| Get Rid of the Clunker September 8, 2011
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- What's
New at Mise En Place?
Lots of training going on! Check it out!
- Feature
Article -
Get
Rid of the Clunker!
- Ann
Michael Recommends - Stop
thinking about getting organized--just do it!
Join us for one of our workshops - we'll have
fun!
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Anyone
who knows me knows that I don't like to shop. I
really, really, really need to be in the right mood
to hit the mall. Imagine what it must be like for
me to have to go shopping for a new car! It's been
awhile since we've had to do that and quite frankly,
I dread the process. Yet I know, I will enjoy the
new car and even more, I will enjoy not having the
hassles of a very old car.
Letting go of something that has worked so well
for so long and that we are so comfortable with
will be tough. Going through the process of finding
a new car will be excruciatingly painful for me,
let alone having car payments once again! Yet, I
know that driving around in new wheels will be just
wonderful and worth the investment of my time to
find what works for us.
As I write this I can't help but to chuckle a bit.
I think of the numerous clients who decided -- many
with hesitation -- that they needed help getting
organized. Their hesitation is much like mine when
it comes to shopping for a car -- will the process
be painful and will the solution work short- and
long-term? It's the comments as we finish up that
say it all. Here are a few common ones:
- "I
wish I had known this 20 years ago."
- "Why
don't they teach this stuff in school?"
- "This
is so easy."
- "Why
did I put this off for so long!"
When you put something off so long and then realize you have to face it head on, many times we realize it wasn't so bad after all and wished we tackled it sooner. Plus, the relief of finally facing it and conquering it is wonderful. So, when I am driving my new car around with no repair headaches or expenses, I definitely will be happy that I finally did it. |
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Lots of Training Going On!
Boston, Rochester, Webinars!
Course descriptions are noted below the schedule. |
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Boston: Hilton Boston/Woburn
2 Forbes Road, Woburn, MA 01801 |
The GO System Workshop | 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Details and
Registration here!
| Escape the E-mail Vortex | 1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. | Both Workshops | 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. | To
register for the Boston Workshops - click
here |
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Rochester:
(Held in conjunction with the Rochester Business
Alliance - you do not need to be a member to attend)
150 State St, Suite 400, Rochester, NY 14614 |
The GO System Workshop | 8:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. | Details and
Registration here!
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Webinar - It Doesn't Matter Where You Are!
(Held in conjunction with the Rochester Business
Alliance - you do not need to be a member to attend) |
Escape the E-mail Vortex | 12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. | Details and
Registration here!
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Are you ready to: - Stop feeling so overwhelmed?
- Get done what you really need to get done?
- Stop getting side tracked?
- Have a sense of calm when you walk into your office?
- Deal with that e-mail overload once and for all?
- Have a life again?
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What
you will learn:
- Delve
into the seven major issues that help significantly
improve workplace results:
- Establishing
strong foundational habits
- Processing
incoming items - paper, voice mail, e-mail,
etc.
- Prioritizing
- identify your top ones every day and work
them.
- Using
time rationally - since managing it is impossible!
- Effectively
managing project - effective delegation and
follow-up.
- Understanding
personality issues - how to use your strengths
and those of your team to maximize the impact
on the bottom line.
- Understanding
psychological issues - dealing with self-defeating
and dysfunctional behavior that can undermine
your efforts.
What is included:
- 64-page
Workbook filled with ideas and exercises for improving
focus, organization, and productivity
- Quick
Reference 5 Decisions poster
- Access
to The GO System Resource Library
- PDF
Follow-up Form
- Label
Making Program
- Break
Even Calculator
- Priority
Worksheet
- Priority
Matrix
- Vision
Statement Guide
- Meeting
Planner
- Project
Management Template
- Problem
Solving Guide
- Commitment
Agreement
- Progress
Report Monthly Reminder
- Articles
- And
more!
- 12
weekly tips for reinforcing course content
- Access
to The Executive Pantry, the Mise En Place resource
library
- Additional
resources for improving organization and productivity
- Articles
- Videos
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Escaping the E-mail Vortex: |
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Tired of being overwhelmed by your e-mail? Are you using your in-box as a "to-do list", a contact manager, a calendar, or a filing cabinet? How many e-mails do you have in your in-box - 100, 250, 500, more than 1,000? If so, you aren't alone! Join, Ann Michael Henry, Chief Productivity Officer at Mise En Place, as she talks about properly managing e-mail so that you can enjoy the benefits of this great tool. Learn how to control your e-mail so that it doesn't control you!
