Help with being organised at work

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I've got so much to do at work. I will be in the middle of one thing, the phone will ring with an urgent request and I'll have to deal with that, then I'll get staff coming in the office with really important stuff. I'm managing all the important stuff but the small things are beginning to slip.

I do have a lot to do but I know I will be fine if I can just organise myself better. I use reminders on Outlook, sticky notes and a to do/tick list. I prioritise what I can but work in a fast paced place that is naturally chaotic due to the industry.

AIBU to ask you for your best tried and tested tips?

Oh I see, yes to break it all down a bit.

I agree with others who say to close your emails down. Check first thing and deal with anything immediately urgent. While you are dealing with it, close your email. Only have them open when you are actively dealing with a specific one.

It's no good being in the middle of something fairly urgent, and then being interrupted by something else equally fairly urgent.

Compartmentalise your brain and concentrate on one thing at a time. If the phone rings, ask them to hang on a moment and put them on hold until you can reach a sensible pause in what you are doing. Deal with the phone call and then pick up what you were doing where you left off. Either that or tell them you will call them back as soon as you can.

I know what it's like, I had a right handful of it today,

This thread is good reading and a great reminder of the techniques most of us know but don’t actually do!

Definitely agree with breaking it down. If I put do x job it seems like a big task but if I break it into ‘call x, calculate numbers x gave me, produce report, check, email to y’ for example then it seems more doable and you are not afraid of starting in case you don’t finish.

I always start with small things in the morning-helps me get them out of the way, then I work my way through big ones.

I always answer the phone when it rings and sort whatever it is on the spot.

I am awake early and so make a start answering emails ( on iPhone) with delayed send ( so they go out within office hours) and that clears up space for actual work . It's ok if you are the type that is awake from 4am anyway. It kind of relaxes me to know it's done and I sometimes get An hours extra kip after I've done it all. That said, I should point out that I work for myself. I might not be so diligent if I was working for some soulless company!

What type of queries do you have coming in? You say you have a large team. Is there anyway the information they need could be held on a shared drive/share point site/ notice board/ Trello board etc. so all they have to do is go and look rather than interrupting you?

It might be a big task to organise but give it to someone as a stretch project to work out how it can be done.

I u

Sorry, train lurched then.

I have a rule that I only handle a piece of paper once or as few times you can. So if you need to scan or file it after your task is completed, do it immediately then it's off your desk. Ditto emails, create folders to move them into once you have responded or read if no reply needed, then the inbox keeps current.

I like that rule secretjeven my worst work habit is saving up filing until it takes ages!

'Worst first' is another useful rule to live by. If you have an unpleasant or difficult task to complete, get it done as soon as possible - otherwise you will find yourself inventing other things to do to put it off until it absolutely has to be done. It won't be any easier to do at 4pm than 8am!

At the end of each day I write a list for the next day with what I am aiming to or must get done. I also review what didn’t get done that day and add it to the list for the next day. It means I come in knowing exactly what I need to tackle first.

Absolutely agree with this

I always start with small things in the morning-helps me get them out of the way, then I work my way through big ones.

And this. Definitely helps to have a sense that you’re already making progress on the day’s list.

I've found the following approach helpful for emails, and it could be applied to other tasks too. For every email that comes in, follow this list in order:
1 - delete. If it doesn't require action from you, just delete it. File it if it contains information you need to refer back to. If it can't be deleted then...
2 - delegate. If you can give it so someone else, then do so. If not...
3 - do. If it'll take 2 minutes or less, just do it. A quick reply, accepting an invitation etc can be cleared quickly. If not...
4 - defer. At this point the task goes on your to do list for prioritisation amongst everything else you've got going on

This has really helped me when I've felt like I was drowning in my inbox. That and blocking out time in my diary for big tasks, and having recurring calendar entries for things like invoicing and reporting keeps me organised.

You need to stop firefighting. Have a clear-out of anything urgent one day and then move to booking slots. You're bound to have regular times when patients are due to be released, so be realistic and block that time in your diary so you and anyone else don't expect you to achieve anything else at that time. I put absolutely everything into my calendar to make the work fit and just move tasks forward as needed. Direct reports get a spot fortnightly individually as well as team meetings and are asked to bring a list of everything they need, then it's all done within the session so they don't leave me with tasks (ok sometimes one or two, generally none though). Same with senior clients; regular meeting and try to do everything within that session. Anyone else who wants to see me books a slot; if they claim urgency to meet even they aren't booked and it isn't urgent then gentle reminders and whatever they need waits its turn.

Emails needing a bigger response are flagged and scheduled on the calendar same as any other task but usually as a group where I skim first and work through most urgent or oldest flagged items first. Small tasks (

I agree with Peaceful's approach to emails.

Another couple of email tips I use -

• I try never to have more than 5 emails in my inbox at once
• I have a 'temporary' folder for emails I need to keep but only for a short time - e.g. agenda for meeting in 3 days time - and clear this out weekly

Some people where I work seem to keep everything in their inbox indefinitely, rather than filing into separate folders or deleting emails after they're dealt with - they end up with literally hundreds of emails in their inboxes and then can never find the ones they need.

Don't be afraid to delete emails - if you are using Outlook they are very easy to retrieve if you make a mistake.

Some of us need to keep emails as proof of events, while filing takes effort if you're getting even just 50 emails per day. I read emails then move on if I don't need to do anything, respond immediately or flag them for later. That means I only need to look at unread, flagged or locate something via search if it's needed later. Different approaches can work for different industries and personalities. One other email tip is to ask to be removed from threads you don't need to follow. Some people copy a manager to everything when it isn't necessary; reducing the inward flow can really help if you have a volume issue.

Followed some of these tips today and was so much more productive!

