I first published this post in 2007. The women at iLash Girls have reminded me that we are wise to revisit our focus on a regular basis. Thus I have chosen to republish in the hopes that you will find it helpful to refocus your view of the work to be accomplished this year.
Focus – with a camera? A noun or a verb? And what makes me think it has anything to do with business anyway? Ever try creating something without it?
Probably the single biggest reason employees fail to reach their goals and business fail to succeed is lack of focus. Do you have a mission? Do you know where you are going? Do you know what it will look like when you get there? Do you have a road map? Have you shared the map with anyone else? Have you shared it with everyone else?
If you or your employees are not focused on the goals of the company, they are messing around with what I call corporate clutter; All the stuff that gets in the way of your business, project, division, board of directors or _____________ succeeding (you fill in the blank). It is no different than in your home where clutter takes time, energy and money to manage, and manage around. If your day is cluttered with unnessary and unfocused activity, you are messing with clutter and wasting energy that would otherwise help your business succeed.
Focus: think about it.
Archive for SOHO – Page 2
Clearing out a client’s office with them, particularly offices with lots of paper, can be an illuminating experience. Not so much for me, but for the clients.
Typically at the end of the day, we end up with several bags or boxes of recycling mostly paper. There are usually another couple of bags or boxes of garbage. Finally, there is an inevitable collection of material that belongs to other people in the company and will be distributed accordingly or taken to a supply/equipment/archive store room. The end result is a calm and organized work space the even feels more productive, 4 – 6 bags of recycling and garbage in the hallway and a stack of stuff that is doesn’t belong in the client’s office.
When clients are confronted with the debris in the hallway, the illumination begins; “I can’t believe I was so stressed about so much stuff that turned out to be not worth keeping or not even belonging to me!” Bingo.
Take a look around your office. Cluttered? Messy? Paper got you stressed?
I highly recommend a clear out and overhaul. You may be surprised at how much stress you are spending on garbage.
I have written a couple of times recently on the importance of establishing hot files in your office or work area, (see Hot, Hot, Hot, The Disappearing Desk). One question which consistently surfaces when working with clients, is “what is the optimal place for the hot files?”
The answer? There isn’t one; the location of the hot files really depends on how you function in your office. The best location will depend on your organizing personality, the nature of your work and the space you have available. Here are some examples in no particular order:
- In a vertical file holder on your desk. Works well if you have the space on your desk, your need to see the files right in front of you.
- In the top drawer of your filing cabinet. Works well if you have the file space, you require visual calm in your office, you don’t need the visual cues to remember what’s there.
- In a vertical file holder on your credenza (table). Works well if you have the space on a credenza or table, you need visual cues to remember what’s in them.
- In the file drawer on the right/left pedestal of your desk. Works well if you require visual calm, have the space in the drawer, are in and out of the files freqently during the day, don’t need them right in front of you to remember what’s in them.
Whether you are small or large business, if you run the show it is important to know where you are going. Here’s an interesting and easy read over on SOHO Blog that will get you thinking.
Many people struggle with a desk covered in paper, files, reports and debris from the work day. There is now doubt, trying to get a grip back once this has got away from you can be an overwhelming task. Try this to get back control:
- As usual, start small. Take 5 minutes first thing in the morning to sort just one corner of your desk. Sort the paper by date, project, time line or subject. There is no right or wrong way only a way that makes sense to you.
- At the end of the day, take another 5 minutes to file the piles you sorted this morning. Sorting takes far more brain power, decision making and emotional/intellectual energy than filing. Do the filing at the end of the day.
Try this for 28 consecutive work days. I promise you that at the end of the 28 days your desk and your organization will be at a very different place – a very good place.
As a professional organizer, I am frequently asked by clients what paper needs to be shredded and what can go straight into the recycling bin. Recently I was asked specifically about some old utility statements that a client was throwing out.
Most utility bills have enough information on them to be able to identify you clearly. That’s why its on your bill. Some even contain billing and payment information. This is not information that you want public if it were to go astray. Shred.
As a rule of thumb, if there is anything on the bill to identify you, shred it. When in doubt, shred. You can always sit down with your television show some night after the kids are in bed and shred away during the commercial breaks.
If you are working from a home office, you may be struggling with getting everything to fit into a relatively small space. One of the challenges is to keep the space visually calm while keeping all the tools and supplies of the home office contained.
To accomplish this, consider using same colour containers. Whether they are the same style or even shape won’t matter so much if they are all the same colour. The result will be a visually quiet space. Multiple colours create visually noise and can be distracting while you are working.
If you use different coloured containers as a mechanism to identify them, consider using complimentary colours. While they may be different, the appearance with be less like noise and more like music.
To review development of your goals click here.
To review measurement of your goals click here.
Are you feeling hemmed in when sitting at your desk?
Take a quick inventory of what’s on it: computer CPU, printer, screen, keyboard, telephone, several “In” piles, three projects in process (at least that’s what you can see well enough to count).
Move all the hardware off your desk. Do a quick sort of your In piles into four file folders: read, call, write, decide. Put them into a vertical file holder on your desk, to the left if you are right handed, (vice versa) with the labels facing toward you. Make sure the three projects are in some form of file holder and add them to the vertical file holder.
Take a quick inventory of what’s under it at your feet: computer CPU, printer, several pairs of shoes, gym bag, handbag, assorted brief cases or other business cases, recycling box.
Move the CPU and printer. Put the shoes, gym bag and any other clothes in the closet or in a bag hanging behing the door. Put the business cases in the closet. Use the recycling box for the sorting in the second paragraph above.
Enjoy your space.
For entrepreneurs, small business owners and those of us with home based businesses keeping work and personal life separate becomes a significant challenge. With only one filing cabinet, business and personal files have no choice but to co-habit. If your office is the corner of the family room, tax time may find you with receipts all over the dining room table while you sort, add and prepare for your annual tax submission. Even if you have a large corner office, you may find that there is some information that always gets handled from your office and therefore you keep those files stored at the office. When tax time is over, or the big project is complete, whichever is your reason for extending beyond your “office” boundaries, is it important to develop boundaries and borders that separate work life from personal life.
Working animals, such as sheep herding or seeing eye dogs, have defined cues that tell them when it is time to play and when it is time to work – the harness for example. Without these cues and without clear separation the animals become confused as when they are working and when they are just playing.
The same is true for the rest of us although thank goodness we don’t have to wear a harness to tell us when we are at work. Wtihout this clear distinction, however, our lives become imbalanced, productivity decreases and destress time disappears. Here are some tips for home based workers to help maintain boundaries and borders:
- Start by designating an office. No matter how small or large, ensure that the space is preserved for your business work space.
- Separate your files by using a different colour label or file folder for personal and business files. Ideally, use different file drawers.
- Schedule your time so you know when you are “on the clock” and “off the clock”. The timing of the work day is less important than the designation of the working hours.
- Use specific cues to tell you when you are at work. This could be a coffee mug that is reserved for work hours, a pair of shoes that you “go to work in”.
- If you are working on a big project that requires spilling onto “non office” home space, try designating a large basket to house the project work during non work hours rather than allowing it to takeover the living room completely.
