Productive & Organized - Practical Tips from Stephanie Calahan

Celebration of Freedom From ---AND-- Freedom To

by Stephanie LH Calahan

This weekend, in the US, we are celebrating our nation's Independence Day.  This past week, my Canadian buddies held similar celebrations.  Whether you live in the states or not, this is a great time for all of us to celebrate our many, many freedoms.

Today I write this post about "Freedom From" and "Freedom To" especially for you and anyone that dreams of living without overwhelm -- about living and working the way they want and focusing on what is really important.

Don't Bother Keeping Your User Manuals! Let Owner IQ Do It For You

 

This past week we decided to sell a weed whip that we no longer used.  It was in new condition and still worked (well my husband could make it work, I could never get it started, that is why we were selling it!)  The person that bought it from us asked if we had the user's manual.  

Put a smile on your customers face... How a GREAT tool can benefit you and/or your business

Recently, I have had a lot of colleagues and readers ask me how I stay in touch with people that are important to me and I realized that I had not talked about this tool in a while.  When I first learned about this tool, I thought it had to be too good to be true.  Boy was I wrong!  The company continues to impress me with their ability to upgrade and keep costs low and value high.  Keep reading to learn the benefits and how this tool has helped me.

The Paper in Your Office is Costing You More than You Think

The other day I was doing my spring file clean-out (yes you really should go through and see what is still relavant!) I came across some statistics that I thought you might be interested in.  Implications could make or break your business!

Set Your Target and Throw Your DART! How to use the DART system to get through your paper piles.

So, do you experience this....

You walk into your office and you say to yourself, "Today is the day!"  You are excited and you say, "I am going to get this place organized and I'm not leaving until it is done!"

Then...  you pick up the first piece of paper, look at it, say, "Hmm, well... I'll look at that later." and you put it down.  You pick up the second piece of paper, look at it, say, "Oh good grief!" and you put it down.  The next thing you know, everything from the right side of your office has been moved to the left side of your office and you are tired and call it quits.

Paper can be overwhelming, but it does not have to be!  I have worked with a number of people that think that they will never be able to get through their piles.  Fortunately, it was not as horrible as they thought!  They were able to get through their piles by changing the way that they looked at the piles. 

Do You Actually READ Your Magazines, or Just Make Piles? Here are some Tips To Get the Info You Want!

One of the things that I hear from my clients all of the time is that they desperately want to get to their magazines, but they end up in piles instead.  I mean, there is good info in there, right?!  I can't let them go because I might miss something.  Does that happen to you too?  Today, I'll share a few techniques to help you manage that reading pile!

Key Activity You Should Do To Make The Most of Your Time & Meetings

Yesterday, I wrote about 10 Things YOU Can Do To Make A Productive Meeting Even When You are Not the Meeting Planner.  Today I want to share the #1 Important thing you should do to make sure you are using your time well in meetings.

Only Attend Meetings You Really Need to Be Attending

Is this one of those "no duh" statements?  I don't know about you, but I have been asked to attend a NUMBER of meetings in my personal and professional life.  Back when I was in the corporate world, I could have as many as 5 meetings scheduled at the same time!  One of the best time/meeting tips I ever mastered was to NOT attend meetings I really did not need to attend. 

10 Things YOU Can Do To Make A Productive Meeting Even When You are Not the Meeting Planner

Have you ever been a part of a meeting like Dilbert?  It is likely you have!  I read a blog posting today that covered productive meetings much differently than I'm used to reading and I will share the tips with you today.

Computer Crashed! 400 Gigs Gone! Don't Let this Happen to You!

Like many small companies, Calahan Solutions is not on a big corporate server environment.  The company is ran on PC desktops and laptops (OK MAC Lovers, I know you are going to have comments for me, but at this point we don't have MACs).  The hard drives of those computers are the life-blood of the company. 

Then it happened... the unthinkable!  I went to my desktop computer about a week ago and turned it on.  It made a really odd whirring sound and I thought to myself "this can't be good..." 

Totally Different Idea for People that Hate Filing

"I can't stand filing!" 

"My problem is I don't care to file." 

"Hey, if I liked to file, this stuff might be done already."

These are all comments I have gotten from Twitter buddies in the last few days and I have heard loads more over the years.  I have to admit, I don't blame you!  The actual act of putting paper in files is not all that exciting and if you let a backlog happen;it can add to the tedium.

So, here is a quick tip - Don't use file folders!  Lots of people don't like to take file folders out and label etc. etc.  So, all of those papers that you have to DO something with -- those things that require action -- consider a stationary sorter.  You'd be amazed how easy it is to literally toss papers into a "cubbie" and voila!  You have filed your papers away.

The great thing about stationary sorters is that the shelves are not very deep, so, it is more difficult to pile, pile, pile. 

Try this method out and see how you do and then let me know!

To your success!
     

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