Stop. Take a minute and think.

Like my old man always said ‘if you really want to, you can do it – having no time is just an excuse!’
As we grow we start to understand that multitasking and time management can help us juggle a million things at one go – it’s okay boys, you wouldn’t understand the multitasking part – don’t worry, with all our nagging you’ll get there eventually 😛
The trick to it all is planning ahead and being positive! The worst thing you could do to yourself is to fall into a monotonous routine and regret the decisions you have made in the past. Every second you spend is  an experience to learn from and a memory to treasure!
Set your alarm 15 minutes earlier to make time for breakfast and kick start your day on a positive note!
Have a positive can do attitude and you find that any task you need to complete is done in a shorter time because you didn’t spend half of it complaining about how busy you are or about how impossible it is to get the job done.
Spare five minutes and call your parents, an old friend, or an ex colleague. If you think you have no time for that – do it while you’re in the bathroom, just make sure to flush after you hang up and not while you’re on the phone; having to reply to the question ‘what’s that noise?’ can be a little embarrassing – true story!

Spend 30 minutes cooking some healthy chicken and yummy salad for dinner instead of queuing up at a fast food restaurant. Do your grocery shopping once during the week instead of having to go to the store everyday – draw up a shopping list and plan your meals in advance, it’s not rocket science!
Find a hobby, pick a sport, go out for a short walk and stay active instead of dumping yourself on the sofa watching useless TV programs.
With all that’s been going on over the past few days you stop and realise that you’re here today and gone tomorrow.
What I am trying to say is that we all have the same amount of hours at our disposal – what we do with this time is what makes us happier or angrier, what keeps us sane or stresses the living hell out of us.
Can’t believe I found the time to write this in my busy schedule – and no, I’m not on the loo – or am I? 😉
Until next time! (ha ha)

The post Make Time for Time appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

Structured

If you’re organised, logical, analytical, ruthlessly efficient, or numbers oriented, then maybe this is the category that works best for you. Structured individuals usually make great executives, researchers, account managers and business developers.
These are the guys who turn data into information and studio briefs that will then be interpreted by their creative counterparts in order to come up with something magical.
As you can see, creativity isn’t this category’s forte; however the structured individuals are the ones who find ways to make the great ideas happen.

Chaotic

Then there’s the other side: the chaotic, the artistic and the somewhat crazy. If you are artistic, have some technical skills, can constantly think outside the box and push the boundaries a little bit, then maybe this category might have a role for you.
The creative department is made up of artists from all different types of disciplines. It’s here where the exciting magic happens, where the big ideas emerge from – usually a lot crazier than what you end up seeing in that final artwork.

Hybrids

Modern marketing operations have pushed towards a more integrated approach in almost every aspect. Be it the media mix, product mix or a project team working on an exciting campaign, the need for differentiated talents and benefits are always sought out in order to have a successful formula that achieves whatever the goal is.
This need for a differentiated talent mix has led some resourceful marketers to evolve into a more hybrid kind of role within the industry. Not necessarily a Jack-of-all-trades, but definitely less specialised in any one particular area. Their true strength is adaptability and the ability to communicate effectively with different kind of people.
Sometimes these individuals are dismissed, as their wow factor isn’t based on a skill level that is hard to reach by most, but rather, multiple skills at a slightly lower level.
These are the individuals who have operational procedures, different ones for each project as they creatively optimise the list every time. These same individuals are the ones who contribute realistic creative ideas that push the boundaries slightly. These are the people who adopt a structured way of thinking, but never stick to the same structure.
So tell us, which one do you fall under? 🙂

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Why?

When writing content you might have one of those days where you stare at your monitor, desperately seeking inspiration. You re-write the same paragraph about 5 times, never happy with what you’re producing.
Just as you’re about to say FTSIQ you realise that perhaps it’s time for a new approach. So you decide to create a list based blog post.
Creating a list allows you to break down the writing process. Instead of trying to write paragraphs you’re condensing everything into bite sized information. This not only makes it easier for you to write, it also makes it easier to read.
You can of course elaborate on what you put into your list. It can be a simple no frills list where you mention the salient points and leave it at that, or it can be a list where you go into detail about the separate topics. Either way it provides a clear cut structure and helps you stick to the point. You won’t go off at a tangent and won’t run the risk of losing the gist of what you’re writing about.

How?

Of course there are lists and then there are lists. the internet is full of click bait articles with headings like The ten secrets you need to know about pasta that will change your life only to present you with a list full of useless information which you knew anyway.
A good list takes time. Here are a few things to keep in mind

1. Know your facts
   Don’t get caught out. Make sure you know what you’re talking about. Verify any stats and where possible link to your sources.
2. Length
   You can make your list as long as you want – but as a general rule try not to have a list with a random number of items – eg 23
   Go for 3, 5, 7, 10, 20, 50, 101… you get the point. These numbers look good and have an element of harmony which is more eye catching. What’s more is that writing with a pre-defined amount of points in mind helps to guide your writing.
3. Provide useful information
   People want good content. Just because you’re writing a list it doesn’t mean you can skimp on content. If you don’t have enough to talk about for a 10 point list then just go for something shorter.

These are just the basics, there are of course other things to keep in mind based on the article you’re writing.

