How to be effective in the workplace.
When you look to the future in particular at the hospitality industry the winners will be those hotels that fulfil their potential to grow and succeed by having the right staff in place. The ability to attract, motivate, develop and keep talent will be one of the key success factors as in an expanding hospitality sector.
Secondly, in order to keep your guests happy and staff loyal, it means being able to manage your time effectively to run a successful business. Time during the day can go by quickly, it’s so easy to get interrupted and lose focus on the immediate task at hand.
So to help you create your own roadmap to being more efficient with your time – use our seventeen point checklist and see if there are any tips and tricks that will help you be more effective in running your property.
17 Point checklist
1. Complete the most important tasks first.
Each day, plan to complete the two or three tasks that are the most critical – focus on getting those done first before you start to get swamped with the rest.
2. Learn to say “no”.
At some point, you need to learn how to say no. Your objective should be to take on only those commitments that you could cope with, add clear value to and avoid having to over promise and under deliver.
3. Get a good night sleep.
We all need time for mind and body to rest from a hard a day at work. Listen to your body, and don’t underestimate the value of 7 – 8 hours sleep per night.
4. Focus on the immediate task at hand.
Concentrate on completing one task at a time, if you are already moving on to the next one without even finishing the first one it is a recipe for disaster.
5. Focus on the big picture.
Projects can often overrun by us over-thinking the small details and getting bogged down. Focus on getting the main task completed and then if you have time you can always come back and review and revise later.
6. Set a time to complete a task.
Discipline yourself to work on a project for a specific number of hours or end time, rather than a finish “at all costs” mindset which can be counter-productive if you get too tired.
7. Leave a buffer-time between tasks.
When we rush from job to job, it’s difficult to appreciate what we’re doing and to stay focused and motivated – it all seems to blend into one. So step back, give yourself a break and then jump back into your work with a clear head.
8.Take it step by step.
One of the fastest ways to overwhelm your-self is to think about your massive to-do list, so focus on delivering the critical ones before you move on to the remaining ones, and take time to look back at the great work you have done so far.
9. Create structure.
Being organized saves time and effort. A disciplined approach to where you file, format and place documents will be a big help in getting things to run smoothly and when you need to go back in time to find things you don’t waste time.
10. Bunch related tasks together.
A multitude of tasks may demand of you different skills, so it makes sense to batch the same activities together rather than jumping around having to apply yourself in different ways.
11. Get an early start.
May be not everyday – but it feels so much better to get an earlier start on something – you feel like you can achieve so much with a “head start”.
12. Turn important tasks into everyday habits.
Try to think of activities you do that can become more of a regular routine rather than a once a month chore. By taking small steps with these bigger tasks it makes them more manageable rather than having to address them once a month and feel like you are starting again new every time.
13. Don’t forget to exercise.
A healthy lifestyle has been regularly linked to positive work productivity. Taking time to exercise and eat healthily will boost energy levels and allow you to focus more easily with a clear mind.
14. Use your “down” time.
Think about the times we are waiting in queues, on the phone or have idle time, use these time to catch up on your reading or check those emails.
15. Delegate to your team.
Don’t be afraid to give tasks to your employees, as a small business owner you can’t forget that delegating helps save you time and provides an opportunity for your staff to get involved in the business.
16. Make it easy to work together.
Collaboration between employees, partners and suppliers is a great way to boost efficiency and productivity. Learn what are the most effective processes or procedures you can adopt.
17. Develop a long-term technology plan.
The process of automating repetitive administration tasks can save money and give you more time to focus on maximizing the performance of your hotel.
Take Away
To help you find the time to improve your revenue management skills and focus on improving the performance of your hotel, HappyBooking have written together with John Kennedy a Basic Revenue Management Guide for hotels, hostels, apartments & those that have meeting rooms.
Click to download your free e-guide here.
HappyBooking is first and foremost a property management system. That means they help you with the boring admin and automate tedious tasks giving you more time to monitor your online reviews and interact with customers. On average customers can get back up to 10 hours per week – think what you could do with that extra time!
HappyBooking have always focused on creating a user-friendly booking system to help property owners improve overall performance, and generate more revenue and reduce costs by enabling guests to book directly rather than go through a third party.
Our guest blogger is John Kennedy.
John is a hospitality consultant, dedicated to helping increase revenue through marketing, revenue management and efficient operations. www.kennedyandersson.com
Image source: www.freepik.com
