Sv Time:habits% Communication Library

Efficient Filing

The art of filing

Both digital and paper files can quickly become complicated, . Fortunately, a little, simple organization can avoid the problem..

First, avoid saving unnecessary files. Glance through each item, and if it pertains to your work, then you can file it. If not, find the "round file."

Adopt a consistent pattern to organize your files, such as similar naming or grouping related files, to make documents easier to find.

Separating work-in-progress files from completed files will allow you to save time and will help you prioritize what needs to get done.

Start Right Away

Don't lose 30 to 90 minutes of your day

The average knowledge worker arrives at his or her desk and immediately begins wasting time - getting a coffee, checking social media or reading the news to "get into work mode."

Only then do they check their email and check notes from the day before, and start to think about what they're going to do that day.

The better option is to get to your workstation quickly and knock out your most important task right away. That way when most people are just beginning their days, you'll have already completed an important part of yours.

Create Realistic Deadlines

We are overly optimistic about our time

Most of us have the habit of saying little white lies about our time: "I'll be right there." "Just a minute." "It'll be done in a few minutes."

We underestimate the time we need and over promise the time we have. Hofstadter's Law says "any task you're planning to complete will always take longer than expected - even when this law is taken into account."

To be more accurate in time estimates: take deadlines seriously - especially when making new ones, don't double (or triple) book your time and don't let others interrupt time that is already allocated to a project.