Sandra Fulton

Efficiency is one of the key words in the business world. Managers are always looking for it or decrying its absence, and there are hundreds of courses and seminars that teach you how to be more efficient. And if you aren't efficient, you soon know about it, either with your boss screaming at you, or you falling further and further behind in your work.

This article attempts to make efficiency a simple thing to understand. It also tries to put efficiency into a small business context. Being efficient is even more stressful (potentially) when you run your own business, whether it is a small home based business or a business that has salaried employees.

So what is efficiency? Well, we can keep that simple, and say that efficiency is the basic act of getting things done well in an acceptable time frame. That means getting the necessary stuff done, as well as the things that you need to do move your business forward.

A good first tip would be to make sure that you have a list of things to do each day. This does not mean grabbing the latest piece of software that helps you plan your life (although some of these are very good). It does mean grabbing a piece of paper and a pen at least, and writing a list of the things that you need to accomplish on any given day.

This does two things. Firstly, it forces you to think about what is truly important, and it also makes you get rid of all the distracting jobs that can be either done by someone else or aren't that really important anyway.

The next main thing you should be doing is keeping an exceptionally tidy desk. This works wonders for your state of mind and your efficiency. You have less to distract you, literally, and you also have a clear mind that can focus on getting the important things done. And you also have space to do all of that work in, which makes you more efficient.

Make sure, also, that you finish one task before you jump to the next one. Multitasking is never a good thing, and rarely gets things done. Instead, focus on one job and see it through to the end. Then it gets done.

At the end of the day, it will do you a lot of good to clear your desk. You could also try and make a short list (at least a draft) of things you need to do the next day.

Then that's it, you're done. Get these few tips embedded in your daily work life and you could quite easily find yourself becoming the most efficient person in the workplace., And if you work for yourself, make sure you give yourself a high five (before getting back to work of course).