T I M E M A N A G E M E N T
5. Make It Disappear
There’s only one thing better than getting rid of it as soon as
you touch it, and that’s never having to touch it at all.
Never automatically renew a subscription without balancing the
periodical’s worth to you with the time it takes to process it. Don’t
be shy about asking to be taken off mailing lists and routing slips.
For a wholesale purge of third-class mail, contact the Direct
Marketing Association, DMA Consumer Assistance site at: http://www.
dmaconsumers.org.
6. rSV p aSap
If the paper needs only a brief response, do it right now. Create
a speedy response:
- A personalized sticky note
- A note written on the bottom of the original letter or memo
- A half-sheet of business letterhead for a short note
- A phone call or e-mail if appropriate and more efficient
Are you being callous by sending the correspondent’s own
paper back to her? Not at all. Callous is putting off the response
or not responding at all. You’re being responsive and smart, and
you’re also saving paper.
7. File It and Forget It?
Do you really need to keep it?
Research shows that 80 percent of what we file away is never
referenced again. Why take the time to file it now and to fumble
over it dozens or even hundreds of times in the future if we don’t
really need it? Practice source-point pollution control.