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Amelia Randall - Director of Programs, Finance, and Academic Administration, Emory Department of Pediatrics

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Amelia Randall - Director of Programs, Finance, and Academic Administration, Emory Department of Pediatrics

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I actually recently changed how I do things, but I use a combination of the following:
- My Calendar:  I block time to complete time sensitive tasks, keep up with deadlines, and manage my time. Literally everything in my life goes on my calendar and I color code it.
-  My Inbox:  I sort all of my email into folders unless it's something I still have to do and then it stays in my inbox until it's done.
- Lists: I keep hand written to do lists for things if I'm really afraid I'll forget it and keep it on my desk/dining room table in the time of COVID.

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Ashley Watson - Curriculum AP, Norcross HS

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Ashley Watson - Curriculum AP, Norcross HS

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I would say the following are either practical tips or tools I use in my world as a Curriculum AP and/or Instructional Leader:

Prioritize everything:  Make a list of things that are urgent and need to be done in the near future, and items that can wait to be completed further out

I am one who has made a timeline for all of my duties and responsibilities and the months they take place.  For example, in the scheduling world, I have to be aware of all of my to-dos each month.  As new arise or things I forget about, I add them to that specific month on my list.  I put this all in a Google doc so I can add it using my phone or computer the minute I think of it.

Google Calendar is my savior.  Truly, I map everything out when it comes to my teacher observations, things I need to accomplish each day, etc.  I have made a commitment that what I put on my calendar gets done that day and doesn't keep getting moved to future days.

In my job, there are things that I need to do myself and other things that I can delegate to clerks, Dept. Chairs, and counselors.  I am a control freak, but if I wasn't able to delegate some of my job, I would drown.  I have to delegate and then check in with them on some things to make sure it gets done, and other things I just have them report back to me when it is done.

Every email I ever send I write in a word document first, so I have it for future reference instead of re-inventing the wheel each year.  Example, anything GTES that I send out to my teachers I save . . . any scheduling items I send to faculty and staff I save (i.e. Meet Your Teacher protocol, what to do the first day of school, etc.).  If I don't write it in a Word Doc first and forget, I usually save the email as a pdf, so I have it for future reference.

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Hadley Robins - Social Studies DC, Peachtree Ridge HS

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Hadley Robins - Social Studies DC, Peachtree Ridge HS

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I work on trying to figure out what needs to get done instead of what I want to get done. Generally knowing what is important and what is not is key. Also knowing yourself - I am fairly capable at teaching myself stuff, while I know others are not. So I am good at figure out those tasks that I'm like "oh goodness, I'm struggling" and work on that OR set it aside until I can get the help I need. Maybe the LSTC isn't always available - should I stress out more about this tool right now or try to redirect and work on something else beneficial or a bit?

To expand on that, focusing on your locus of control is big, especially now. No conversation I have is going to single handedly change the COVID situation. It's cool and good to blow off steam but sometimes it is counterproductive and actually detrimental, especially if there was something in that time you NEED to do at some point anyway that you can get done.

Keeping a simple to-do list is big. For this I use the sticky note function on my laptop - if I need do an order for the department, I just let it get bigger until I can justify a large order. Google Keep is good for this as well as the Notes app on iOS. I list whatever items I can and sometimes just focus on the small rocks instead o the big boulders. Once you start getting the small rocks going, the big boulders are easier.

Calendars are essential. Write everything down. Maybe you miss a deadline but at least it won't be because it surprised you.

Finally, self-care. Log off. Word hard and play hard. When it's work time, it's freakin work time. But you have to detach and relax, otherwise you will be worthless eventually when you need to work, but of course, this is easier said than done.

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Maggie Rentz Smith -Magistrate Court Judge, Decatur County  Georgia

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Maggie Rentz Smith -Magistrate Court Judge, Decatur County  Georgia

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I generally follow the principles of Getting Things Done. The big thing is having systems in place that ensure you will remember everything you have to do. For me, that's a spreadsheet for open files, a calendar, and a day planner. Every Sunday I put my whole week and all my to dos in the planner, and every night I put the next day's to dos in the planner. If something comes up that I need to do, I immediately send myself an email - that ensure I will see it when I sit down in front of my computer and I can put it in my system.

The Getting Things Done stuff can be used with any system - that's just mine. My husband uses Evernote almost exclusively but it's the same principle.

I love workflow management stuff and I really believe it can be the difference between really successful people and not. People say "oh, I can't remember things," but it's not about remembering things. I don't have a good memory at all. It's about creating systems so you don't have to remember things.

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Michael Urbanik - Coordinator of Instructional Technology, GCPS

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Michael Urbanik - Coordinator of Instructional Technology, GCPS

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My approach to managing workflow goes something like this:

Emails/Chats - The majority of these are treated as ancillary activities I can accomplish on the go.  I personally keep a pretty clean inbox and answer chats as they come in.  While this does occasionally bleed into home time, it typically frees me up to take care of real business at work and focus at home.

Priority Items - Every morning I show up to work early to prioritize my day. Items that can be quickly accomplished are taken care of in the extra half hour to hour that I gain by showing up early.  This frees me up to focus on larger scale items and deal with all the meetings that seem to occur throughout the day.  Items that were a priority on Monday, but I couldn't get to, may not be the same priority on Tuesday.  Every day this list shifts and items move up and down. It is essentially me playing manager to a baseball team and tinkering with my batting order.  In my current role, some of these items will be delegated to the coaches.

Projects/Meetings/Large Impact Discussions - I make room in my day so I can always be available to be pulled into meetings.  This is why I sacrifice time on emails/chats early and often. When I'm in these meetings is where my position allows me to make the largest impact.  I can focus while in the meetings knowing that I have little to do on my priority list and have a minimum amount of backlogged emails/chats.  When in these meetings, I tend to lock in and strategize how to drive conversations back toward the end-user experience.

This is short, but pretty much how I go about my business. It's all about freeing my time up so that I can be present at the times when it matters most.

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Nikki Thomas - Real Estate Broker, The Corcoran Group NYC

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Nikki Thomas - Real Estate Broker, The Corcoran Group NYC

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I manage using a specific system I learned called them 90 Day Year which combines the Agile method and the Eisenhower Box. It’s VERY simplified Agile - basically, every 90 days you decide on a theme for those 90 days. You note the goals and projects you want to work on And those are then broken up into 2 week sprints. At the end of the 2 weeks, you review your process and plan for another two week period and every 90 days you do a higher level assessment of how much progress you made on your goals.

The Eisenhower Box is more of a day to day thing. Here's a link to a good summary of what it is. To help you sort what’s “Important and Urgent” “Important But Not Urgent” “Urgent But Not Important” and finally “Not Urgent and Not Important.”

These ideas have made a huge difference in my business and ability to get things done.