Downsizing in Organisations - The Real Truth

I've met and worked with many people in all sectors of the business world and found that the majority of managers and team leaders are spending too much of their time on basic administrative tasks. Tasks for which they have had no training in. In many instances people are stressed out with too many responsibilities due to ongoing restructuring and downsizing in their organisation.

Get Real

When you have people with the knowledge and expertise to handle specific roles and they spend their precious time on basic administration, organisations are wasting huge amounts of money paying people to do tasks which would best be handled by a fully trained administrative assistant.

These tasks can be delegated if there was someone there to delegate to. This would free them up to do what they do best. They may not require full-time support. Perhaps one assistant could assist two managers?

Make sure you don't have managers who will take it on themselves to help their assistant out as the assistant is overloaded! That doesn't make sense. I've seen this happen many times where the manager feels guilty delegating tasks to his assistant because they know that person is already stretched to the maximum.

"Everyone Knows ..."

To be effective in any role we need to be organised. Too often it is taken for granted that "everyone knows" how to organise themselves, their time, their paperwork. That's a myth! If they did then there wouldn't be so many stressed out people in the workplace working long hours and being unable to cope with their workloads?and I wouldn't be in business!

Cut Costs Without Cutting Your Own Throat

If your organisation is or has already cut resources to the bone, whatever you do make sure that those people remaining continually keep improving their skills so that they can perform to the best of their ability.

Be careful the cost cutting strategies don't burn your people out so they end up leaving.t can cost an organisation thousands of dollars to replace a valuable employee.

The Final Word

Learning how to be better organised will help you and your team be more productive. If you're more productive you feel better about yourself, you're less stressed, you get more done and therefore have more time. And in this fast-paced society isn't that what many people want? More time for themselves, and their families.

Can You Really Improve Your Organisation Skills?

I'm sure most of you have heard of Zig Ziglar International Sales Guru. Well in one of Zig's weekly newsletters, there were a number of comments about the habits of well-organised people which I couldn't resist sharing with you.

What are the habits of well-organised people?

Can a person be 'taught' skills that will make them organised, or is that a quality you either possess or lack?

We asked those questions of our readers and here are some of their responses:

"I think that natural abililty has to be coupled with good training to fully develop skills such as being organised."

"Thankfully, organisation skills are learned. The first requirement is DESIRE. The second is WORK! By consistently using such tools as a well thought out set of goals, a planner and a PRIORITISED daily "to do" list, I have made a positive difference in my personal and professional life."

"A well-organised person reviews their actions each day. They assess where mistakes were made, identifying ways to eliminate those mistakes in the future. They assess areas for improvement. They also plan out their day ahead of time. These habits can be learned by anyone."

"Improving your organisation skills is teachable and there are hundreds of tools to help you achieve that end. But first I have to "want" to learn that skill. I have to see the need and the resultant advantage to me and my business and then I will be willing to learn a new skill."

"Orderliness is a character trait. Organisation is an outcome of that trait. Character qualities are learned behaviours that develop throughout our whole lives - not just while we are children."

"Yes, everybody can be taught organising one's life. It's only a question of changing habits, however, everything is connected. You cannot be a complete mess in your personal life and expect to be perfectly organised in your business life."

So you see it doesn't matter who or what you are, anybody can learn the basic fundamental skills and experience the daily benefits of being organised.

It's just a case of recognising that you need to improve in that area and as mentioned in one of the comments, you have to have the desire to change. Of course the next thing you have to do is take action!

Then you too can experience the benefits of being organised such as having more time to do what you want to, improved confidence, having more control over your life, reducing your stress and feeling good!

It's all up to you.

About The Author
Lorraine Pirihi is Australia's Personal Productivity Specialist and Leading Life Coach. Her business The Office Organiser specialises in showing small business owners and managers, how to get organised at work so they can have a life! Lorraine is also a dynamic speaker and has produced many products including "How to Survive and Thrive at Work!"

To subscribe to her free ezine visit www.office-organiser.com.au

This article may be reproduced providing it is published in it's entirety, including the author's bio and all links. For further information please contact Lorraine Pirihi, lorraine@office-organiser.com.au

---

Why Training Fails

Sometimes when I conduct my workshop on Effective Meetings, one... Read More

Five Steps to Better Employee Management

Hiring employees is a huge responsibility. Before hiring anyone, be... Read More

Top Ten Tips About Communicating with Your Employees Effectively

Communication is the basis of who you are as a... Read More

Conference Calling Can Save Your Sales OrganizationTime and Money!

Conference calling can save you money. There is no doubt... Read More

The Higher You Go

The higher you go, the cooler it becomes. Really? Let... Read More

4 Simple Steps to Successful Delegation

Last month, my featured article was about creating a "Stop... Read More

Are Your Meetings Smart?

Soon after I finished a brief seminar on how to... Read More

Five Key Strategies for Making Your Nonprofit Business More Effective

I love tennis both as a spectator and... Read More

Inspirational Power ( Part 1 )

The Fundamentals of Strategic Marketing, Some Key Traits for Greater... Read More

Problem Solving

When problem solving, you may recognize that you were working... Read More

The New Economy

This technological revolution has organization, efficiency and productivity requirements well... Read More

Jack Welch--Success Is Getting Back Up on the Horse

A few months ago I had the opportunity to spend... Read More

How Your Feelings and Those of Your Employees Can Make The Difference

How we feel is really more important than what we... Read More

Organisation Tips For The Mobile Executive

Despite the fact that everyone sighs "How glamorous!", the life... Read More

Efficiency Around The Office

Nearly every office, be it commercial or home-based, may have... Read More

Steps to Build ISO 9001 Compliant Program

Implementing an ISO 9001 system represents a major effort. However,... Read More

Mantra for Managers

What do organizations look for in a prospective employee with... Read More

Balancing Power in Outsource Contract Agreements

The practice of outsourcing business processes has long been subject... Read More

The Truth?

The pure and simple truth is rarely pure and never... Read More

Work Priorities: Where Can You Spend Your Time Most Effectively?

Understanding where you can spend time most effectively requires concentration... Read More

Business Relationship Germs

In management seminars I often compare debt to an infection.... Read More

Identifying Candidates for Leadership

A critical task in the succession planning process of any... Read More

Tap Employee Passion For Business Success

Meriwether Lewis set the stage for the Corps of Discovery's... Read More

Don?t Get Down ? Manage Up!

"Experience is not what happens to a man; it is... Read More

5 Questions Great Managers Ask (and they arent hard!)

However hard we try, we seem to make life more... Read More