Category: Education

WORKING FROM HOME: 9 Tips to Help You Stay Organized Every Day

Posted on by Chris Mahan

 

 

Working from home has become the norm – rather than the exception – thanks to COVID-19. While it certainly has its upside, working from home can also bring about a whole new set of challenges. One major challenge is to stay focused on your work and not allow yourself to be distracted by the people or things that surround you at home. While there are many ways to combat that distraction, I would say that being organized in your approach to your work is one of the most important.

Being organized should be a way of life and second nature to you. That way it’s a habit rather than a chore. Of course it takes time and effort to create the habit in the first place. Once you’ve achieved it, you won’t want to go back to an unorganized approach. These nine tips will help you to stay organized every day with very little effort or fuss.

Check In

Start your day by checking your schedule and your to do list. It may be that you’ve thought of something you need to add. Prioritize your to do list so that you tackle the important items first.

Plan

As well as your to do list you should plan your day. Include calls, meetings, chores and goals. You can use pen and paper, a planner (a bullet journal is ideal) or a planning app. Don’t forget to include scheduled breaks. Make sure to include time for friends and family.

The F.A.R. Rules

The F.A.R. Rules are essential for helping you to stay organized. They apply equally to your personal life as your business.

  • File it – if it’s important and needs to be kept (either in paper or electronic form) then file it immediately.
  • Act on it – if something needs to have action taken for example, paying a bill or making a call, then do it immediately. Then either file or recycle it.
  • Recycle it – whether it’s junk mail or papers and items you’ve finished with, recycle it immediately once it’s no longer needed.

These rules apply to emails as well as paperwork. By following them you can keep your inbox under control.

Digital Aids

At times technology can be a distraction but there are some items that can help you become and stay productive. However, choose your devices and solutions with care so that you don’t create more of a problem for yourself.

You may decide that an app to monitor your health and fitness would be a good idea to keep you on track with your goals. There are also menu planning apps, scheduling, time and project management, as well as household organization apps.

Track

To be successful with your organization skills you need to track and monitor your progress. What’s working and what’s not? Be prepared to make changes and adjustments to how you do things. Just because one method of organizing your work space doesn’t work for you it doesn’t mean that another won’t.

Trash It

Don’t keep things for the sake of it. If it’s not useful or necessary then throw it out. If you are keeping it then remember to put it away. That way you keep your surroundings free from clutter and distractions.

Identify

Keep a track of what works for you and keep on doing it. If something hasn’t been successful then identify what needs to be changed and do it that way the following day.

5 Minute Review

Just like you started your day, end your day with a five minute review. Celebrate your accomplishments and cross off everything you’ve achieved from your to do list. Remove any inessential or unimportant tasks that are still remaining. Whatever is left should be added to the next day’s list.

To Do List

Create your to do list for the following day. Include any important tasks that you didn’t complete that day. Try and limit your list to 10 items or less so that you don’t feel overwhelmed or end the day with a list of unaccomplished items.

Becoming and staying organized doesn’t happen overnight and it does require regular effort. However, you can stay on track by following these nine tips. You can be organized every day with a little planning, time and effort.

How Are you Coping with the Current Pandemic?

Posted on by Chris Mahan

Frustrated Business Owner

 

You Can Protect Your Mental Health During This Difficult Time

The COVID-19 pandemic has been brutal on the state of mental health in Americans. We’ve been limited in how we can celebrate birthdays, graduations, and weddings. We’ve seen loved ones hooked up to a ventilator fighting for their lives. We have an entire hygienic routine every time we leave or return to our homes: Wear a mask, stay six feet apart, wash your hands, repeat.

Here are a few tips of things you can do to help protect your mental health during this ongoing pandemic.

Get Some Exercise

We don’t have to go to the gym to stay in shape. There are actually plenty of exercises and routines we can do from the comfort of our own living room. That includes exercises like push-ups, jumping jacks, burpees, and even going for a nice jog around the block.

On top of building our endurance and strength, exercise can trigger the release of endorphins in our system. According to the Mayo Clinic, these are known as the “feel-good” hormone and will naturally boost a low mood during such trying times.

