10 Tips for a Productive Day

Apr 022011
 
 April 2, 2011  Office, Organising, Planning, Schedule , , , , , , , , , ,  Comments Off

I believe having a productive day is all down to planning, prioritising and focusing.  Check out my tips below:

  1. At the end of your working day write out your “To Do” list for tomorrow and prioritise the tasks using the MoSCoW System (see previous blog for further information – ‘Week 2 – Prioritising’)
  2. Work out a timetable for the next day (see previous post – ‘Weekly Timetable – Upgraded’)
  3. The night before prepare your things for the next day e.g. clothes, laptop, papers, tickets etc.
  4. Ensure you have a good night’s sleep
  5. Start your day with a healthy breakfast
  6. Look at your “To Do” List and Daily Planner first thing. Get started straight away
  7. Take regular breaks but keep them short
  8. Avoid distractions like Facebook, MySpace, personal calls
  9. Take a lunch break away from your desk
  10. Be positive

Have a productive day!

“What do you do?”

Mar 312011
 
 March 31, 2011  Office, Organising, Personal Assistant , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  Comments Off

“What do you do?” is a question that I come across on a regular basis, like I am sure many of you do.  However, it always surprises me that in this day and age so many people do not know what a Virtual Assistant (VA) is.  I’ve given up calling myself a Virtual Assistant and prefer Freelance Personal/Executive Assistant.  Still people are often baffled.  It is assumed that I do a lot of typing and diary management but to be honest I do very little of that.  That is not to say that I won’t do that but clients tend to use me for so much more.

So what services do I offer?

My services include Accounts, DeskTop Publishing, Digital Transcriptions, Email Management, E-Shots, Holiday Cover, IT Training & Advice, Lifestyle Management, Media Management, Systems and Process Management and Website Administration.

All I can say is clients aren’t scared to ask.  I’ve had some call me from their holiday unable to obtain the Formula 1 results, clients needing lifts or items picking up, even dogs that need walking!  I’m here to help and love nothing more than offering my assistance.

Where do I work?

My office is based at home and most of the time this is where I work but on occasions I am requested to go to a client’s office or home.  Most of my work is emailed, discussed over the telephone or even posted.  Clients give me access to their web mail accounts, web servers and so much can be done online with Web Applications.  I can even access a client’s computer remotely.

So what sort of person do I work for?

Well this ranges immensely; sole traders, small businesses, consultants.  Some of them I work for daily, some weekly, some monthly and the others dip in and out as and when they need me.  I offer a great deal of flexibility and this suits my clients.

Why do clients outsource to me?

I offer expertise that many clients do not have.  A sole trader may feel that they want to do everything themselves but why waste time learning a new skill when they can hire it in and concentrate on other things.

I save my clients time and money. A Consultant earning £100 an hour often spends 5 hours a week on admin – hotel bookings, travel arrangements, accounts, invoicing etc. By completing these tasks themselves they are, in effect, losing £500 a week e.g. 5 hours x £100 ph.  By paying me to do that admin work, at a lower hourly rate, they are then able to earn money they wouldn’t otherwise be able to.

What are the benefits?

  • My clients know that I am dedicated to helping them succeed
  • Flexibility including out of hours work
  • Clients pay for my time and expenses only: no tax, NI/PAYE or benefit costs
  • I provide my own office space and equipment

Weekly Timetable – Upgraded

Jan 232011
 
 January 23, 2011  Free, Office, Organising, Personal Assistant, Planning, Schedule, Template , , , , , , , , , ,  Comments Off

Next week is set to be a busy week and I will need my weekly planner more than ever to ensure everything is accomplished.  The timetable has been a huge success so I’ve now upgraded to an Excel spreadsheet.  This means that I always have a copy with me and others can be printed off to be placed on my office wall and kitchen pinboard.

Below you can see my schedule for the week ahead.  For client confidentiality details of specific tasks have been deleted.

Personal Assistant Weekly ScheduleI like to start the week knowing what is going on and by transferring diary entries to the weekly timetable along with a plan of tasks to complete I feel prepared.   Not all time is allocated to a job or task, however much I like to be organised I am not that much of a control freak!  There also has to be a degree of flexibility for those unexpected issues.

Below is a Timetable Template which you may like to use for yourself.

Weekly Schedule Template

Prioritising

Jan 162011
 
 January 16, 2011  Office, Organising, Personal Assistant , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  Comments Off

It has been a funny week this week.  It has all been about prioritising work due to my littlest suffering from tonsillitis and being off school all week.  I have a responsibility to my clients but obviously nursing a sick child is my top priority.  As I mainly work from home it didn’t cause too much disruption but I had to plan my time carefully using the ‘MoSCoW’ system.

I have two notepads where I jot down my tasks.  The ‘Master’ one is with me all the time and in this I write everything that crops up. The other is my ‘Daily’ task list which contains all that I will complete that day – or hope to! Each task is prioritised using the ‘MoSCoW’ System in the ‘Master’ notepad and every evening I transfer various ‘to do’s’ to my daily list.

So what is ‘MosCoW’ you ask?

‘M’ is for ‘Must do now’ tasks.  There is often a tight deadline or without completion of this item other things can not be done.

‘S’ is for ‘Should do now’ tasks. Completing these tasks will help/make things easier if completed now but not top priority.

‘C’ is for ‘Could be done later’ if there is time but not such an issue if not completed yet.

‘W’ is for ‘Will Wait’.  These tasks will eventually get completed but are not so time sensitive.  These usually include my filing or tasks around the house such as dusting!

The ‘o’s do not stand for anything but help you to remember.

I find that by having the two lists I do not have a huge amount of tasks staring at me daily and therefore do not feel a huge weight on my shoulders.  Crossing items off, completing or nearly completing everything on the ‘Daily’ list is a great sense of achievement.  If you get to the end then you can go back to the ‘Master’ list and find some more – maybe cross off a few C’s and W’s.

So this week, with my time restricted, I only transferred the M’s, tasks that were top priority and if not completed would result in problems. I am afraid that all other tasks have been left for me to look at this coming week or maybe left for the following week if their priority is not raised to ‘M’.

I wouldn’t know what I’d do without this system.  Give it a try and let me know how you get on.

Improve Your Business with Good Housekeeping

Aug 142009
 
 August 14, 2009  Mac, Office, Organising, PC, Personal Assistant, Planning, Schedule, Twitter , , , , , , , , ,  Comments Off

Daily Task ListGood time management and planning help to improve business along with good housekeeping.


Keep task lists, plan your time and set yourself realistic time frames. Don’t flit between jobs and tasks, you will lose the thread and often feel that you haven’t accomplished anything.

Below is a list, which although may seem very basic will help you to be in control and free up time for paid work.

  1. Allocated days or hours where you will complete tasks. E.g. beginning of the month sort out your accounts, Friday morning file. Once a month or once a week update your contacts, banking on a Friday, stock take on a Monday…whatever suits your needs
  2. First thing in the morning and after 3pm is a good time to make phone calls as most people are at their desk
  3. Set your email to check at certain times of the day so you are not interrupted every time an email comes in
  4. A good filing system will save time
  5. An organised office is essential, have everything to hand that is needed regularly
  6. A task list is very important and try to prioritise.
  7. If you enjoy Social Media use it but set yourself times throughout the day when you will go on – I love #elevensestime and #afternoontea.

How do you manage your time?