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The Real Truth About Working Smarter, Not Harder
Running a business or department can often stretch you to the limit. To be effective at doing what you do best, it's imperative to look at what tasks you can either delegate or outsource. Delegating This is an interesting word. For some people it means completely letting go of their responsibilities and getting someone else to do the work. Now that's all well and good providing that you train that person on how you've been handling those tasks. Show them how it's been done first. For many business owners and managers, delegating means completely abdicating all responsibility for a particular task to somebody else without showing them how. They expect that person to know?immediately. Well, forget it. No wonder you often hear people say, "I tried to delegate that task but no-one was as good as me at doing it!" Or "I just could not find the right person who was capable of taking on those responsibilities". That's an interesting comment. Often people are given responsibilities for which they have had no training in and are then expected to know how to carry out those duties. A great example of this is when a person is promoted to manager/team leader and he/she is automatically expected to know how to manage themselves and their people. Coming In From the Outside How about the new kid on the block who comes in to take up the reins in a position, which has already been vacated. They're expected to run the department or business as if they've been working in the company for the past three years! Outsourcing When your car needs to be repaired do you spend hours trying to fix it or see a mechanic who takes two hours? Do you do your own tax return or have an accountant prepare it for you? If you need a new assistant do you place an ad in the paper, spend hours interviewing people or have a recruitment company do all the ground work and send you the top three applicants? Why waste your precious time on tasks which will do exactly that?waste your precious time. And time is money! Use the Experts Use the valuable input of experts who can take away the stress and hassle and carry out the tasks in a fraction of the time it would take you. Sure you have to pay for it, but isn't it better to work smarter, not harder? Why spend hours on tasks which are not your specialty? Identify what you do best then delegate or outsource the rest. In fact, if you truly feel you are good at what you do and are happy to share that, why not teach someone else those same skills, then you could really leverage yourself. Particularly if you are business owner, this would allow you more time to work on your business rather than in it. A Word of Caution For Business Owners Be careful about who you get your advice from. I know of many small business owners who listen to the advice of their personal assistants, spouses and relatives on how they should run their business although those people have never been in business themselves. By all means get feedback from your people, however if you really want to work smarter, not harder invest some money into a business coach or someone who has already run a successful business so that you can avoid costly mistakes and have someone else offer a fresh perspective. Being too closely involved can give you a tainted view. The Final Word Write down all your responsibilities and the tasks that you undertake. Tick the tasks which someone else could realistically do. Then write next to it either the name of the person or type of person/company who can do this for you or offer some expert assistance or support ie. bookkeeper, printing company, personal assistant, coach. To work smarter not harder, always look at who else can do this work/task. Always look at lightening your load so that you can spend your time doing what you do best. About The Author Lorraine specialises in working with businesspeople showing them how to dramatically boost their productivity, reduce the stress and the mess in their lives and have more time for enjoying their life. www.office-organiser.com.au, lorraine@office-organiser.com.au
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Business Management How Does Sports Coaching Differ from Corporate Coaching? Athletes Versus Employees How to Tune In Your Brain & Feel Confident with People in Moments One day when I was in school, many years ago, the school principal wandered into our class room, sat down and started to talk. Burn-Out ...Whats Next? If you feel the heat of burn-out, it is possible to stop the fire before it stops you. So Why Are They Really Here? It does make you wonder sometimes, doesn't it? You know the folks I'm talking about. The ones who seem to be wandering around in the middle of a fog bank. The ones without a clue apparently, as to what life is all about. We see their stories on the evening news, we hear about them from our friends or co-workers, we may even know some of them. Do You Need a Performance Coach? In today's fast paced world, we are often confronted with the issue, "I want to get in shape, but I just don't have the time!" We all have faced it at one time or another. So, when we finally decide to get in shape we go to the gym, and then another decision hits us. Should you get a personal trainer? That would speed up the process, I mean, they have taken massive amounts of time to study the body, and know how best to work out without hurting yourself. They can help you with a proper diet, implementing exercise into your lifestyle, etc. Also, I do not know of a single professional athlete who does not have a coach or mentor?get the hint? The Story ?From the Chicken Coop? Many years ago my grandfather, had a small farm and chickens. One morning he sent me out to the chicken coop to