With our busy lifestyles it can be difficult to manage meetings and appointments. From business appointments to projects, just how do we fit everything in and ensure that we are well prepared?
I use my diary to within an inch of my life. If I plan to follow up on my customers, I note it in my diary. If I would like to spend time updating my Facebook business page, I note it in my diary. I am sure you get the picture!
Preparation is key. Working in excellence is key – at all times not just when it is convenient for you. Preparing in advance sets us in good stead. What you do today, impacts on your tomorrow.
Below are several tips on how to best utilise your diary;
1. Firstly, I recommend that you use a hard diary and electronic diary on your phone . Reason being, if you mislaid either you would still have access to your dates.
2. Prepare in advance for your appointment/meeting. Are you required to contact the organisation or gather specific information? Being unprepared looks unprofessional, thus creating the wrong impression.
3. Set reminders on your phone to prompt you to prepare. It is all too easy to have it at the back of your mind but a prompt kicks it all into motion.
How prepared are you?
Are you ordered in every part of your life or just your career?
organisedlady 
I’m very prepared. I have a planner and numerous post it notes scattered across my apartment. I make to do lists at least twice a week.
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Jason – I have post it notes plastered all over my PC at work!
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Well, I would say that I am super organized when it comes to appointments and I am usually ready for them early. While I put everything in my calendar, I somehow am able to just remember what I am supposed to be doing and where I am supposed to be naturally. I basically write things down just to coordinate with others.
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Erica – you are definitely super organised with a fantastic memory!
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I have never used a hard day planner and am not sure my phone has the capabilities to plan much of anything. The message of organization I understand though and that’s where the outlook calendar comes in handy for me.
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Tim – I use the diary planner on my phone. No special app. I input my appointments and reminders which prompt me with ‘an alarm’.
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Preparing is such an important part of my life! I gave up the paper planner long ago and thankfully have not been caught short yet! Now THAT doesn’t sound very prepared, right? Maybe it’s time to go with that backup plan.:)
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Jacqueline – may be best not to wait until you get caught out.
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Preparing in advance is indeed a mantra, or way of life, for most introverts in business and I am no exception Phoenicia. I have just been thinking about going back to a paper planner! So coincidental to read that as one of your suggestions! Thanks.
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Pat – you are welcome.
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hello; thanks for a solid post with a good reminder and some actionable tips. as a eagle scout being prepared is something I’ve known about had drummed into me but not acted upon enough. i found that recently due to appearing on many podcasts and radio shows i now have a file on my laptop with upcoming appointments. I’m even trying to figure out how to use the calendar on my new iPhone just for this. so the radio shows are making me more conscious of planning and scheduling. I need to do more. I am very unscheduled in my personal life. my dad used to tell us about another carnival owner when we were growing up. his name was pat crabtree and he or that is his family now have one of the largest most successful most well known companies in texas and outside of the state too. my dad visited pat in his workshop one winter and noticed that he kept and punched a time clock at his home and winter quarters. i know i’ll never be that regimented. 🙂 thanks for sharing max
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Maxwell – you are welcome.
How amazing that the carnival owner is now running a successful well known business. He worked in excellence from the very start and now he is reaping.
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The part about preparing is really important. If you are the other party you can tell right away whether the person you are meeting with has done his or her homework. If not, you may well come to the conclusion that person is wasting your time.
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It is always obvious when a person has not come prepared. It is also deeply embarrassing.
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Great advice. Being a Professional Organizer, I want to be able to show that I can teach as well as be organized so I am pretty organized. With my appointments, I tend to prepare the day before the event. It works nicely because I don’t feel overwhelmed or stressed if I have a day to prep. Thanks for sharing.
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It always pays to be prepared and it does show.
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I tend to make notes as I prepare for an appointment on a text doc or stickie on my computer.
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Beth- I tend to have a few post it notes on my PC at work. I see them first thing in the morning and they prompt me to take action.
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Hi, Phoenicia! Good, basic information in this post. Thanks! I would add one idea to your point on preparation: Before the meeting, read any reports or background information that has been distributed to attendees, and write down a few good questions to ask at the meeting.
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rporter – thanks for the great tip!
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I use a hardback diary that I couldn’t do without. It not only keeps my appointments, but like you, if I think of something I want to do some time, I make a note of it near the time I plan to do it. This keeps me on track – makes sure I don’t miss deadlines – and just keeps life running smooth.
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Lenie – you sound ultra organised. Why am I not surprised?
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These are great tips, although I do find it confusing sometimes to switch between my phone and paper lists. I try to keep them all in one place, or I’ll end up in one place without the other list I needed!
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Meredith – I carry my diary and mobile everywhere I go. This is the only way to ensure they hold the same information. It does take effort though.
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I definitely could have used these tips in my previous life – I was never without my planner or cell phone. The first thing I did when I quit my corporate job was burn the planner in a rather cheeky ceremony representing my new freedom. I still use an electronic planner and – along with my business and marketing plans and trusty task list – it keeps me organized and happy. 🙂
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I like to know what I need to do and when at all times. If you do not lead a busy life I guess you may not need to be so rigid.
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Being prepared for appointments and meetings is so important. If you initiated the appointment, providing the other party with some information about what you expect to discuss can help them be prepared as well. In terms of meetings, I am a big proponent of agendas (with approximate time periods for each item) sent out ahead of time and keeping the meeting on focus.
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You are a stickler for time – me too! Too often people go off topic in meetings and it is important to hurl them back in. An agenda exists for a reason!
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Definitely keep a prioritized list going at all times. Who can remember everything?
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My memory is pretty good but I cannot rely on it to prompt me for each and every thing.
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I use my phone to set up some of my appointments and sometimes paper (diary). Errrm I have to say I am ordered in my career. For my personal life, I’m getting there LOL!
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Safari – continue striving. You will get there!
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I’m big on lists as well, but was a bit slow on adapting to online appointment setting and list organizing for some reason. I’ve recently been putting greater effort into it and can see how it pays off, though I still like my print calendar book to organize my main tasks for the day and week at a glance.
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Paper may work best for some as you immediately have it at hand – no clicking on an app.
I think whichever way suits the individual.
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