With today’s fast moving pace and people continually doing more and more, there is always more than enough to do. Every day we’re bombarded with email, snail mail, to-do lists and the number one culprit, paper. The only way to manage it all is with effective systems, processes and habits that support you. With the many things you have on your plate it’s necessary to have those things in place to make your day a productive one. To make that happen you have to make choices about what to do with everything that comes across your desk every day. You have to choose from the three Ds: discard, delegate, or do it now. These next few posts will cover the three Ds.
Considering the amount of paper you encounter every day, making a choice is important. It would be nice to only handle each piece of paper once, but it’s just not possible, which also makes it that much more important to choose one of the three Ds. You might only think about being able to only make those choices with paper, but the same can be done with items on your to-do list, snail mail, email and phone calls. The first time you touch a piece of paper, read an email or a piece of snail mail, or have a request that comes via phone or voice mail, choose to act by discarding, delegating or doing it now.
Discard It-if you don’t need it any longer or you can get it again (from a book, the internet, etc.), get rid of it. Shred it or recycle it. Throwing away something that you don’t need is one of the best things you can do. It’s a small step, but it keeps the clutter away.