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AccountingWEB guide to getting things done

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27th Jan 2012
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As the Self Assessment filing deadline approaches, many accountants are feeling the stress rushing to file those last-minute tax returns. Alongside our stress management article, AccountingWEB provides a guide to help you boost your productivity during the busy season.

Time management
In one of last year’s posts, AccountingWEB blogger FirstTab asked: “I really admire people who get things done. They plan and do. I plan and do a bit and then do a bit again and never finish. Is this the difference between successful people and people who are not a success?”

As our blogger goes on to say, websites such as 43folders.com, time management guides and books can help you develop these skills. However managing your focus is just as important, and here the internet can be a killer. Rather than just clicking these links, schedule some time when you're not up against a deadline so you can concentrate properly on discovering new productivity ideas and putting them into practice.

Productivity apps

Toodledo

Evernote

Nowdothis

Mind42

Workrave

TripIt

Responding to an Any Answers post on this subject, AccountingWEB member Jason Dormer suggested a number of techniques to get things done such as:

  • Work from home at least once a fortnight to focus on the 'important but not urgent' stuff
  • Turn off Outlook and only check your emails twice a day
  • Have your calls monitored and filtered
  • Delegate as much as you possibly can to lowest cost resource without quality compromise
  • Plan your working week in advance
  • Do a checklist each day of what you want to achieve 
  • Don't allow things to become urgent, do them well in advance
  • Scope out to clients when you need their records and incentivise them not to be late
  • Have someone call clients on meeting days to ensure full attendance
  • Have agendas and set times for meetings
  • Communicate to clients if their actions are causing issues

Technology
The computer industry - which brought us information overload - has also offered up the concept of lifehacking, where systems analysis and engineering concepts are applied to the workflows and processes that take part in your day-to-day activities. The industry has also come up with various technology tools, such as web and mobile applications that can help organise your workload and manage your time (see box above). Stephen Bynghall explains that online personal-knowledge management usually falls into the following categories:

  • Managing data from the web: Subscribing to RSS feeds will allow you to keep abreast of updates quickly. Efficiently manage all your feeds in one place through a reader, such as Google Reader.
  • Managing tasks, ‘to do’ lists and calendars: Applications such as Toodledo can help
  • Places to capture data on the fly: Mobile app and website Evernote will help you note down useful data whilst on the move.
  • Social networking and contact management: Twitter and LinkedIn also provide platforms to quickly monitor any new happenings.
  • Document and file management: Google Docs, Dropbox and Documents to Go are all useful tools for storing files that you can access in and out of the office.

Soft skills
Communication skills and problem solving are arguably as important as our technical skills but we spend little time developing these.

As Coach Carol explained, technical competence in iXBRL, financial reporting or auditing standards tends to take precedence over personal competencies within accountancy, but developing these skills is important in effectively managing your workload. In her experience, better soft skills lead to better communication, more effective problem solving and leveraging relationships. “Imagine what we could achieve if we invested a tiny percentage of the time and money we spend on technical CPD?” she said.

If you’re an accountant heading up your own practice, good personal skills are a must for good leadership. Psychologist and emotional intelligence expert Daniel Goleman outlines six common leadership styles and why mangers must interchange these as conditions around them change.

For more information on this topic, visit AccoutingWEB.co.uk’s time management page or consult the following articles:

For further information on soft skills, visit AccountingWEB's soft skills page or view the following: 

What techniques do you use to get things done.? 

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