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GET CONNECTED TRAINING
Know-how you need to succeed
Manage Your Telephone Time
Don’t even try to
count the hours you spend on the phone each
day. Your precious work time is usually
whittled away in minutes and seconds as the
calls come in and go out. But you can recoup
some of that time by working smart on the
phone. Here’s how:
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Activate
voice mail: If you use a shared line
for voice, fax and Internet access,
activate the voice mail services provided
by many local phone companies. Voice mail
answers calls even when you’re talking
on the line or researching on the Internet
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Use
caller ID: Use caller ID to
screen incoming calls. Answer the
important ones. But don’t interrupt
important tasks to chat with your mother.
Just make a note to call her back later.
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Dedicate
a fax line: You’ll save time
by spending the $20 a month to get a
dedicated fax line. You can be talking to
a client or researching on the Web while
still waiting for that important document
to arrive by fax.
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Speed
dial: Don’t waste precious
minutes fumbling in your Rolodex or
consulting your PDA. Program the
numbers you dial most often into your
phone’s speed dial.
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Plug
in a headset: Get a phone that
allows you to plug in a headset. Using
a headset leaves your hands free for
multitasking. You can take conversation
notes on your computer or clear the
clutter off your desk while talking.
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Itemize
long distance calls: Many long
distance companies offer a feature that
categorizes your long-distance toll calls.
Use it. You simply select a code for each
project or customer or category, then dial
that code when placing your call. Your
monthly bill will be itemized by minutes
and total cost according to your codes.
When you bill customers, just photocopy
the appropriate pages to show your
telephone expenses.
Reduce E-mail Overload
Flooded with e-mails? Got inbox overflow?
Try these smart tactics to stem the tide:
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Review
listservs, e-newsletters and other sources
of automatic e-mails that you’ve
subscribed to over the years. Unsubscribe
from any that don’t serve your interests
or needs today.
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Zap the
jokesters. E-mail friends, family,
colleagues and ask them to cut you out of
the online joke loop.
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If your e-mail
service provides an inbox protector or
junk mail filter, use it to automatically
send all of those unwanted sales pitches
to the trash bin.
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Jump off of
distribution lists for any e-mails you no
longer need to read.
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