It starts out with working just a couple more hours one day, to working a weekend, to missing the all important hockey game because if you just finish up this last minute project you’ll be less stressed tomorrow.

Bad new is, there is no end in sight. The more you work, the more work will build.  It’s inevitable and unfortunately in some work arenas, it becomes expected.   I’m not saying “don’t work hard”, but instead focus on working smart.

Working smart could be planning projects and timelines ahead of committing to a project and making sure you have the resources to accomplish those goals on time, or not taking on more projects when you’re already overloaded. It’s hard to say “no”, and for a lot of us it’s not in our vocabulary, but assessing your current situation will help you figure out how to best balance your work with enjoying life.

So the next time you’re thinking about staying late or putting in extra time, ask yourself, “does this HAVE to be done right now?”  If the answer is no, pack up and head for home.

Help identify the style of your organization by asking your leaders (and yourself) for 3 to 5 adjectives that would describe the company if it were a person. You may see words like “professional”, “witty”, “straightforward” or “cool”.  Review key documents of your company and ensure the adjectives you’ve gathered match up. If they don’t, consider – has there been a change in direction? Which is incorrect – the key document, or the words chosen to describe the company. It’s okay to determine a personality for the company that is different from past documents, but everything going forward should represent how you want the world to perceive the organization and the brand.

Look at Red Bull – what comes to mind for me is fun, lighthearted, energetic and young. How about VISA? They might be professional, available, helpful and dependable. Use the words that describe the company as your cue on how to write. Share with others who are responsible for writing organizational messaging so that you’re all working from the same consistent platform.

As a representative of your organization, you need to write from the company’s position, instead of your own.

I asked him the simple question “What if there were no problems?  He sat there for a second, probably imagining his world with no problems: birds singing in the background, a lounge chair by the ocean.  My next question was “Wouldn’t you be out of a job?”  It was like the proverbial lightbulb went on over his head.  I could see him thinking and a new sense of calm come over him. He then stated “Yes, my job is to solve problems. Without them I’d be out of work”.  All of a sudden this new state of mind propelled him forward, gave him a positive spin on his daily issues and this simple statement became his mantra.

It’s hard to reframe problems positively when you’re consistently faced with them. Instead of calling them problems, call them “to dos” as consciously or subconsciously the word “problem” sounds negative. If you can, you’ll start seeing them as your strengths and your work’s purpose and you’ll be able to focus on the positives about your job.

Let’s face it; our day to day lives are not generally relaxing. While you’re trying to compose an email, you’re also thinking about the call you didn’t make, trying to catch the attention of your boss or employee and are digging that important document out of the pile on your desk.

When we rush, our communication gets rushed. We don’t take the time to think about the audience, where they’re at and what their needs are. Unfortunately all this rushing comes out in our language and leads us painfully to the hangover of: “what I meant was” or “that’s not quite what I was saying”. You spend more time correcting than you would have spent on the original message.

How many times have you re-read an email a week or two after you sent it and were confused about it yourself? Email is our greatest source of rushed communications. When confirming your attendance for lunch or letting someone know where to find the extra brochures, quick, “off the cuff” emails are fine. When you’re trying to outline something more complex, however, like defining the status of a large project, you need to slow down, consider who you are writing to and what they need to know to meet expectations.

Before you begin composing your email, consider jotting down the random “bits” of information and categorizing them – after all, it was those random bits that prompted you to decide “I need to send an email to tell them X, Y and Z.”

Before you build content around the bits, if you are writing to an individual, ask yourself if your communications are regularly understood by them. If you are often asked to explain or confirm details, you’ll want to take care to be clear and concise with your words. If you’re communicating to a group, default to the “lowest common denominator”, or, the person who least understands you – write the piece in a way that that individual will understand.

When it comes to the content that holds the information together, it is easy to skip over pertinent points when you know the topic and details intimately. Your readers may not know, or may have forgotten the things that you know. Use the ‘who, what, where, when, why and how’ approach. As you type your email, ensure you are answering those five Ws and the H to ensure readers get all of the information. Sometimes I put subheads in emails to make the information easier to read, breakdown and understand.

And finally, before you hit send, let it sit for a bit. Next time you find yourself running late but that email you’re working on “better be in someone’s in-box before 9:00 am”, take a moment. Re-read your communication. Better still, close it, take a quick break to do something else, grab a glass of water, chat to a colleague or get ready to go home then come back to it with fresh eyes..

Letting your words sit is one of the most time-saving things we can do.

You’ve surely noticed an inundation of ads on the radio and in the newspaper, especially with the holiday season just ending. They seem to be more abundant than the news. Are these businesses getting noticed and more importantly, are they making money?

If they’ve created a unique product, service or company positioning, they are. It’s hard being unique but by identifying how you are different than everyone else, you’ll be able to talk directly to your customers in a different way, which will enable you to break through the advertising “noise”.

There are a variety of ways to do this:

• Provide a differentiated level of customer
• Produce a product tailored for a specific audience
• Create a catchy slogan or tagline

Standing out and getting noticed will put you ahead of the game

It’s time to reflect who your customers are, not who you think they are. While you’ve had the same customers for years, is that clientele still the same? The answer is probably no. You still have your loyal customers, but you probably have some of these new individiduals. The question now is how can you draw in more.

It’s confusing. You need new customers to grow but keeping your current customers happy is important for sustainability. You don’t want to make drastic changes but you need to appeal to this new market. Some options may be evolving a current product so that it appeals to younger families, advertising differently to speak directly to these customers or creating a new product or service that these individuals would find valuable?

Look at your resources available. It will help determine what you can afford to do.Seeking out a marketing specialist, whether it be an agency or a consultant, will help you determine the best path to pursue.

By re-evaluating your customers and who you want them to be every two to three years, you can continue to grow your business and be profitable.