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Lean Office Transformations
Welcome to Lean Office Transformations - a newsletter designed to save you time and become more efficient. References to Lean Manufacturing and Lean Office refer to a productivity philosophy created by Toyota which is now adapted by companies worldwide.
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Passport to Productivity Tip
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Break projects down by Categories
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Perhaps it's the way my brain is wired, but when I come into my office in the morning, I like being able to see at-a-glance how my day is going to be spent. I'm talking about that TO DO List which we all have. TO DO Lists take on all forms from yellow legal pads to Excel spread sheets to the TASK feature within Outlook.
I discovered years ago I preferred seeing my Tasks grouped together by category such as Phone Calls, Writing Projects, Client Meetings, Personal, etc. Here's a screen grab of some of my TO DO items (I use the TASK feature within Outlook to manage all of my projects):
To create your customized list of Categories in Outlook, click on the Categories Icon:
Next, click on the down arrow just below the icon; You'll see a listing of pre-determined categories that come factory-set from Microsoft. Scroll down to "All Categories" in order to replace, delete and add new categories. I use the same four categories consistently every day so when I named and created these categories, I put "01" at the beginning of the name so it populates to the top of my list vs. appearing alphabetical. If you don't want to use a number you can also use a symbol such as an asterisk. Here's a sample:
If you prefer to see your TO DO items listed by subject or category, then you'll definitely want to take some time to customize this feature within Outlook.
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If you find yourself repeatedly typing the same text over and over, take advantage of the Quick Parts function in MS Word and Outlook. Here's how:
- Highlight the text you regularly use
- Click the insert tab
- Hit Quick Parts, and choose "Save Selection To The Quick Part Gallery"
You'll be prompted to create a name for this new Quick Part. The next time you want to insert that chunk of text into a document, either a new one or an existing one you're editing, just hit that Quick Parts button. Just one more click will select which saved Quick Part to insert. This trick will even work as a shortcut for adding a logo or letterhead.
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Free Articles for your Organization
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Audrey Thomas offers her articles for reprinting or reposting - FREE - provided that her name and contact information (supplied at the end of each article) are included. So if you want to share her articles with others, please take advantage of this valuable resource.
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