Stay in Contact With Loved Ones

Not being able to meet with those we care about can be detrimental to our mental health. Prolonged loneliness and social isolation can increase our risk of certain mental health disorders, substance abuse issues, or even suicide.

In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that loneliness in older adults increases the risk of dementia and other serious health disorders. The best way to avoid these consequences is by staying in touch with loved ones via daily or weekly phone calls, video calls, or text messages.

Leave the House

Most states still have limitations when it comes to where we can go, what we can do, and who we can see. Yet at this point in the pandemic, we realize that our mood declines and we feel fatigued the longer we stay couped up in the house.

In a study published in Issues in Mental Health Nursing, vitamin D, which can be absorbed by the body from sunlight, is a great mood booster and actually is used to treat depression. So, if we’re feeling down and lonely in the house, it might be advantageous to spend some time in the backyard or go for a walk at the park before our fellow citizens get there.

Reach Out to a Therapist

If  we’re already struggling with our mental health prior to the pandemic, there’s a good chance that our situation has actually worsened as the months continued. Luckily, the forced closure of most mental health facilities doesn’t mean that we currently have no access to care. Many counselors, therapists, and psychiatrists have moved to telemedicine for the time being. Scheduling an appointment with a therapist via video call is a great way to process our emotions and learn how to cope.

Get a Pet

Most people would appreciate coming home from work every day to be greeted by a friendly dog or cat. But when loneliness and sadness become excessive during quarantine, a pet may be exactly what we need to feel better.

Even better, we may be able to help empty out our local animal shelters. The connection between pet ownership and mental health has been long studied. In fact, a survey conducted by the Human Animal Bond Research Institute, mental health improvements were seen in about 74% of pet owners.

Final Thoughts

During a pandemic that doesn’t seem to be ending anytime soon, it’s important that we prioritize our mental health. Not only will this make us feel less lonely and like we have a greater purpose, but it’ll also save us from a ton of emotional turmoil that we’ll have to sort through once COVID-19 is gone for good.

Educate Your Customers

Posted on by Chris Mahan

Educate them about what, you may be thinking. Well, consider this, many businesses focus solely on attracting new customers, but you NEED to spend a good chunk of your time retaining current and former customers. These are people you already know to be a good sales potential…they’ve already bought from you!

Take the time to market and sell new products to your old customers and less time trying to sell old products to new customers and you will see a drastic change in your sales, customer quality and branding position.

Here are a couple of key elements to use to retain your current customers:

  1. Stay in contact: This means by phone, email, e-newsletter, in person-by pigeon if you have too!
  2. Post-Purchase Assurance: This means you need to follow up with customers. Your customers need to feel like they are being supported for their purchase and with the item they purchased. How many times have you purchased a product, then felt completely abandoned? Something as simple as a Thank You note with your contact or customer service information can go along way in retaining a great customer.
  3. Deals & Guarantees: Always offer your current customers the best deals and guarantees you have. Show them you appreciate their business or even come up with a club specifically to reward loyal customers. You can also do this with a preferred pricing option.
  4. Integrity: Using good business practices and simply upholding integrity, dignity and honesty go along way with customers. Let’s face it, there’s a lot of swindling and crap out there and the safer and more confident you make your customers feel, the more they will trust you and that makes for an amazingly supportive and loyal customer.

There are three cornerstone ideas to a successful business:

  • Quality product/service
  • Offering useful products/services that solve a problem for or enhance the life of a customer
  • Offer subjects your customers find interesting

Use this approach of educating your customers and offering them real information and insight and you will be rewarded with loyalty and success.

Stop wasting all your time on new prospects while your current customers fall by the wayside!

As Jay Abraham says, “Your best prospects are your existing customers. If you’ve been putting all your marketing efforts into acquiring new customers, stop and diverts some of your resources into reselling, upselling, cross-selling to those same customers. In every ways possible – through package inserts, regular mailings, special offers – stay in touch with those customers and get them used to buying from you.”

So, there it is! Remember, we can help you put together the resources and tools to do exactly that. We can help you educate your customers and you can watch the benefits pay offer many-fold.