Fuelled by Coffee

My LSTT method - Later, Sooner, Tomorrow, Today. In my last blog I talked about managing our overburdened email inboxes and how to keep the demands on our time and energy down to more manageable levels. Now, I’m turning my attention to physical papers. There are tons of books on how to get things done, time management, organising and the like, but all of them require time to put them into practice. I have developed a quick and dirty way of triaging my workload and piles of paperwork which sit on and around my desk from time to time so that I get the important things done first. My LSTT method – Later . Sooner . Tomorrow . Today – lets you get your overwhelm under control and create order out of chaos. It works with physical paperwork and also for task lists if you are feeling overwhelmed. If you have a bullet list of jobs, then break them down on separate pieces of paper (laundry, baking, shopping, dog trimming, phone calls, etc) or create your own list on your laptop or other ...

I’m continuing on my theme this month of being organised. Quite frankly, it is easier thought about than initiated. It is extremely hard to remain organised. I laughingly think of myself as being fairly adept with technology and these days we’re really not supposed to have stacks of paper all over the place, as most of our correspondence, documents and other information travels to us through cyberspace and doesn’t require being printed out. Hah! I look at my desk at this very moment, and I am surrounded by papers – folders, files, envelopes, notes, notebooks, magazines, the list doesn’t end. Some I’ve brought in to my space of my own volition, but still more comes from my Post Office mailbox, from helpful others who want to show me something or leave me a book to read. I subscribe to a monthly business ‘subscription box’ – and it is absolutely the best sub-box I have ever received. It always includes a business book, so this has increased my TBR pile. I explained in my last blo...

By Nan Berrett - word Solutions:   Business cards – still your best marketing tool There’s nothing new and revolutionary about the business card – this little bit of cardboard has been around since the 15 th Century in one form or another, always acting as a tool for introducing one person to another. The Chinese used business cards in the 15 th Century to let people know they intended to visit them. The idea emerged again in 17 th Century Europe when merchants created trade cards which looked like tiny ads for their products and also showed maps of where their premises were located. Gaining in popularity with the elite, again in 17 th Century Europe, calling or visiting cards were placed on trays held by haughty butlers and presented to the occupants of a home when a visitor arrived. I always remember reading Georgette Heyer romance novels as a kid (now I’m giving away my age!) where gentleman caller would drop off their cards when wooing their belles. Can’t believe I’ve...

  11 Agenda Items you can use to plan your business week When we are working for an employer or as part of a team, meetings often serve as touchstones for actions and activities. They help with brainstorming new ideas and solutions and, if recorded, they provide a reminder of tasks which need doing and can even celebrate wins. So what do you do when you work for yourself, are your own boss, and maybe don’t have employees or a team – you hold meetings with yourself! Don’t laugh … it works really well. Have regular meetings with yourself -  it works really well! Having regular meetings with yourself helps you focus on what’s important. You can set an agenda, follow through and follow up the next week to see what you’ve achieved. You can set goals, itemise the steps you need to take to get to the end and record how you did. The notes will help you reflect and serve as a bit of a road map, as well as a good aid to your memory if you want to do a similar project again. Do...