A Few Tips to Be Smarter (and More Efficient)
23 May 2012
Read by 1452 persons
Efficient...? What does this much-used adjective really mean?
Here is a quick reminder of the definition of this trendy term: "Efficient":
Meaning 1 That produces the expected effect.
Meaning 2 A person whose actions lead to high-performing results.
Active synonyms: acting, good, shock, competent, effective, efficient, practical, precious, profitable, useful.
So, in order to produce "the expected effect", to be able to be "the instrument of performance", let's try to see more clearly and better organize ourselves regularly....
1. Give your office a nice look
- Replace old, torn, and ugly binders with new ones. Clearly differentiate those you will handle tomorrow from those you have already handled today.
- Buy yourself folders in different colors. This new harmony between the colors will give you new impetus.
2. Organize your files!
- Organize or reorganize your files alphabetically. Do not leave any unnamed, or labeled "Miscellaneous" because, when it comes to guessing the content, you will no longer remember what the term "miscellaneous" means.
- Create new folders: arrange your invoices by date, documents relating to your purchases and sales, etc.
3. Create one or more schedules
- Take the time (and rack your brains) to develop to-do lists for each day, or even a chart for each week. Often, for several hours, we daydream, we have the false impression of having nothing to do. And we lose entire days because we have mistaken them for rest days. It is necessary to take moments of your day to create lists of what needs to be done in the following days.
- Also important: distribute your actions between weeks and months to ensure that, in the end, everything will be accomplished. Making a list of everything you have to do each day, each week, is to stay motivated…
- Remember to use only one calendar, one diary, to avoid scattering and getting lost in the various task lists.
-Do not wait until the last minute to write or to start the action. The best-prepared tasks and events are those that have the best chance of success. Improvisation may be the art of artists, but all everyday art is born from habit and rigor.
4. Set five specific professional goals
- Yes, five goals that you would like to achieve during your career. Don't be vague and opaque, be clear, specific. (Examples of professional goals: achieve your financial balance, get a promotion within your company, be appreciated by your direct colleagues). If you know what you want, you can organize your time and your professional life with a view to achieving your wish.
- Ultimately, what takes time, the real difficulty, is knowing, precisely realizing the targets to be achieved. Also define your priorities and don't waste time going from theory to practice. Thinking is good. But acting, when the time comes, is even better.
5- Throw away, eliminate the old
Let's be honest, we have difficulty separating ourselves from old things, from those old things that hang around everywhere, that clutter and pollute our decor without us even being aware of it… An old printer, a board of Post-its whose last ones date back more than two years, hideous and unstickable old promotional posters that curl up on themselves and are always about to collapse, on the wall in front of you… If in your office you can find this kind of old stuff, equipment you haven't used for a year, it's better to get rid of it as soon as possible. It unnecessarily occupies your physical and mental space and soon it will take up your time, if it is not already the case….
Article written by The ReKrute.com Team
Posted online May 23, 2012
Here is a quick reminder of the definition of this trendy term: "Efficient":
Meaning 1 That produces the expected effect.
Meaning 2 A person whose actions lead to high-performing results.
Active synonyms: acting, good, shock, competent, effective, efficient, practical, precious, profitable, useful.
So, in order to produce "the expected effect", to be able to be "the instrument of performance", let's try to see more clearly and better organize ourselves regularly....
1. Give your office a nice look
- Replace old, torn, and ugly binders with new ones. Clearly differentiate those you will handle tomorrow from those you have already handled today.
- Buy yourself folders in different colors. This new harmony between the colors will give you new impetus.
2. Organize your files!
- Organize or reorganize your files alphabetically. Do not leave any unnamed, or labeled "Miscellaneous" because, when it comes to guessing the content, you will no longer remember what the term "miscellaneous" means.
- Create new folders: arrange your invoices by date, documents relating to your purchases and sales, etc.
3. Create one or more schedules
- Take the time (and rack your brains) to develop to-do lists for each day, or even a chart for each week. Often, for several hours, we daydream, we have the false impression of having nothing to do. And we lose entire days because we have mistaken them for rest days. It is necessary to take moments of your day to create lists of what needs to be done in the following days.
- Also important: distribute your actions between weeks and months to ensure that, in the end, everything will be accomplished. Making a list of everything you have to do each day, each week, is to stay motivated…
- Remember to use only one calendar, one diary, to avoid scattering and getting lost in the various task lists.
-Do not wait until the last minute to write or to start the action. The best-prepared tasks and events are those that have the best chance of success. Improvisation may be the art of artists, but all everyday art is born from habit and rigor.
4. Set five specific professional goals
- Yes, five goals that you would like to achieve during your career. Don't be vague and opaque, be clear, specific. (Examples of professional goals: achieve your financial balance, get a promotion within your company, be appreciated by your direct colleagues). If you know what you want, you can organize your time and your professional life with a view to achieving your wish.
- Ultimately, what takes time, the real difficulty, is knowing, precisely realizing the targets to be achieved. Also define your priorities and don't waste time going from theory to practice. Thinking is good. But acting, when the time comes, is even better.
5- Throw away, eliminate the old
Let's be honest, we have difficulty separating ourselves from old things, from those old things that hang around everywhere, that clutter and pollute our decor without us even being aware of it… An old printer, a board of Post-its whose last ones date back more than two years, hideous and unstickable old promotional posters that curl up on themselves and are always about to collapse, on the wall in front of you… If in your office you can find this kind of old stuff, equipment you haven't used for a year, it's better to get rid of it as soon as possible. It unnecessarily occupies your physical and mental space and soon it will take up your time, if it is not already the case….
Article written by The ReKrute.com Team
Posted online May 23, 2012