What you'll learn and see as we go live with our e-mail and show you how to effectively manage this incredible productivity tool. |
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What
you will learn:
- The
proven secrets of managing e-mail
- Strategies
for incoming e-mail management
- Viewing
the source of an e-mail
- Adding
a sender to the blocked senders list
- Saving
e-mails outside of Outlook
- Saving
e-mail delivery
- Dealing
with junk e-mail
Overall performance and processing
- Creating
rules and filters
- Effectively
managing deleted and sent e-mail folders
- Setting
record retention guidelines
- Checking
the size of your mailbox
- Backing
up your Outlook folders
- and
more!
Additionally, you will receive:
- Tips,
Tools, and Techniques for Managing E-mail
A
20-page How-to Guide with step-by-step instructions
and visuals for Managing E-mail
- Next
Step Guide
A
step-by-step checklist that you can follow to
get your in-box under control
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As
I write this I think of the numerous clients who
decided -- albeit with hesitation -- that they needed
help getting organized. There are four things that
potential clients are generally concerned about:
- Will the process be painful?
- Will the solution work immediately and can I sustain the change?
- Is it worth my time to make a change?
- Is the solution really worth the investment?
I just got off the phone with a prospective client, a small business of ten to twelve people drowning in paper. They would be an ideal client -- going in and providing them a solution that I know would work and that they would enjoy using. I could hear the pain in the gentleman's voice: they are a paper intensive organization, and people need to be able to get their hands on drawings, permits, contracts etc. quickly and easily. We chatted for a bit about their needs, potential options, timing, etc. As we talked, I could hear the stress in his voice and thought about what this disorganization must be costing him.
- The
average filing cabinet uses 15.7 square feet and
the current U.S. average cost of office space
is $15–$20 per square foot, so you're paying roughly
$236–$314 per filing cabinet solely for the real
estate it consumes.
- According
to PricewaterhouseCoopers, the average organization
spends about $20 in labor to file each paper document,
approximately $120 in labor searching for each
misfiled document, and $220 in the recreation
of a document.
- The
average employee spends 400 hours per year searching
for paper documents.
- Nearly
75% of time spent working with paper-based information
is wasted in searching and filing. [Coopers &
Lybrand]
- Paper
reduces office productivity. Of a total 8 hours
wasted per week in paper management, finding documents
wastes 1 hour, difficulty sharing documents wastes
1 hour, distribution and storage wastes 1 hour,
and archiving and retrieval wastes a half an hour.
The average employee spends 400 hours per year
searching for paper documents. [Datapro/Gartner
Group]
Working in an unproductive, ill-supported work environment is costing you--we all need to face that reality. How much longer can you afford to work that way? Do the math: If you spend 400 hours per year searching for paper documents, isn't it worth your time - and money - to invest in a new way to manage all of your information? Even if it takes 20 hours of your time to get a new process in place, you gain 380 hours.
Imagine what you could accomplish with those 380 hours back! |
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Now
that you are comfortable prioritizing your workload
let’s add a level of discipline to this process.
It’s one thing to have your work prioritized, it’s
another thing to actually stick to those priorities
and get them done!
During the GO System Workshop we talked about setting a default priority for the day. Simply by prioritizing your workload, you are setting that default priority – it’s the first thing in today’s tickler folder. See how easy that is?
The next step is evaluating everything else against this priority. Which is more important, your number one task or:
- The
e-mail that just pinged in your in-box? (Hint,
minimize your e-mail – unless you need it for
your number one priority – and turn off the sound)
- The
co-worker who just interrupted you?
- The
phone that just rang?
- Your
beeper that just beeped?
- Your
sudden desire to do a quick Google search on your
next vacation destination?
Are any of these, or a myriad of other distractions/interruptions, more important than your top priority? Chances are they aren’t – so they can wait.
Pick your default priority every day this week and
stick to it. You’ll be amazed at how good you feel
at the end of the day. E-mail
me and let me know how you are doing. |
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View Word Documents Side by Side
Have you ever wanted to view two Word documents side-by-side to make comparisons? Here's an easy way to do it. |
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For
Word Versions 2007 & 2010:
- Open both of the Word documents that you want to view together.
- In one of the files you want, click on the View tab.
- In the Window section, choose View Side by Side.
- If you have more than 2 open Word documents, a box will appear listing the Word documents that are open (excluding the one you are in).
- Choose the file you want to be seen along-side of the one you have.
Both documents will appear together. Now you can work in either one of them, scrolling down to the areas that you want. If you select the "Synchronous Scrolling" in the View menu, both documents will scroll simultaneously when you are scrolling in one of the documents. |
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Ann
Michael Henry is the Founder and Chief
Productivity Officer for Mise
En Place -- an organization and
productivity consulting firm devoted to working
with clients to discover the right ingredients for
managing e-mail, digital data, paper, and workload
so that they can "get cooking" at work
and still have time to satisfy their appetite for
life. |
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"He who waits to do a great deal of good at once, will never do anything." ~ Samuel Johnson |
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Here are some additional ways to connect with Ann Michael: |
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