If you are like me, you are always have your eyes open for the latest and greatest tools for catapulting success. And sometimes, it's the simplest of systems that can make the difference between where you are, and where you want to be in your business and in your life. This past month, I decided to work with a Productivity Consultant who taught me and my staff how to set up our environment so that it functions in a way that serves us well. Here are the top three takeaways I gained from this experience:
- Set up your workplace so that not only can you put your hands on what you need without having to dig through piles, but make sure that your co-workers can find something in a moment’s notice in your office as well. That just brings you one step closer to a "team work" environment.
- Clutter is one of the biggest, and most common distractions in an office. And purging is a critical step to increasing productivity. Start with outdated files you will never refer to again, publications you will never read, and things you are saving for potential "what if" moments that never happen and never will! Because the internet allows us to access so much information anymore, it becomes less necessary to keep things.
- When it comes to clutter, our email inbox is a perfect example of how distracted we can become. If we process emails as they come in, we will have a much greater chance of nothing falling through the cracks. And what we get from knowing where everything is, and what we need to do next yields us some of the greatest rewards ever … less stress, increased productivity, better job satisfaction and ultimately a sense of peace of mind. Now does it get much better than that?
Beattie is president and chief executive of South Miami, Fla.-based Selden Beattie Benefit Advisors. She can be reached at 305-661-9090 or bbeattie@seldenbeattie.com.