collect fresh eggs. He became concerned when I did not return after a shot interval. When he came looking for me I jumped with joy, but he saw tears in my eyes and noticed that I was in an adjacent empty chicken coop, which could be entered only through the same door as the occupied coop. Permission To Have FUN ? Have you been working long hours? ? Have you been managing 10 (or more) tasks at once? ? Are you combining several different personal and professional roles? Executive Coaching The higher you climb the ladder in this organization, the less chance you have of getting feedback about your performance. The working rule of thumb is "the farther up you go, the stranger things get," especially in the way you are reviewed and rewarded. We seem to have time for everything else, but not time to give our top people the kind of reviews they need to help them develop. -Executive level controller Why We Need Executive Coaching Nothing is left to Chance You are going to meet a very important client for lunch. What do you do? If you are anything like Anna the first job is to ensure the outside you is perfect, well dressed, matching clothes, clean shoes, washed in your favourite soaps, perfume. Check yourself many, many times in the mirror, Ask your partner (numerous times)," Do I look right"? "Is everything OK"? Basically, nothing is left to chance. The inside you has been studying the information you feel is important. You feel on top of your subject but slightly nervous. You pull out all the stops to ensure that the person you are meeting will get full benefit of your total attention, love and generosity. Again, nothing is left to chance. That Little Bit Of Extra The "little bit extra" is a very powerful concept to put into practice today in every aspect of your life. The difference between being ordinary and being extraordinary is that little bit EXTRA. The little bit extra is what separates average performers from CHAMPIONS! How to Adopt a Losing Attitude We have all heard the expression, "Where your heart is?, your treasure will be also." Allow me to modify this tried and true wisdom, to create an equally valid point: "Where your thoughts are, your hips will be also." What do I mean by this? Try this experiment: Take a few seconds to write the first the five words that pop into your head in response to this question: How do I describe myself? Assertive Communication: 20 Helpful Tips Most of us know that assertiveness will get you further in life than being passive or aggressive. But few of us were actually taught how to be assertive. Here are some helpful tips. It's All To Do With The Way You Wake Up Do you start your day with anger, frustration and annoyance at the alarm and the need to get up? Do you wake up hoping the day will go away and you can get back to sleep? Have you lost the fun? The confidence to have a go at things. Are you struggling along? Are you just going through the rituals of life? Are you just doing enough at work? Doing what is necessary because you think you 'ought, should, must do this for the sake of others? Do you feel all washed up and no one is interested in you? Do you feel devoid of vibrancy, and sense of purpose, an aimless victim buffeted by the winds of change? It's all to do with the way you wake up. Personal Life Coaching And How It Can Help You Coaching is an effective process used to support individuals in creating something new for themselves. I work side by side with my clients' coaching them by providing perspective and support for self-knowledge as they accomplish their business and personal goals. The Right Coach Who is the Best Coach For Achieving Your Goals? Do You Want to Impress Others? Then Don't Talk ?Listen Recently my friend Michelle was concerned about a professional conference she was planning to attend with her husband, a veterinarian. She has no background in veterinary science, so she did not think she would be able to effectively communicate with the people at the conference. I asked her why she thought she had to use technical jargon when she spoke to the other conference attendees. She responded that she wanted them to think well of her. Michelle is a warm, caring individual who is genuinely interested in others. I assured her that she could effectively relate to the people she met by asking them questions about themselves and their businesses instead of trying to impress them with her knowledge of veterinary science. Some Business Coaches are in Error Many business coaches deny the power of suggestion while using it. For instance a corporate inner circle will be told that they have inner conflicts with ethical practice due to the stockholders coming first, the customers coming second and employees coming third. They will tell the corporate management team that often what must be done short term to appease shareholders may not be good long term for employee units or quality of products to the end user. Yet this is linear thinking for some one who plays at a higher level in western culture and corporate America. Our goals is win/win/win. And if you will read Jim Collins book "Built to Last" you will see my point here. Guilt By Association & Wealth By It Too! "Tell me what company thou keepst, and I'll tell thee what thou art." - Miguel de Cervantes (1547 - 1616) Spanish novelist. Run to Win I was never much of an athlete growing up. Notoriously clumsy, I was ostracized by our school volleyball and basketball teams. Nevertheless, there was one sport in which I excelled - running. Year after year I won top prizes at school track meets. Why Don't You Just Stuff It ALL? You got busy at work, got busy in your marriage, got busy with your home and maybe your kids and before you knew it... a chunk of your life had slipped away.
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