Organize Your Business in a Linear Way by Marla Stone, Professional Corporate Organizer

Creating a more linear and organized way of doing business is important for increased health and wealth of your business.  Haphazard ways of doing business, going off the cuff, and bumbling through a business plan is a sure fire way to create anxiety and chaos.  Don't get me wrong I love the creative "off the wall", spontenaity of the "Ted Turner" type executive, but I think it may impact one from having a smooth sailing lifestyle.  The invention of calendars, notebooks, computer programs like excel and going paperless are all good things.  Using them may feel mundane and old school yet, they are also what I call target practice.  You are doing the tedious to have more time relaxing.  You are aiming for your goals with purpose and practicality. 

Here are 12 tips to become more linear.  Linear Organization is an organized step by step way of doing things.

1. Keep a Calendar in two places.  Your smart phone is the best and most accessible calendar.  You have access to it at any time, and the calendar also shows up on your desk top.  

2. Check the Calendar first thing in the morning, afternoon and then again in the evening.  Putting items in a Calendar is the first step, and checking in, regularly, is the essential step for follow through with personal, client and professional events.

3. Email confirmations every day to people and or companies you made appointments with.  Include the date, address, time and purpose of meeting.  This is a third way to keep track of calendar events.

3. Go as Paperless as Possible.  Creating mounds of paper mess slows you down.  Only keep paper that is NOT on-line, and that you want to refer to regularly.  Newsletter, banking, financial, events are generally on-line, either by going into a website and or in your email.

4. Create Notes in your phone, not on paper.  Your notes will always stay in your phone and then transfer to your desktop.  No more scrambling for notes.

5. Take pictures, from your smart phone,  of important notes, business cards, phone numbers, signs, pictures or any information you want to remember.  Then just look at your phone instead of hunting around, frustrated.

6. Keep your desk ordered and neat while you are working.  Having a messy desk creates anxiety and then it becomes difficult to focus on your tasks.  Even if you pile all the papers into a bin, until you take time to sort through it, in order to have a clear desk.

7. Always schedule your down or play time into your calendar.  Just seeing fun events gives you a feeling of reprise and delight.

8. As a business owner go to bank regularly to deposit income.  It gives you a sense of achievement.  If you are an employee and have automatic deposit still stop by your bank and talk to an expert about investing.

9. Use a timer for projects.  Do projects in 25 minute increments with NO interruption and take 5-10 minute breaks in-between the focused 25 minutes.  Projects will go faster and faster as you practice this time management technique.

10. Eat Healthy food. Eating a lot of sugar especially around holidays creates a sluggish, irritable worker.  Eat vegetables, fruit, protein, and starchy veggies too.  Balanced meals with little snacks in-between is great for high energy and focused thoughts.

11. Take walks every 25 minutes of your focused work day, even if it is to the bathroom and or to get water.

12. Drink plenty of water, and more water and more water.

Marla Stone, MSW is a Corporate Professional Organizer and Business Consultant in Orange County, California.  She works in the United States and Europe helping Businesses grow more Linear.

​Corporate Office in Irvine, CA.  949-709-7000