We Can’t Rely Too Much On Our Memories: That’s A Fact

We all suffer from information overload to some extent. Our mind is exposed to a hurricane of information every day. As a result the mind does a very nice filtering process and very little of what we see and hear is retained in our minds. So instead of depending on our very selective memory why not depend on a piece of paper?

Carry a tiny paper and a pen with you all the time.

My ex-boss and mentor Jim Showalter practically taught me these simple technique years ago.

The moment you schedule an appointment or a meeting, jot it down in the paper. Like wise each time you delegate something to someone or when you are asked to do something write it down in your paper along with the date and the time. Do not be afraid of being thought about as a person with a very poor memory. It won??™t be long before people start thinking of you as a highly organized person, someone who is just on top of things. At the end of the day transfer everything from the paper to your Microsoft outlook??™s task list or to-do-list.

Put your PDA to work

If you have a PDA make use it. Each time someone gives you his or her telephone number, immediately enter it into your PDA, along with the person??™s name of course. I would go to the extent of taking a picture??¦these days most PDA’ are bundled into cell phones and cell phones have cameras.

Make Business Cards Informative.

Usually I get a lot of business cards as a result of my business and daily interactions. Most of the cards have information such as the name of the person, his or her telephone number and probably the name of the company for which he or she works. But the problem is, the next time when I meet the same person, chances are the face may seem familiar but I may not have the foggiest idea as to where I met the person in the first place. To overcome this problem, as soon as I get the business card, I jot down a few points about the person and probably the reason for meeting him or her and the place as well. All this on the back of their business card (I never do it in front of them though). This practice has certainly lessened the stress on me for recollecting names and associating a face with a name…

These days, I have my photo printed on my business card, effectively making myself visible and memorable.

Stack the business cards properly for future reference.

Once in your office take care to keep away the business cards you collected properly. Don??™t just stuff them into your card folder. Take care to read them properly and perhaps keep the cards of important clients separately. I do not recommend that you toss any business cards, but ‘ completely you, if you do not find much use, toss them

Prepare a to-do list and plan what you have to do, well in advance

I cannot over-emphasize the importance of to-do lists in getting yourself organized. It is probably the most sensible thing that a busy person should do. In fact I thought of devoting an entire post for to-do lists and I think that is just what I will do some day on this blog. Without a good daily, weekly or monthly plan a task list after all may not align well with your objectives.

No this is not about expanding your business and conquering the world. I am not referring to a strategy plan that involves takeovers and mergers. Those things are beyond the scope of this post. I am referring to having plans about the daily, weekly and monthly activities of your business and yourself as well.

Have a fixed timetable.

It may sound kind of mechanical but it would be wonderful if you could have a fixed time for everything and try to stick religiously to the duration. Believe me it really helps because in that way you will have time for everything and everything can be done in the time for it.
Did I have a fixed duration for writing and posting this blog post? You bet I did…

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