- A Note From Anne
- Is your computer organized?
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Hello!
July is organizing your PC month (I just declared it as such!). This month is when things are usually a little slower for people with vacations, demands are less, and the days seem more relaxed. Ideally, you'll have time to take on some less stressful projects. Let's see if you can tackle the clutter of the dangling information in your computer.
No matter how organized or disorganized your files are, my message is the same: You need to take a look at what's going on and get the right system in place to organize your information. This month we'll look at organizing the different types of information. No excuses, whether you have a desktop, laptop, PC or Mac, all of these organization tools will apply to you.
All my best,
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Is Your Computer Organized?
 Information can get really cluttered in our computers. So often I'll go into a client's office only to find that they will haphazardly have files saved on their desktop, in their "My Documents" folder, or maybe they actually created a folder or two to organize files by type. I'll ask them where a document is and they have no idea.
Electronic File Structure - the Architecture
I think this is a good place to start. Think about how you would be filing a document if you had a physical filing cabinet. Take the time to file each document when you send it by email or have completed the task, just as if it were a piece of paper. If you were to just "save it anywhere," you know what your physical office would look like.
My computer has files like, MY DOCUMENTS, With folders under that labeled:
- Administration
- Clients
- Finance
- Forms
- Human Resources
- Legal, etc.
Take time to think about how you are running your business or performing your job and set up your electronic files to reflect that process. It'll not only make sense to you, but others may have an easier time finding things as well. (An extra tip, if you are using the email management program Orla, it has a nifty Desktop Search tool, so if you still can't find something, it'll dig around and find it for you.)
Contacts
 We used to use a rolodex. Then along came an excel spreadsheet or word document. Now contacts come to us via business cards, we write info on post-it notes (formerly cocktail napkins) or attached to an email.
No matter where the contact information comes from, make a decision where you are going to store your contacts and centralize all contact information into that one system. My personal choice is Microsoft Outlook, but there are other contact management systems like ACT! and Highrise. And a key here is to schedule time to input that information into that system, or you certainly can delegate it since it's a simple system going into one place.
Make a decision to clear out all other forms of depositories of contacts. Yes, throw out the business cards, delete the old spreadsheets and word documents, and give up the rolodex. Maintain just one system and the simplicity will give way to being able to find information when you need it.
Email
You know you need to organize your email and you keep saying, "I'll do it one of these days." Why not take a day this month to review unread email, create folders and set up rules to automatically sort your email? Keep it simple, you know what you are always putting off. (Another reminder here to look at the product Orla, it gives you a 30 day trial. This product will force you to make a decision with each email, so it won't be sitting in your inbox as a habit much longer!)
One strategy I use to sort out email that can wait for later to read is to create a folder for those informational emails (like ezines such as this). Call it the TO READ folder. Just remember to schedule time to read each week and when you're ready to read emails more leisurely, you can be focused and they'll all be in one place.
You may want to also set up electronic email templates for those often responded to emails. For example, do you always send an email to people with the same message? If you are an HR recruiter and you often get maverick emails with resumes. Instead of emailing each one individually, use the "signature" function that has a message saying 'thank you' and what you or their follow up actions should be.
In the upcoming weeks, we'll discuss other tips to cleaning up your computer including: back-ups, software, passwords and finances. |
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WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Productivty Trainer and Organizing Consultant, Anne McGurty, publishes the "Organizing Strategy" weekly ezine with 1,200+ subscribers. If you're ready to jump-start your productivity, save time, and enjoy the quality of your life at work and at home, get your FREE tips now at www.StrategizeAndOrganize.
WANT MORE INTERACTIVE CONVERSATIONS AND TIPS: See Anne's blog. |
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About Anne:
 Anne McGurty is CEO of Strategize & Organize, a company devoted to training individual's to be more effective with the tools and resources to be productive in their work environment.
If you liked today's issue, you'll love Anne's transforming productivity training and organizing products to help you organize your business -- and yourself -- ranging from productivity consulting for individuals and executives to small business coaching programs to keynote speaking and corporate training programs to improve efficiencies in the workplace and improve productivity. While Anne's best known for her expertise in productivity and expert office organizing, her clients share that her biggest impact comes from her philosophy of "personalizing her programs to fit the needs of her clients so they can streamline more efficiently with existing processes" - ensuring to create a sustainable work environment. This, Anne says, is the most important key to bringing an individual to personal freedom with time and organization. You can learn more about Anne and her services, programs, and products for small businesses at www.StrategizeAndOrganize.com. She is also a partner with Catapult Growth Partners. Catapult Growth Partners is a leading interim executive and advisory firm that specializes in providing turnaround and business revitalization services. | |
Strategize & Organize
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Denver, Colorado 80206
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