The Vital THREE Things
Focus in on just the three most vital things you must do in your job to achieve the greatest results. We can spend a lot of time on tasks and meetings that don't yield high returns, either because we've always done them or we just haven't stopped to assess what's truly critical. You can't afford that anymore.

For managers, one of those three things is managing and inspiring your people. After that, your other two will be job and industry specific. It could be design, client contact, developing new proposals, ensuring regulatory compliance, or overseeing quality control. Focus on areas that directly improve your product or generate new revenue. Ask yourself the question every day: Is this something that I MUST do NOW?

Give Yourself a Voice-mail Makeover!
Every call should be productive. Make your voice mail message more effective so you only get calls meant for you with enough information to prepare for the call-back conversation. Each misdirected call takes 5 minutes of your time listening to it, forwarding it, and getting re-focused from the distraction.

Your voice mail message should include your title and a request for information on what the caller needs. If you work in a large organization where you regularly receive misdirected calls, include a line about the correct contact for that area. This will save you time, and provide the caller more immediate assistance. 

Here's an example: "This is Jane Doe, Director of online marketing for XYZ. Please leave your name, number, and how I can help you with your online marketing needs. For you print marketing needs, please press 0 to be redirected to the print team."

Love Your Files!
We're deluged with information. You've got to have a good filing system to keep everything at your fingertips.

Store files electronically whenever possible. An electronic file is easier to locate in a well-organized system than paper, and it reduces paper waste. It's painful to watch people struggle to locate files on jammed desktops or in their overloaded single document folder. Busy people have far too much material for that.

Create folders in your hard drive (or company server). Assign subject names or individual projects and view them alphabetically. Have a good naming convention for individual documents. Create sub-folders within your folders. Name each of your folders however it makes sense to you to quickly locate them.