Plan your telephone calls – use telephone ‘To Do’ lists and telephone agendas. Horse-trade telephone reception with a colleague when you want some uninterrupted time. If possible arrange a specific ‘callback’ time – don’t just say “I’ll ring you later” or, even worse “You ring me later”. If someone is taking calls or vetting [...]

  Allocate both starting times and finishing times wherever possible and stick to them. Are you there as a meeting facilitator or to contribute – it is hard to do both equally well. Always ask yourself the question “is this meeting necessary?” Always ask yourself the question “is this the most effective way to … [...]

  Delegate whenever possible – down, sideways and up. There is a fine line between Delegation and Abdication – Delegate tasks but do not abdicate them – if it is your task, you still have the final responsibility. Decide whether you are going to delegate an activity to a person that can do the job [...]

  Have a daily/weekly/monthly ‘To Do’ list – particularly for your top priority items. Review the daily list each day (first thing in the morning or last thing in the evening) and plan your priorities. Always keep your daily ‘To Do’ list in sight. As you clear each item, delete it in brilliant red –just [...]

  Plan your time: don’t let it control you. Assess your work – projects, tasks, in-tray post etc. – and allocate priorities. Arrange and allocate your priorities into categories A, B, C, and D. Throw away the D’s. Keep the C’s to be read during non-priority time. Date/time check B’s – they are usually important [...]

  Decide your life and/or career missions. Specify this mission statement in specific aims. Break your aims down into assessable objectives. Use SMART(ER) Objectives – Specific, Measurable, Acheivable, Relevant, Time-Framed (Evaluated, Reveiwed). Prioritise your objectives depending on Importance and Urgency. Review your mission, aims and objectives at regular intervals and assess how much you have [...]

Ever compared your LinkedIn Profile to anyone else and thought “what are they doing to make their profile stand out” Well, I’ve spent a number of years and has learned from the best (namely Will Kintish http://www.kintish.co.uk/) as well as constantly observing what makes a great LinkedIn profile Rather than a wordy blog, I’ve ‘grabbed’ some [...]

A major contributing factor in Sales and Customer Service calls in UK call centres is use of ‘tight’ scripts. On one occasion I heard of a major utility company setting out a script of NINETY TWO ‘Alternative Closed’ questions. Each question offered two responses, leading to the next alternative closed question and so on until [...]

  Create an environment for continuous learning and growth in business and personal areas where employees are expected to access Trainer Led sessions, e-Learning modules and self study.  Obtain executive commitment to continuous learning  Have executive management communicate its importance to the entire organisation  Communicate the benefits and value of learning Integrate skills attainment into [...]

Here is an introduction to my friend and colleague Rintu Basu’s great Persuasion Skills e-course. included in the course is an electronic copy of his best selling book The Persuasion Skills Black Book. I’ve read Rintu’s book and listened to his online advice and use it help in training, sales, management and work in and out of [...]