What are your goals today? Tomorrow? What takes priority? This will help you design your most efficient and effective day, no matter your job, Poehlman said. So will sticking to one thing at a time. “A lot of people think you want to be a good multi-tasker. But there’s no such thing as a good multi-tasker. You can’t be doing three things really well at a time,” Poehlman said. “You want to be focused on something, and to be the most efficient at it, you really want to concentrate on it.” Poehlman likes to color-code her calendar in terms of tasks. Business items, the most important, are green (because they’ll earn her money), while things out of the office, like grocery shopping, might be orange. She suggested blocking off chunks of time to do things in the same way you might a dentist appointment. “I take one morning a week to do all my paperwork or advertising,” Poehlman said. “That way, I’m able to maximize my week to make money versus spend it on filing. … I find that, for a lot of people, that’s not necessarily a no-brainer, especially if you’re working from home. … You end up zig-zagging all over your day, and you
Being inside doesn’t mean you need to glue your butt to your chair all day. In fact, you really shouldn’t. Dr. Sam Sanzone, a Concord chiropractor, said the medical community is finding that desk-related work stresses have about as many long-term hazards as smoking. At the beginning of his career, workrelated injuries were caused by physically laborious jobs. Today, it’s the opposite. It’s back or neck pain, shoulder tension or carpal tunnel syndrome. If you find yourself regularly stressed at work, it’s worse. “It’s very well-documented that whenever we have a mentally or emotionally stressful situation going on, whether it’s work-related or otherwise, our bodies have a physiological response,” Sanzone said. “Everyone has probably experienced their shoulders tightening up in a stressful situation. If they have any spinal misalignments, those contracted muscles can pull those out even further, which can stress the spinal cord and nerve system.” The good news: There’s plenty you 16
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haven’t accomplished much because you haven’t given anything a dedicated focus.” The same idea can be incorporated in holding meetings. “If you’re hosting a meeting, have an agenda! That works!” Poehlman said. “Maybe email people beforehand and say, ‘Can we stick to these three to four items?’ And agree to focus on this. I know a lot of times meetings end up being an hour longer than they’re supposed to be. You need to communicate about what is going to be accomplished.” Obviously, things come up. The doorbell rings. Someone needs you ASAP. So your system needs to be flexible. But at the same time, Poehlman said it’s important to make a detailed plan of the day ahead — ideally, on one calendar. “If you’ve got more than one, chances are good you’re going to forget or lose something,” she said.
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most efficient setup, and how much space do you have? “Most people want a sense of order in their work space,” Bohn said. “That doesn’t mean you need to get a bunch of new furniture. It just means it needs to be well thought-out.” For example, Bohn’s office contains a work table and desk because her job requires her to spread out. Clutter is typically distracting, but professional organizer Gretchen Poehlman said it’s sometimes necessary to keep tools at the ready. “Some people need all their tools out and visible, and so it can be cluttered,” Poehlman said. “For me, if it’s out of sight, then it’s out of mind, and I can’t function. … I have certain piling systems. That works for me. It’s not wrong. If it works for you, then it’s organized.” If you have limited space and want to keep things in sight, perhaps keep papers in a three-ring binder in front of you, or stacked in some sort of wall organizing system so they’re “away” but still visible. Or, Poehlman said, maybe there’s a drawer in your desk you can leave open. If you’re working at home, designating a specific workspace is key. “I think it’s important that, when you work from home, you go to work — you go to a special, designated spot that you work at. Psychologically, I think that’s super important, as opposed to randomly floating around your house,” Bohn said.
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