Tip 1: File your documents properly!
Great workplace behaviours you must acquire.
Hopefully you have read the other behaviours and you are working hard at acquiring them. Here is another!
Get into the habit of filing properly!
That will just tell anyone looking over you shoulder how organized and serious you are. When I was younger, I used to file my notes and computer documents anyhow, by just running my fingers over the keyboard and saving files anywhere. It was always a nightmare retrieving files just moments later. This behavior caused me to
accidentally thrash many important documents, mails and other files just because they are in the wrong place with the wrong names! But I am wise now, and hopefully you will learn from that too.
Here is what you should learn to do:
1. Name it properly.
Whether they are letters from the post or emails or files you have downloaded from the internet, you need to re-name them by what they are. For example, you have just received some images from the photographer on a workshop you did. You can put them in a folder and name it “Photos-of-Sales-Workshop-at-Green-Hotel”. Of course you need to name the individual images too appropriately. Never use names like “images07, images-4b” and that kind of nonsense. Be sure that you have well labeled directories (folders) for every category of client, individuals, events, resources and what have you. This way, as soon as you start running a search on your computer, you have exactly the relevant files showing! Wise huh?
2. Place it properly.
It is so easy to just save files on your computer desktop, or in a default download folder where everything just goes. Very very bad habbit! I agree sometimes you need to do things so fast and the desktop is the easiest place to find refuge. Its OK, just make sure you re-place them in their appropriate folders on your drive as soon as you are done. Remember in a workplace, people can use your computer in your absence and you run the risk of someone deleting your files on desktop.
3. Email directories.
Did you know many good email clients (Thunderbird, Outlook, Yahoo and many others) allow you to create folders where you can move emails in to? This is cool, because as soon as you finish reading an email, you can move it in to the persons folder for easy retrieval when needed. Explore your email software to see what it allows.
There you go, take a look at the other workplace behaviours that can help you become a better team player and business person