Diary Management

1. Always have a diary on your desk at work.
2. Write everything in your diary in pencil - this can then be rubbed out when and if dates and times change.
3. Enter all key events for the year into your diary - include here Public Holidays; booked holidays; special company dates (e.g. year end, month end ); birthdays; social meetings; reminders about dentist/eye check ups/car MOT/subscription renewals etc.
4. Enter all meetings into your diary - showing start times; estimated finishing times; travel times; location (with phone number if outside the office) and who is going to be at the meeting - both from Your Company and others.
5. Book meetings with yourself - just because you haven't a meeting with another person does not mean you don't need time to work or think in peace and quiet.
6. Devise a series of colours that will allow you to indicate in the diary which times are for you alone and which are with others and which are free.
7. Agree rules with others on when they can allocate time in your diary - for themselves or for others.

List Management

1. Have a 'To Do' list - not a series of post-its!
2. Keep your 'To Do' list up to date.
3. Score through completed items
4. Pencil in comments by half finished items
5. Never allow anyone else to add anything to your 'To Do' list - you must agree to own the problem and write it down yourself.
6. Be realistic in your 'To Do' list !
7. Distinguish between URGENT and IMPORTANT and NECESSARY items
8. Put all items on the list - personal and work related - its your list!
9. Put stars by the difficult items - it will help you feel good when you've done them!

Meetings Management

1. Is this meeting really necessary?
2. Who needs to be here - and for which items?
3. Check everyone's time constraints
4. Have a realistic agenda given the attendees and the time
5. Rank the agenda items
6. Distinguish between URGENT , IMPORTANT and NECESSARY items
7. Appoint a 'timekeeper' and summariser.
8. Stick to the agenda!
9. Ensure that everyone agrees their action points and 'do by' dates at the end.

Telephone Management

1. Phone calls are interruptions - are you allowing interruptions?
2. Brief someone else if you put your phone through to them - why and for how long.
3. If you are busy - explain your situation, ask if urgent, take their number and agree to ring back within a specific time frame.
4. Plan your phone calls in advance - write bullet points on scrap before phoning.
5. Never wait longer than 6 rings for the phone to be answered - ring back.
6. Only if URGENT hang on whilst someone's line clears - ring back.
7. After the call DECIDE what to do with the information - was the call part of your work plan or was it an interruption? Is the action required URGENT?
8. If the interruption is IMPORTANT then note in your diary when you will deal with it.
9. If you can, use phone calls to vary your work pattern.