Taking Notes

By Gayle Buske, President and CEO, Team Double-Click® and VirtualAssistingUSA;

Now, I'm not Super Woman. I'm just Super Organized and work extra hard and long because I enjoy it. Today's tip is something I've done for years no matter where I worked: Go to Wal-Mart, or wherever you shop, when they have their back-to-school sales, and pick up a bunch of 10 cent notebooks. While you're there, buy a pen that you absolutely love - one that almost calls out to you to pick it up and use it.

Open the notebook, uncap the pen and put them on your desk next to your computer. It should have its own little spot and it should stay right there. This is your notebook and no one else is allowed to move it from your desk - or take your pen. Hand out a memo if you have to, hold a family meeting, but be sure that notebook stays firmly planted on your desk. As a side note, my daughter is allowed to make an occasional drawing or picture for me in my notebook. She enjoys it and I love looking back through my notes to see a "Hi Mom" from my little girl.

Every time the phone rings or someone talks to you, pick up that beautiful pen and start writing in your notebook. Write down who is calling, glance at the clock and note the time while they introduce themselves. Then catch the highlights of the conversation and/or the things you need to do that come out of that conversation.

When you've completed that task or if there is nothing to complete (if it was just an FYI), make a big checkmark next to the item. Move a line or two down before starting your next note. This makes it easy to look back at references you made or to serve as a reminder of what still needs to be done. I refer back to my notes on a daily basis.

When that notebook is full, mark the date range that it covers on the front and file it away. I save my notebooks as a sort of journal for at least a year. I've actually had to dig back to notebooks from months ago to locate a phone number or some other tidbit of information. Most recently, I used my notes to help the UPS man. He came to our door asking if so-and-so lived in the house on the corner. Since the man had just moved in, I wasn't sure. Then while talking to the UPS man, I remembered having had a brief phone conversation with the neighbor in question when we were having mutual phone problems. As I spoke, I jotted down his name and number. Not something I'd ordinarily save if it were on a piece of scratch paper. Not that you're going to need to bail out the UPS guy on a regular basis, but you can see how the information you jot in your notebook may be valuable to you later as well.

As an added bonus clients (and most other people) are incredibly impressed when you can pull up the most obscure information from the depths of your notebook. I freely admit that my memory stinks, but my notes save my behind on a regular basis. Having the information other people need or can't find also add value to you as a worker, in any position, whether you're a writer, a researcher, marketing assistant, or general admin.





About the author:
Gayle Buske is the co-founder, president and CEO of Team Double-Click® and VirtualAssistingUSA. As the head of a virtual staffing agency with over 57,000 virtual professionals in its pool, Ms. Buske is uniquely qualified to aid small business owners in their growth and development through virtual outsourcing. Virtual Assistants across the globe look to Ms. Buske and her organizations for guidance, mentoring and motivation.

Team Double-Click®, the country's foremost staffing agency for trained Virtual Assistants - Matching Top Virtual Workers with Top Companies! Visit www.teamdoubleclick.com or phone 888.827.9129 for a variety of full-service virtual staffing options.

VirtualAssistingUSA provides Virtual Assistants a place to upload their profile, advertise their services and get access to affordable training, marketing and billing assistance for their business. VirtualAssistingUSA gives small business owners direct access to our database of tens of thousands of virtual assistants - without the ongoing agency fees and gives them access to talent that is not available through other venues. Visit www.virtualassistingusa.com for more information.

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