“There was a time, not so long ago, when I was busy, busy, busy,” says Laura Vanderkam, author of 168 Hours. “At least I thought I was.” Then she began tracking her time and found she’d been kidding herself. Rather than complaining about your long to-do list, own up to how you’re really spending your time.
When you’re feeling overwhelmed by the enormity of the project in front of you, remind yourself that you need only do one small part of it at a time. If you can finish one small part, you can move on to the next small part.
“The issues most people struggle with have little to do with our ability to do the work,” says Quint Studer, author of The Great Employee Handbook: Making Work and Life Better. “It’s all the things that happen around the work. … It’s whether we make life easier for our co-workers or more difficult.” He offers these four workplace secrets:
In honor of this year’s Administrative Professionals Week, April 23-27, we’re taking stock of the changes in admins’ responsibilities over the past decade, based on the IAAP’s Administrative Professional Skills 2011 Benchmarking Survey:
Get someone to agree to a change by using the PAS formula, says Fred Kniggendorf of Gravyloaf. “PAS” stands for state the Problem, Analyze the problem, then finish by offering a Solution to the problem.
Environmental psychologists know that sensory experiences impact the way we work. Here’s what they say: 1. Keep red to a minimum. 2. Grow a leafy green. 3. Face the entryway. 4. Make small adjustments for comfort. 5. Declutter but not too much.
It’s possible to have a messy desk and still know which pile holds what. But it’s definitely more difficult to think clearly if you’re surrounded by clutter. Here’s how to clear the deck:
With all those details swirling around in your head during the rush of the workweek, it’s not surprising that you can’t always “let it go” at day’s end. The solution? The best tactic, says time-management expert Laura Stack, is a “brain dump”—or weekly review session—every Friday afternoon.
Jason Womack, author of Your Best Just Got Better: Work Smarter, Think Bigger, Make More, offers up a few easy tips for creating the habits that will help you knock out your to-do list:
Administrative professionals and executive assistants often see themselves in their support roles as being “nonleaders.” Nothing, however, could be further from the truth, according to a new book, Who Took My Pen . . . Again?
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