12 hours after starting I'm still 'at work!'
Think I need to get a PA !

One other email tip is to ask to be removed from threads you don't need to follow.

Great tip! It's reminded me of another thing I've set up - I've set my inbox rules to highlight any emails sent only to me in a different colour, because they tend to be the more urgent ones, so I can pick them out easily when I open my mailbox to deal with them first and get them out of the way.

I suspect we do the same job...Just to make you feel better, we're all in the same position, we're all fire fighting and due to the nature of it, it's not going to change (except get worse now - winter pressures are well on there way!). It's mayhem. I just prioritise by 'who might die' down to 'meh, that commissioning can wait and I'll get a bollocking for it'. I am exceptionally good at ignoring emails which are nonsense and accept that my phone is going to ring and upset all the hard work I've just done. My best plan of the day is to have no plan because it goes to shit!

Could a large drywipe board behind you help? As items crop up, you write them on there; 'discharge AB', 'move DY to room 7' 'sort printer' - then with a different colour, you can step back and add the steps - 'call xy', 'need form 3489362i/b from zp'.

That way, it's out of your head, you can't be distracted by yet another email coming through, you can make a cuppa, stand back and see that three things are all waiting for one person to sort - and if somebody comes in and wants another thing done, you can add it to the board, they see it's been added but there are other things to do - and sometimes will take one look and say 'actually, I can sort it'.

A3 pads and sharpies or chisel tip markers work well for brain dumping as well.

It get you away from apps and computers and fancy procedures, you get space to think (and you can just stare into space over your cuppa and nobody will know any different) and it makes it more visual, rather than a scrappy list you might not be able to find when you need it. And you're more likely to remember things you've written in big writing in bright colours than typed in 11pt calibri or scribbled on the back of an envelope.

If they don't work, you could have an a4 ruled book for messages/things to do that holds the immediate contents of your head.

It's very satisfying to cross or rub things off, you can see at a glance what's outstanding, too - no missing the important thing that's been relegated to the bottom of the emails for three days in a row.

@BubbleGumTrouble You've got me! Yes, deaths, safeguardings, and a sliding scale from there. Winter Pressures, ahhhhhhhhh.......... Yes, absolute firefighting and no getting away from it. It does make me feel better to know I'm not alone.

Some really good tips. I have just sat here for 2 hours organising my day for tomorrow down to minutes, I can the nudge it all along depending on priority as it will all have changed by tomorrow. I haven't looked at Trello yet, but will try to do that over the weekend.

I did try a wipe board but kept forgetting to update it, it now has 'coded' swear words on it 😂

The copied in on pointless emails, I'm going to start asking to be removed from them tomorrow, I get a lot of this, how simple and how did i not think of this before. It's sometimes the small things isn't it. I once got copied into an email from a very senior manager of another service, she thought I was one of her team and gave us all a right bollocking, the poor staff! 😂

Friday tomorrow. Chin, chin 🍹🍹

I think lists can sometimes be helpful but are also good for procrastinating and can reduce working in a fast paced environment.
It sounds like you are a discharge coordinator in a trust or in adult services commissioning. I’m not sure lists are the answer for you.

It sounds like a system wide response is required to improve information flow and make work processes less chaotic. I don’t know the level you are at but some areas have joined up discharge processes that benefits everyone.
Do the hospitals have a discharge before midday programme to allow for easier care management? If they do (or could be persuaded to implement) then one email detailing all likely discharges for that day that need care packages checking would reduce traffic.
Are hospitals setting discharge dates and planning discharge on admission? There should ideally be very little last minute rushing around.
Are care packages maintained for first 48/72 hours of admission- cheaper and better for all agencies and patient.

Remove yourself from irrelevant distribution lists. Handle emails just once.
Block out time for medium and longer term work.
Use your answerphone- “Placeyouritem is busy just now. Please leave a message and she will respond when she returns to the office at 11:30am” or similar. You get to take control and prioritise calls.

Small post-it’s with daily tasks down the side of your monitor. Be realistic about what you can achieve and allow for responsive work.
You can add items between the post it’s as priorities change.As task finished, remove post-it.
If others can put things in your diary, block time out with invented meetings to clear time that isn’t taken away from you. If you just put an administrative task such as policy writing in there, it will be ignored. If you put a meeting with Fred Bloggs re Policy, people will respect it.

Use Skype rather than telephone if you can. It’s quicker internally. Use instead of emails too unless you need an audit trail.

In between me writing that message and now I've just had a scramble of messages about a major issue tomorrow. So I've just scrapped my 10am meeting (safeguarding, but they're safe...so down the priority ladder you go) the 2pm one may have to go too...and it's not even tomorrow yet!! See, plans? Why bloody plan?! There's simply no point. And yes, I know, should not still be working at this time but that's the reality of it. Care to remind me why we do this?

Sorry I am now just ranting and wondering if Mumsnet have name changed me or not as it went squiffy and probably won't know until I hit post...

So since your brilliant tips, I have been super observant of everything that I've been doing.

I have realised that I do my managers job as well as my own, as well as take work off another colleague at my level in another service. I have started refusing to do this now I recognise it. I also used to have staff wandering in and out all day long, I now give them a time to come back and speak to me, this stops the petty moaning and even more of the fobbing off work on me.

I have stopped dealing with phone calls that are put through to me because I'll deal with them and leave my out of office on saying I'll get back to you at some point throughout the day- the pressure relief of this is amazing, who knew.

All this has given me the time in work to actually sit down and plan my day properly. Tonight, for the first time in ages, I left my laptop at work and I'm going to sit and relax at home tonight!

Thank you so much everyone. My days are still crazily hectic (no dinner today), but I actually feel in control again!

That’s fantastic - well done! Also, how cheeky is your manager?!