24 Tips in January to Get Organized: Tip #2, Hands Free
January 3, 2008 by Kelly
Tip #2: Invest in a hands free cell phone.
Wait, don’t go all nuts on me. I’m not even remotely suggesting that you dial and drive. I don’t use my cell phone while driving and I don’t think you should either (so there).
But around the office – and at home – hands free can come in handy. Let’s face it: being tied to the phone eats up a lot of time. Since a lot of my time involves calling the IRS or the courts, I am on hold quite a bit. Instead of sitting and waiting (and growing slowly crazy), I try to use the hold time to do other things – you know, busy work. Stuff envelopes. Check the mail. Pay bills. You can quickly turn unproductive time into productive time.
My husband uses his hands free (Bluetooth) while walking the dog or other chores that have to be done. Since he works with a number of international clients, his schedule can become complicated. Those “make all of your calls at one time” rules just don’t apply. But he can chat with a client in Germany while walking the dog at 6am and get lots accomplished. By the end of the day, he’s not tethered to the office phone while staring desperately at the clock.
A word of caution: this works best when you’re doing something mindless (like walking the dog or stuffing envelopes). Don’t use the hands free while composing a letter, preparing an important project or other activity that requires your full attention. It’s rude (!) and can only end in disaster. Multitask intelligently. You’ll be glad you did.
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