The results

Lists are perfect for building engagement. People naturally skim through text, so if you’re writing paragraph based articles readers will probably rush through what you wrote. With lists they’ll still skim, however with each different point you re-capture their attention.
Lists are shareable – people find them useful because they automatically insinuate efficiency. It’s almost like we look for answers to life’s biggest mysteries in lists. They increase engagement and also keep people coming back for more.

To sum up

If you’re looking for a new way to boost content engagement, or are lacking inspiration about what you should be writing, then it’s high time to dabble in the world of lists. In the meantime, why not check out one of ours?

The post L is for Lists appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

How do I keep myself organised?

With a list of responsibilities and deadlines to meet, things sometimes get a bit crazy. In a position like mine it’s important to keep on top of everything and never let the work get overwhelming.
Over the years I developed a system of work which helps me keep things organised.

My 6 Time Management Tips to Increase Productivity and Improve your Organisational Skills at work

1. Prepare in advance – especially when there’s a tight deadline or a client’s meeting. It’s better to be prepared and plan things carefully. If you’re attending a meeting, create an Agenda so all the line items on the Agenda are discussed and looked into whilst at the meeting.
2. Schedule your time and your day – The workload can be split. No need to hassle and stress. Create a priority list.
3. Start early and don’t waste time :p
4. Be organised – Use a filing system both at home and at the office. If you need to find something and you’re in a rush, it will be easily found.
5. Create a detailed handover for when you’re away of the office – This will help others know what’s going on with your on-going projects while you’re away. Clients would still be happy to receive any jobs that are due while you’re away.
6. Have a to do list or reminders – This way you will never leave something out.

What’s the benefit to all this?

Being more organised means being more time efficient. You lose time looking for lost files and documents or fishing through old emails to track down missing information. You waste time switching between devices to get different information from separate places.
Be conscious of this and keep files and things you will need later organised and easily accessible to make your life easier in the future.
With a few simple changes and adjustments you can save hours during the week and significantly increase your productivity and decrease your stress levels. Of course don’t forget to have some fun and get away every once in a while.
Just remember: you’re the master of your work, not the other way around!

The post Mastering your work appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

1. Ignore your emails

Most of us in the office get pop up notifications whenever we receive an e-mail. This means that we’re constantly stopping whatever task we’re doing to check an e-mail. This can interrupt your work flow and it can be hard to get back into the zone. So sometimes we just turn the pop ups off! We don’t suggest you do this for a long time because you might eventually get back to your inbox to find ” IMPORTANT URGENT ANSWER ASAP” casually sitting there from 4 hours ago. But turning off notifications for an hour or two won’t hurt!

2. Track your time

Plan how much time something should take and then do your best to stick to that slot. We use Paymo to track how much time we spend on projects – eventually we figured out more or less how long something should take us which makes planning our day so much easier!

3. Keep things close at hand

Working on a variety of projects means a variety of specifications and needs. Create lists of the different things clients need and keep these close at hand. Some of us tape lists to the wall, others write them on a big sheet of paper stuck to their desk, and two of us have turned their work area into a post-it-note hangout! Call us old school, but it works!

4. Plan, plan, plan!

Busy days don’t just drop out of the sky (okay, sometimes they do!). Plan your week and make sure you make time for everything you need to do. If you’ve got a relaxed day use it to do some behind the scenes work which would simplify things for you in the future. Whether it’s stock image hunting or creating titles for future blog posts make sure that you use those quieter days to their full potential.

5. Have resources

Speaking of stock imagery, we’re always working to improve our database of beautiful royalty free images. But whenever we’re really stuck in a jam we like to use one of the many sites on this great post over at BeeWits. It’s been a lifesaver more than once!

6. Set reminders

Schedule in reminders to remind you about things at intervals (1 week before, 2 days before, on the day). We’ve got a weekly reminder for our 10 Before 10:00 posts, and other reminders for our newsletters. This combined with numerous post-it-notes, and verbal reminders from members of staff ensures we never miss anything!

7. Hold regular meetings

You can’t spend 8 hours a day staring at your monitor isolated in the digital world! Sure you can communicate on Skype, but nothing beats sitting down at a table with a mug of coffee and a notepad. Having regular meetings not only helps you plan work strategies- it also increases team dynamics. So if you can’t remember the last time you had a team meeting it’s about time you have one!

8. Get yourself a whiteboard

We’ve got a white board at the end of the room and we’re proud to say it’s quite a beast! It’s got our marketing strategy fully laid out and whenever we’re in need of some inspiration we go through the (never-ending) list. It provides us with a great visual on the aims and motives behind our work. (Plus who doesn’t love a whiteboard?) If you really can’t get a whiteboard go ahead and write on the glass. Just make sure you don’t use a permanent marker and wipe off any joke comments before client meetings!

9. Lose yourself in background sounds

While we’ve got a very sociable office environment each one of us has a pair of headphones. Sure most of the times we can still hear what’s going on in the room but the music does drown out the office sounds. If music doesn’t work for you why not try rainymood or coffitivity? Sometimes a thunderstorm combined with coffee shop murmurs is just what you need!

10. Feed your brain

We’re massive foodies and over time we’ve learnt that you can’t focus on low fuel. While we advise you to stay away from a giant plate of carbonara, we do recommend that you stop for lunch and have something yummy to recharge your bodies and keep you going. There are many great recipes out there dedicated entirely to feeding your brain so why not carry out a quick google search?
All in all how you work depends on your own personality – are there any tools you find indispensable, or do you have some sort of secret which helps you get through things quickly? Let us know!

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