review your list every day and then work on the most important items first. Remember to mark off completed items and bring forward incomplete items. Practice this for a month and see how much more you'll accomplish in less time. To make your practice a habit, keep at it for at least three months.

And by the way, a nice side effect of working from lists is that they will help decrease your stress levels which means you'll be more fun to be around - both in and out of the office. 

Less Printing for More Profit

Disorganization can result in documents getting lost and when (if) found are likely to be photocopied multiple times to ensure they don't get lost again. (But of course they do get lost if disorganization continues!).

While photocopiers and printers have given us the capabilities to produce unlimited copies of almost anything, this doesn't mean that we should make copies. Gartner estimates that worldwide, businesses spend $130 billion on office document printing and copying each year. Of that amount, 70 percent is related to operating costs such as supplies, break/fix servicing, and management. and employee interventions of the 50 million copiers, printers and fax machines in use around the world. On top of this, consider that the digital content is doubling every 18 months which gives us even more documents to print. 

Updating your old photocopiers and printers will maximize your return-on-investment (ROI) on printing, increase productivity, increase efficiency and reduce costs. However, continuing to print for the sake of printing will negate positive returns on equipment upgrades. 

Nothing will kill a company's profits more than disorganized leaders and staff.