Decide the fate of every incoming piece of paper.


Do papers come into your office and somehow wind up on your desk? 

Look at the papers on your desk.  The reason it’s hard to move the stacks is because the stacks represent a myriad of postponed decisions.  There’s the paper that needs to be filed, the active current project, the bill that needs to be paid, the paper waiting for an answer, the invitation that needs an RSVP once you decide whether or not you want to attend, the memo, the phone messages.....

How did this happen?  The papers you put on your desk from that important meeting somehow got buried under the new memo which got buried under the latest report which got buried under... you know the routine.

So how do you handle this? How do you a) keep it from happening, and b) clear it off (for good)?  The answer lies in sorting. 

The way to keep it from happening is to put it in the correct place when you first bring it in. 

Action.

The way to begin the process of clearing off your desk is to sort the items into approachable stacks.  Put all of the active projects together, then label them and put them in a file cabinet near you.  Put all of the bills together then label them and put them in a file cabinet near you, etc.  The key is to label them so you can find them when you need them. 

This allows you to know where to put other like things when they come in, and allows you to be able to find your work when you need it, yet keeps your work area free.

Announcement:

New class: "Opening the Boxes," begins Tuesday, February, 5, 2013.  

Once you see what you really have, and everything is in a find-able format, you can begin to attack the stacks.

Sorting is the beginning step.  Have a terrific day!

Marsha

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