PERSONAL EFFECTIVENESS | personal development ||
— What useful business contacts have I gained?
— What was I in command of today, and where was
I all at sea?
— What did I learn to do, and what interesting ideas
did I come up with?
The sort-out will take five to seven minutes and help
you map out the work sequence for the next day in an-
other few minutes. A set plan establishes a good work
rhythm from the very beginning of the new workday.
Keep your desk clean.
The best paper management policy has always
been, “Do this… Delegate that… Throw this away...”
Pieces of paper will bury the best of us until we resolve
to “take no prisoners.” If in doubt, throw it out! If you’re
inclined to play it safe, ask yourself what would happen
if you threw out this or that piece of paper. If the answer
is on the level of causing injury to someone—keep it. If
not, get rid of it!
Learn to delegate.
Delegating means organizing division of labor and
responsibility among staffers. When subordinates begin
sensing responsibility for an entire sector of work, their
personal initiative is aroused and their faith in the per-
manence of work relationships and their dedication to
the firm are strengthened. To correctly distribute duties,
you need to envision the result you want to gain from
execution of the assignment. You have to give precise
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instructions and set concrete deadlines for completion.
After your subordinates have been familiarized with the
assignment, ask them to tell you what they plan to do
and how. Dispel doubts and deal with questions that
come up at the very beginning of the job so that every-
one is clear on what is expected. After that, you won’t
need to be constantly bugging people or checking up
on them. You’ll ask about results when the time comes.
Use a time organizer, a printed daily planner
or electronic analog with capabilities for
calendar planning.
Enter dates and times of scheduled a