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It doesn’t matter if you are part of a large company or are a one-woman business, there are admin tasks that you probably don’t enjoy. This is because they take up precious time that you’d rather spend elsewhere. Fortunately, there is an answer. Here are some ways that you can make your admin tasks easier.

Organize

There is a saying, ‘failing to prepare is preparing to fail’ and it is true. Organization is key in any role. Whether you are a CEO or an hourly employee, if you have poor organization then your life is going to be more difficult. If you want to make your admin easier, then you need to organize everything. If you know exactly where everything is, you have folders (both on and off the computer) that are clearly labeled with useful documents within, then that is a great start. Being able to access information to make your admin more efficient will help make it feel less annoying and time-consuming.

Spreadsheets are extremely useful. You can use them to sort and organize a range of information from purchase orders to making a Gantt chart for deadlines. Having a different spreadsheet for a different need will help you complete your admin quickly. If you already have a spreadsheet set up ready for you to enter information, then it will make your life easier than needing to constantly create a new one. The other benefit of a spreadsheet is that it can automatically perform calculations. If you use your spreadsheet to monitor your cash flow or to forecast your budget, then you can have it add up columns and sheets to save precious time.

Minimize

If you are organized, then you will save yourself time. This will minimize the amount of work you need to do. The less time you waste being disorganized, the quicker you will finish your admin and be able to move on to other things. If you can, you should consider whether you are doing your admin at the best time. Can you do it on that long train journey tomorrow rather than right now when you need to do important work? If the answer is yes, then put that work aside until later.

If a lot of your admin involves organizing receipts, then you should consider going digital. Taking a snapshot of your receipt at the time of purchase on your phone will help you organize the order of your purchases as well as the time and date they happened. If possible, you could try to cut out physical purchases and instead rely on online purchases instead. This way your receipts will all be in your email, making them easier to find and reducing the chance of them getting lost.

You can also minimize your admin by considering whether or not you should even be doing it. Is this a job for somebody else?

Delegate

If it isn’t a job for you, then pass it on to the right person. If you should be completing the task, but don’t have time, consider delegating. If you have a staff that works below you, then it is part of their job to make your job easier. Is this something you could ask someone else to do? Do they understand how to manage admin tasks assigned to you? Is there a reason they can’t do it for you? If they can, then you can free up time for yourself by delegating. Just remember to check in and make sure the task is done as at the end of the day, it is still your responsibility.

If you don’t have any staff, then you might consider outsourcing. Hiring a freelancer to complete your admin tasks will help free up time for you to do other jobs. Hiring a freelancer is relatively easy and much cheaper than a full-time staff member. The right candidate will also be a professional, so you can rely on him or her to perform an excellent job. Keep in mind to sign a contract or agreement, so you both understand what work is expected and there won’t be any misunderstanding.

Automate

Automation might take a little time to set up, but it will save you time in the future. You can automate a lot from reminders about deadlines to subscriptions for office stationery. Whatever your admin is, you can automate something related to it. You can even automate your lighting and heating if it shaves a few minutes off of your hectic schedule. It is worth the time investment and research to see if there is a way for you to automate a task and make your life easier and your admin completed quicker.