The Challenge.  Do you find yourself wasting time looking for things at work?  Whether it’s paper or electronic files the frustration that comes with not being able to find that document or file is stressful and can reduce effective output.
 
The Cost.  In short, the cost of not being able to place your hands on that item of work you need is time.  Some people we work with waste up to an hour a day trying to find things.  What could you do with an hour of time back in your work day?

Simple tips to help you find things in rapid speed

1. File effectively.  There’s plenty of guides around on how to construct your own filing system.[1]  For example, build your files around the major components of your role.  To help, list your major responsibilities and projects.  Then create working files and reference files for each of those areas of your role.  The time spent filing can be returned in faster retrieval of material.
2. Don’t file what you don’t need to. Use advanced searches to help find the material you’re looking for[2]; which works great for electronic files, not so great for paper.
3. Use short term ‘piling’ backed by a good filing system.[3]  Piling refers to dumping a bunch of electronic files into one area or folder.  It’s almost the opposite of filing in that you don’t have to create a special folder.  For this option you’re really relying on your search engine.
4. Take a consistent approach to filing across all platforms – Think upfront about how you will use Outlook, shared drives, Sharepoint, etc.  Replicate the files you created in point 1 across all these platforms including paper files.
5. Use Conversation view in Outlook to draw together threads of conversation related to the same subject.  It’s a fast way to bring together emails that could be filed all over Outlook – inbox, sent items, other folders.
6. Don't keep what you don't need to keep.  If you have less to look through it takes less time.  So be ruthless with what you keep; hoarders beware!
7. File as you go - Outlook lets you file an email you send wherever you want, not just the default of Sent Items.

 
Whatever approach you use make sure that it’s serving you and not the other way around!

​Want to know more about how you can improve your productivity in the workplace? Contact us at info@collagis.com.au OR visit collagis.com.au/pep to find productivity programs for your workplace. We'd love to hear from you.


[1] https://hbr.org/2012/01/tip-for-getting-more-organized.html
[2] https://www.whatsbestnext.com/2008/12/filing-vs-piling/
[3] https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_85.htm

By Andrew Gallaway

The Challenge.  What do you feel when you're in the zone - reading, writing, thinking - at work?  Fulfilled, purposeful, in control?  How do you feel when someone interrupts you in the zone?  Frustrated, important, stressed, willing to please?  Mixed feelings right?  That's probably because there are 'good' interruptions and 'wasteful' interruptions.  The good interruptions are when you're being informed of something that's urgent and important. The 'whoop, whoop' of the alarm is a great interruption if the building is on fire!  But the wasteful interruptions can be damaging to an organisation because everyone loses - the interrupter and the interrupted.  Neither is doing productive important work during the wasteful interruption.
 
The Cost.    Three interruptions per hour can cost you up to 30 minutes of time when you consider how long it takes to deal with the interruption and then get your mind back into work.[1]
 
5 Simple Tips to find your zone during work time
 
1. If someone comes into your workspace and interrupts you it’s likely that they consider the issue important; they might even be super pumped and excited.  But how important and urgent is it compared to what you’re doing right now.  The first step is to assess the nature of the interruption.  “How can I help you?”  If the matter is more urgent, drop what you’re doing and deal with it.  If it isn’t, then could you make a later time that day to talk? 

2. Consider saving up those important but not urgent conversations for another time.  Collect your thoughts, emails, issues in a folder and take them to a 1:1 meeting with a colleague or a group meeting where the session is planned.  It could be once or more per week.  Cover off the matters you and your colleague have saved up during that session.  You'll be amazed at how much time you save by batching those discussions.

3. Recognise if there’s a problem with interruptions in your workplace.  This is important because interruptions can happen quite unconsciously and can become an organisational habit.  So, awareness is the first step.

4. Talk to each other!  If there’s a problem with interruptions talk to the team and get buy-in to recognise the costs.

5. Find the right place to work.  At Collagis we believe that work needs to be done in the right workspace.  If you have to do work where you need to concentrate and not be disturbed, could you book a meeting room to work in for an hour or so?  Tell someone where you are going just in case and ask not to be disturbed unless it's an emergency.  You'll only be gone an hour or so!  

Finding the right environment during work hours is kind of like coming into work early or staying late because that's the only way you can get work done; no one else is around to bother you. 
Think about it!  Why are you doing that?  Work in work hours as much as you can by creating the right conditions for you to get the work done.
 
Want to know more about how you can improve your productivity in the workplace? Contact us at info@collagis.com.au OR visit collagis.com.au/pep to find productivity programs for your workplace. We'd love to hear from you.

[1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/markmurphy/2016/10/30/interruptions-at-work-are-killing-your-productivity/#4fa3968f1689

Author: Andrew Gallaway

The Challenge:  Do you find some people a joy to work with and others...well, not so?  It could be that you have unrecognised preferences in the way each of you work. 
               
The Cost:  When work preferences are at odds it can lead to frustration, stress, wasted time and in the worst case conflict at work.  This situation is no way for a team to progress and be effective. 
 
6 simple tips to discover and embrace work preferences

1. Recognise your own preferences when it comes to work. What are the conditions where you work best? How would you finish this sentence: "I work best when..."You might have a number of answers.I work best in the morning; I'm a night owl and think best between 2-4am; I work best when I know what outcome I'm driving towards; I enjoy discovering new things along the way; I like to do one thing at a time till it’s finished; etc.
   
   
2. Then ask yourself if it's possible that other people you work with might have different preferences? Of course they can! It's important to understand these differences and the relative strengths and weaknesses such differences bring to the team. For example, are you the type of person who enjoys a real global view of your work world, who is always scanning the environment and making connections between seemingly disparate events? Or are you more of a detailed person who has a razor sharp focus and likes to make decisions based on facts and figures? Both of these preference types contain obvious strengths but there are also elements of work that both these types of people find challenging or boring. The 'global' person might find it hard to close projects because they lose interest near the end, whilst the 'detailed' person might find it difficult to get started on new projects if there are a number of unfinished projects and they can't easily understand why something new is being started.
   
   
3. Celebrate the fact that diversity in style of work equals power...but only if the differing preferences are recognised and understood. To achieve team awareness, use an analytical tool to determine the individual work preferences of your team. Next share those results amongst the team whilst discussing the relative strengths of each preference.
   
   
4. Beware of black and white labels! Remember, just because team members have a preference doesn’t mean they can’t adapt in the short term for a good reason. For example, if they prefer to process work in a linear fashion, one item at a time, doesn’t mean they can't process a number of items simultaneously if it relates to a time sensitive deadline.
   
   
5. Watch out for blind spots across the team results. There is  a benefit to having a diverse team; different working styles bring various strengths to the team. If your team has very similar working styles, highlight the gaps and bring into the team styles that are not present in the team. If all team members are the same this might create harmony and strength in some areas. However, the team might be missing something in performance capability because they're missing a strength that exists in a difference preference. If you have a diverse team celebrate the good fortune you have of working together and carefully nurture the team and harness their styles for the benefit of the team.
   
   
6. Now you understand your own preferences and those of your colleagues it's time to consider what changes you might need to make to the way the team operates and how the team members interact with each other. There are some great tools that can help bridge any gaps between people that have different work styles.

Want help to implement your work preferences review? Speak to Collagis today about how you can make a real difference to your team's effectiveness today.

Contact us at info@collagis.com.au or visit www.collagis.com.au/pep to find productivity programs for your workplace. We'd love to hear from you.