Check out this Work Smart Video from Fastcompany.com. I am trying to embed the video but am having difficulties. Work Smart: Take Back Your Calendar With Defensive Scheduling
Tips like these are great! If you are like me they get my mind racing for new and exciting ways I can organize my life and become more productive. Yet once I begin thinking of new ways of organizing my mind immediately fills with questions that quickly throw all my old ways of doing things into question. Before you know it I'm spending hours building a brand new, fool proof process for planning and keeping my calendar. Then after one day of this new method I realize it is way too complicated and I ditch it completely!
If you can relate maybe taking an asset building approach to the calendar conundrum would help!
Chances are you operate some type of calendar system to keep you organized. With the multifaceted demands of the day the majority of us need to be able to keep track of dates and appointments if we are going to stay at least somewhat organized.
Some have this down to a well tuned science, while the rest of might have two or three different calendars out there that never seem to link up with our to-do list and the reality of our daily life. There are so many seemingly excellent calendaring methods out there that it can be overwhelming, especially if your brain tends to be as scatter brained as mine!
Asset Building is one of my favorite leadership techniques... for both personal and organizational development. The concept is simple... take a comprehensive assessment of something (an entire organization or a more specific process) and identify the strong and weak points. At the basic level asset building means capitalizing on the strong points while strategically improving the weaker points.
How does Asset Building help the Calendar Conundrum?
- Review your current processes: Take an honest look at how you currently calendar your life and decide which processes are working well for you. These are your positive points, or assets. Do you use a smart device? Do you use a physical planner? Do you use an online calendar? Do you use daily to-do lists?
- Commit to assets: Decide which of these assets your are going to commit to. With so many options available it is important to decide what calendaring options are going to be your focus. This decision might look something like this, my main calendar is going to be based on my work outlook calendar, which will be synced to my smart phone. Or perhaps, my main calendar will be my personal day planner and my online calendar will be used to schedule meetings and appointments.
- Build your assets: Once you have decided which assets you are going to commit to, develop your skills in these areas. If you use your outlook calendar, schedule some time periodically to learn how to use it. Develop and streamline methods you use to sync your calendars, whether that be electronically or manually. Simple google searches on fields like "outlook calendar tips" or "google calendar shortcuts" will produce a lot to sift through.
- Develop new methods: Now that you have hammered down your base calendaring process you can pick through different scheduling tips and techniques and find out what works for you. If you find a tip that seems like it would help try it out. If it works, add it to your process. Make it an asset! Google search fields like "effective calendar management" and "calendar tips." This will be less overwhelming because you won't be creating a whole new system, just building on to one that is already working for you.
An example, Binderclip Man's Calendar Asset Building Process:
- My Commitments: I maintain two calendars, an online Google Calendar that is linked to my main personal e-mail and a Moleskine 18-Month Daily Planner. I also maintain a small pocket-sized notebook for listing. My online calendar is automatically synced to my phone. I manually sync my online calendar to my planner most workdays. I store my listing notebook in my planner, though will carry it in my pocket when I am away from my planner.
- Assets I am building: Long term dates and personal annal reminders are entered into my online calendar (almost every important birthday, anniversary and special occasion is set as a reoccurring event). Listing (to-do lists) for important projects is kept track of in my planner. My current planner shows the whole week on one page so it is easy to keep track of what I need to get done for the whole week. More personal, day-to-day, and spontaneous listing is done in my pocket notebook. Only the most necessary projects are transferred into my planner. I recently discovered a new google application that allows me to view my calendar from my inbox.
- New Methods: One of the new methods I am working on developing is the idea discussed in the FastCompany video above. This and more can be found at the FastCompany webpage: Work Smart with Gina Trapani.
Product Preferences:
- Online Calendar: For me, you can't really beat the Google Calendar. It is free and has great features. You can sync and link to it from most any online/phone calendar and I find it much easier to use than Outlook.
- Moleskine: I really enjoy the moleskine products. They are elegant and practical. Most importantly, they are not bulky like many planners.
- Writing Instrument: I prefer an inexpensive, fine point mechanical pencil. It is handy to keep several of these around because they write nice and you can erase easily. I do often write in pen as well but try to use a quality pen so that my calendar does not become smeared.
Additional Links:
My Moleskine Planner: 18 Month Large Planner
My Pocket Notebook: Moleskine Volant X-Small Notebook
BIC Mechanical Fine Points l: BIC 0.5mm Mechanical Pencils
Google Calendar Tips: How to Stay Organized with Google Calendar
Happy Calendaring!
- Stephen
No comments:
Post a Comment