Audrey Thomas

In today's email culture, we often forget that the old fashioned way of communicating with a telephone still works! As email traffic continues to congest our lives, keep in mind these situations where a phone call might be warranted:

• When you're dealing with something truly urgent in which a response is needed immediately
• When you have already exchanged emails with someone and you suspect that a strand of several emails could easily ensue, pick up the phone and cover everything in less than sixty seconds
• If you think an email might be misunderstood in any way, use the phone
• When you think an email response needs a lengthy explanation
• When you're working with someone new and you feel a voice connection would help to build the relationship
• When you don't want a paper trail regarding a specific conversation
• When it would be beneficial for someone to hear the intonation of your voice
• When communicating with someone you know doesn't check their email very often

I recently received an email from someone who took my training nearly three years ago. He had participated in "The Road Called Chaos" training offered by his employer and still had the handout used in the class. Slowly and gradually he has been making changes and improvements. He ended his note with the following: "Thank you for the worthwhile training; my efficiency has hit an all-time high, and I have only just begun." He signed it "No longer living in Chaos."

I share this feedback with you because perhaps you are tired of living in chaos. Tired of losing things. Tired of constantly being late for meetings. But you're overwhelmed and don't know where to start. I encourage you to make one small change today. Because small changes made slowly and gradually will turn into new life-changing habits. Here are a few ideas to get you started. Choose only one item to work on at a time:

• Devote 10 minutes a day to cleaning out your email Inbox. Use a timer to keep focused.
• Collect extra personal items sitting around your office and take them home with you tonight. (Food storage containers, extra pair of shoes, personal bills/mail, library book, sweater, etc.)
• When you get home sort through the stack of mail sitting on your kitchen counter and separate all of the bills that need to get paid within the next thirty days.
• Set up appropriate folders within your email management system.
• Grab 3" of papers off of your desk; sort and purge and then file away those that need to be kept.
• Take a hard look at the office supplies sitting on your desk and in your pencil drawer. If you've got multiples of things, return them to the supply closet or give to a co-worker.
• Clean up the sticky notes stuck around the perimeter of your computer screen. After awhile these just become clutter and you tune them out. If they represent a task, add to your To Do List and pitch the sticky note.
• If you have a bulletin board in your office, is it covered with items you have long-ago forgotten? Give yourself ten minutes to sort/purge it and turn it into something that's pleasant-looking yet functional. Consider adding a few family photos to make it more fun. 
• Feeling crowded these days as you work at your desk? Take a look at the stuff being stored underneath your desk. Just what's in that box that's been there for three years?
• Review tomorrow's calendar appointments. Are you prepared for each meeting on your schedule? Take time now to set aside materials, notes and other information you may be required to bring with you. Commit to being there 3-4 minutes early.

So much of the clutter in our world represents delayed decisions. Do you realize that every single email that comes into your Inbox needs to have a decision made about it? The same goes with the pieces of paper that come to you at work and at home. Every time you make a decision on what to do with something, you will be one step closer to being organized and having less stress.