Let’s Discuss
As we are getting more and more information from multiple resources how do we filter what gets our attention and focus on what matters the most.

EMG 30-Second Rundown
All of us are bombarded each day with so much information that you may begin to wonder how to get anything done that you really need to. With that said this is only going to get worse as time goes on. There will continually be new ways of getting information, communicating with your team or clients, social networking sites, etc. Each person has to take the time to figure out what works for them in terms of organization and being able to cancel unnecessary noise which comes in the form of emails, conversations, chatter and so on. To be able to clear your mind and focus on the task at hand you should know the following:

•    Know what result you must accomplish, within what specific time frame.
•    Read (emails, paper, websites) with a clear outcome or timeframe.
•    Have clear outcomes and timeframes for managing your email inbox.

What works for me is taking the time in the early hours of the day, when most people are not in the office yet, to go through all my new emails and deal with them accordingly. I either read and respond to them or read them, extract the information I need and then file them away. I don’t know about you but I feel as if the world is going to crumble around me if I have more than a couple unread emails. The reason being is that those emails may contain information I need to know for a call or conversation later in the day. If I am not able to extract this right away this could lead to more discussion that ultimately would not have been needed if I just read that one email.

The EMG Takeaway
EMG strives for its employees to attain a work / life balance and as employees we should strive for a perspective / time out balance. When going through tasks really take some time to analyze a situation, recalibrate and move forward. If you take that couple minutes for a time out it could potentially save you two hours of pulling your hair out in the back end. Focusing and perspective can lead to more time saved, clearer direction in projects and greater outcomes.

Final Words
Each person needs to find a method to their madness and gain the skills to wade through all the information that comes their way. The amount and avenues of this information is only going to get more varied so start now.

3 Questions to Continue the Discussion
1)    How organized is your inbox? Would anyone else at EMG be able to log-in and find what they need?
2)    How much do you have on your desktop that needs to be filed away? Are these files project specific or personal?
3)    Have you found looking for that perspective has helped you?