The past few months have led many of us to change or review how we manage our time, and consider what our working lives might look like, or what we would like our working lives to look like. In this article we offer our take on 7 diary management tips to make your diary work for you.
Diaries
Use an online diary that you can access via your mobile devices. This will remain with you at all times where you can update entries in real time. Paper diaries or wall calendars can’t be shared with your Virtual PA and will cause significant issues if they are lost or damaged. Synchronising all of your appointments to one online diary means you only need to check in one place.
Appointment scheduling tools
Utilising appointment tools, such as Calendly for example, on your website or in your email signature block means that people can book appointments with you without your assistance. You can set specific times for telephone or video calls and guests will be required to add their contact information saving you time and effort searching for their details.
Diary invitations
Use the diary invitation feature in your electronic diary to send invites to participants. This is one clear message to all requesting a RSVP. Being clear on start and end times, venues, links to online calls, and avoid lengthy emails.
Similarly, if you have been invited to a meeting, request a diary marker that you can RSVP to and will auto populate your diary.
Meetings
Don’t be afraid to qualify the reasons for the meeting. Your time is valuable and clarifying the purpose and agenda ensures you can prepare in advance and enjoy a productive meeting.
Time blocking
If you are just starting out and not yet ready to outsource or delegate to a Virtual PA, or are unable to automate a task, block out time in your diary to ensure you stay on track with your paid work, admin duties such as invoicing and expenses, following up prospects, and pursuing hobbies and interests.
Keep it real
Be honest about how long things will take and specify items such as travel time in your diary when travel is required and note the distance between meeting venues. Check traffic and travel reports on the morning of the meeting just in case anything has changed and research in advance items such as parking, or taxi transfers from air and rail transport
Keep it simple
Finally, keep your online diary simple to understand and leave yourself room to accommodate change. Filling your diary with non-productive meetings or appointments will leave you frustrated and unable to focus on your work.
If you would like to talk about our Virtual PA service we offer a free 1 hour discovery call to hear your story and find out how we can help you, contact us for more information
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