- Spend fifteen minutes clearing your desk. Take everything off first, place in a single pile and then proceed to sift through. Be ruthless and have the bin close by. Use a paper shredder for more satisfaction. Polish the surface as it feels harder to clutter a brand new clean surface.
- Don’t delete any e-mails but rely on being able to search for them easily. Use colored flags and move to folders so you can easily find them when you want them. Avoid e-mail tennis. Eventually you may have to pick up the phone! Limit the number of times you check your e-mail inbox. Experiment with the number of times you check your e-mails a day. Is two enough? Is five too many?
- Hold meetings standing up and keep to the essential points. Meetings rarely last as long if people don’t sit down and they have a greater sense of urgency.
- Get into work an hour before anyone else. You will be surprised how much you can get done without distractions from other people.
- Carry a small notebook with you at all times and jot tasks down as they arise. Things to do are better in on paper than swilling around in your mind.
Save time in meetings by not providing seats for people.
