There will always come a time when your workload will be too heavy to handle. In those situations, your old habit of writing them all down on sticky notes will no longer be effective. Now imagine how it would be like for CEOs.
The CEO of a company could easily be the busiest person in the room. They have meetings outside the office, they have consultations and many more. Because they lead the company, they should always be on top of their game and their schedule.
So how do they do it? Here are 7 creative tips from CEOs all over the world.
1. Tuning Out
This is one of the oldest tricks in the book of organization. Because of technology and the Internet, you will always be online and available. And when you're always online, people will keep bugging you or messaging you on a lot of other things.
This isn't to say that these things are not important. But if you do want to get things done, you have to stay focused. One of the ways Todd Mitchem, TED presenter, and entrepreneur, does it is by tuning out. He keeps distractions at bay even if it means shutting his phone off.
2. One Day, One Theme
There are many aspects of managing a company. There's finance, sales, marketing, HR, logistics, and many more. All these departments have different needs from a CEO. So to be able to handle them all, follow what Jack Dorsey does – having a theme every day.
Dorsey, CEO of Square and the Chairman of Twitter, swears by giving a theme for every day of the week. In this way, he gets to focus on a task more because his brain won't be jumping from one department to another. For example, if you're having a logistics problem, assign it on Monday. Then allot Tuesday for marketing. And so on.
3. Divide and Conquer
As strategic as you are with your company, the same thing should apply to how you organize your schedule. There's a political strategy called ‘divide and conquer'.
Divide and conquer means that you divide a huge land into small pieces so that it is easier to manage them. The same thing applies to your schedule. Break large problems into smaller and more manageable ones. In this way, you will be able to save time dealing with problems.
4. Delegate Tasks
As the CEO, people expect you to be busy all the time. But this doesn't mean that your job should eat up your whole life. CEOs should also be an example of efficient time managers.
One way to stay on top of a busy schedule is to delegate. If you think a task can be assigned to someone else, do so. This way, you have more time to work on more pressing matters. For example, if you have logistical concerns, pass it over to https://www.efflog.com.au/ so they can handle it for you.
5. Know Your Working Style
By now, you should know what works for you and what doesn't. There are CEOs who prefer waking up early for work while others work until late. Elon Musk prefers to answer emails at night, while some get down on it first thing in the morning.
No matter what your working style is, you should stick to it. You don't have to follow everyone else and depend on an app. If you know that your working style is efficient enough, then stick to it.
6. Be Aware of Death By Apps
In an app-dependent society, it's easy to get stuck organizing your schedule on them. But sometimes it's counter-productive.
When you use an app to organize your schedule, be critical on how effective it is for you. If it proves to be a waste of time, don't use it anymore. Also, if you need an app, stick to the ones that are simple. There is no need to overcomplicate your already complex schedule.
7. Create Immediate Deadlines
When you create immediate deadlines for yourself, you will automatically work faster. Sure, you won't have the same results as to when you have a longer deadline, but at least you get something done. According to Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, “done is better than perfect”. In a fast-paced world, you have to accept that you can't always give out perfect work. But at least you are able to do something. At the end of the day, this is what matters more than doing nothing at all.
These 7 tips are not only designed for CEOs. Anyone who has a very tight schedule can also apply these tips. If you're struggling with your schedule, assess how you're organizing everything and change habits that slow you down. At first, it would feel weird, but you will get the hang of it. Eventually, you'll find an organizing style that is effective and efficient for you.
Author's bio
Jordan Packer is the Operation Manager of Effective Logistics – a reputable logistics company in Melbourne. He has extensive experience in warehousing, transports, and logistics for more than a decade. With many years of experience, he has a depth of understanding every company's logistics needs.