(BAT) Teamwork, Time Management and Organizational Skills Lesson

Teamwork, Time Management and Organizational Skills

Teamwork, organizational skills, and time management all work together to make career success and personal success. Each of these is dependent on the other. View the graphic below (scrolling over the numbers) to see this dependency and some recommended techniques for achieving success.

Tips for Organizing Time, Teams, and Other Things

Being organized comes natural to some, not so much to others of us. To that end, organizational skills can be learned, but for the most part they must be skills that work for us. The following are tips to help anyone be better organized and some suggestions for customizing it to your own style.

Keep a Calendar

Whether you write it down or keep it electronically, a calendar will help with both organization and time management. If writing things down works for you; purchase a planner to keep up with due dates. For those more digitally inclined, look for calendars that will sync between personal and business and that offer alerts when things are due.

Use a Checklist

Do you write out a grocery list before shopping? Or, maybe you make use of a preprinted list. Either way, checklists can save you time and money by helping you accomplish things in a timely and orderly manner. If paper checklists aren't your thing, a variety of digital checklist apps are available for your smartphone.

Write an Agenda

Everything works better when you have a plan. An agenda is nothing more than a plan for a meeting. An agenda is most useful when it is available ahead of time, through email or by posting on a website. An agenda gives meeting participants a clear picture of meeting topics, objectives, and time frames.

Prepare Ahead of Time

Remember when you were small and your mother would have you lay out the clothes you were going to wear the next day. This served several purposes. It cut down on the amount of time you spent getting ready the next morning. There were fewer last minute meltdowns because a necessary piece of clothing could not be found. It provided for a less stressful morning all around. These same principles apply whether you are preparing for school or preparing for a big presentation. Take the time the day before to make sure everything is in place.

Establish a Routine

Habits can be useful, especially when it comes to routines. You probably already have routines in your life, such as a daily routine you have for getting ready for bed. In business, establish habits that keep you organized. Things like always putting the things you need for the next day in a certain place, or making a copy of online receipts and saving them to a specific folder on your computer, or even putting your car keys in the same spot every day can effectively create a more organized environment for you. Routines can save time and energy, as well as keep you organized.

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