What a Great Meeting - But What Do I Do With All the Papers, Business Cards & Other Stuff I Took?

Picture this. You're back to the office after an appointment. What do you have in your pockets or briefcase? Business cards, receipts, meeting notes, presentation copies, new ideas for your business, Madcap Molly few web sites you want to keep track of.What a mixture. Ideally you'd have the time and inclination to sit right down, write notes and do the follow-up while fresh in your mind. This is a common question I get from business owners - do I do it all now while it's fresh in my mind? Seems so little to add to my "to do" list.

But the phone is ringing. You have e-mail and How do you recover; how do you dispense quickly with the papers you've just brought in? What systems will make this quick and easy? Here are a few ideas that will allow you to easily and quickly find what you need later on.

Business cards:

Before dropping the card on the desk, ask yourself: Will you ever refer this person? Do you anticipate a business relationship Jupiter Robot forward? If so, add to your contacts database or book 1975 Topps baseball cards business cards and toss the card (or at least put it in the back of your desk drawer, out of the way.) If you're going to refer someone to your client, you want to be confident. If you're not sure, keep the cards in the back of your desk drawer. Be aware of how often you go looking for someone's card in the next few months. Then decide.

Receipts:

Have a drop-off point. Just one. With clients, we've used an attractive leather box. We've used a ceramic bowl near the office door. We've used a green file folder (closed on two sides so the smaller receipts don't fall out). Mark receipts with the details to track for taxes. File away until your regular time to enter receipts into your accounting system. Added benefit: if you consolidate this task, you'll know how much time it really takes ... and realize you can outsource it.

Meeting notes, new ideas, and websites to check out:

I've done this for years and it works so well, I've begun sharing it when business owners ask this question. As you write meeting notes, develop icons for yourself: "F" for follow-up; do today/tomorrow (use #1 as your icon); neat web site/book/resource to check out (write "www" or at PC); quick call or email (an e with a circle around it; or "call."). Makes quick work to figure out what you need to worry about today and what can be added to your list.

Meeting Handouts:

Within 24 hours or so, spend 15 minutes to review meeting handouts. Ask yourself: Do I already know this material --toss it. Is this interesting but not useful to my business-toss. Is this a great idea that I might use someday - add to "someday" file, "business plan" file or bookmark the web site

What do we usually do instead? We write the meeting or conference name and file everything away - never to be viewed again, because we have no visual reminder of what was useful about the presentation. Decide what's useful and make that the new file name. If the presentation was about marketing channels, but the newest information for you was about blogging... and you know you'll be writing one, start a "blogging" file.

Try these ideas on for size. The ones that work best for your business will surface once you try a few. The better organized your space and files are, the more time you'll create, and the more productive you will be.

Sue West, Space4U, ll Organizing Services
http://www.OrganizeNH.com
Contact Space4U to create more time in your life for what matters.
Specializing in time management and organization for the home based business owner.
Next monthly teleclass: February 5th: "Those Darn Paper Piles."
Sign up/more info at http://www.OrganizeNH.com

Great Toddler Toys Can Be Cheap

Parents only want the best things for their children. Our kids deserve to be showered Batcave all the love and affection and this also applies with the kinds 1908 1909 Rose Company Postcards toys we give them. Most parents tend to believe that the best and appropriate toys for their children do not come cheap. Many of us get easily swayed by the masterful hype created by some toy manufacturers and convince us that what they offer, which are expensive, are the best for our children.

When selecting the right and appropriate toys, parents must understand the special needs of their child. The dimensions of our child's development include-creative, intellectual, physical, sensory, social and personality. The best toys for your child, besides providing entertainment and fun experience, are the ones that provide an enriching learning experience and develop his basic skills. It is essential for the parent to evaluate what learning experience your child will have when playing with the toy.

Here are some useful and practical tips to consider when buying toddler toys:

Toys must be age-appropriate. The toys must be both entertaining and stimulating. While we may believe the manufacturer's age recommendation is based on well researched guideline, we tend to convince ourselves that our kids are smarter than average.

Kids enjoy choosing their own toy. Our kids already have distinct personalities, with their own tastes and interests. At their tender age, they can already be involved, with our guidance, in the actual selection of which toys to buy. Sometimes, it also healthy for you to introduce new ideas that might arouse the interest of your child.

Consider toys that arouse your child's curiosity. Parents can reinforce the interest of the child on new things by being sensitive on how the child reacts to certain stimulus or events in his surroundings. Some toddler toys, which are interactive in nature, are highly recommended to develop his interest on new things.

Allow for Batman movie demonstration of the toy. Sometimes, a visual demonstration of how the toy works would be a clear gauge whether your kid will like it or not, or if it will have the stimulating effect on your child's mind.

Consider who makes the toy. The safety of our child should be our paramount concern. Beyond the educational as well as entertainment value of a toy, parents should carefully assess its safety profile. Parents must do extra research of both the toy and the manufacturer and make a wise assessment whether a toy is safe or not.

Participate in your child's play. Spend some quality time with your child while he is at play. It is one of the most stimulating activities you can share with your child. You can also assess the safety of the toys while guiding him play with it.

Consider the color of the toy. Kids are normally attracted to bright colors. They also positively respond to multi-colored toys. Our kid's visual perception is sharpened by introducing toys with bright, vivid and contrasting colors.

In the final analysis, price is not the right indicator of the best toys for our child. You may buy the most expensive toys that are on sale, yet this does not mean that it is easy and appropriate for kid's play, beneficial, meaningful and right for our child's development and growth.

For more tips and information about toddler toys, check out http://www.thekidstoystore.com/toddler.html.