Having good organisational skills can help you reduce stress and anxiety, ensure finalisation of work and accomplishment. Undoubtedly, it is one of the most important skills that an employer looks for in an employee. Fortunately, these skills can be learned and developed by working through a strategy and by having self-discipline. It is important to acknowledge that organising work and doing work are two different things. Organisational skills are especially important for intrapreneurs, as they can boost their confidence, maturity within the organisation, and engagement in the rapidly evolving organisations.
This article will examine a number of points on organisational skills, and examples of how they can be used, both in work environments and for personal matters.
What are organisational skills?
When talking about organisational skills, we mean the capacity that someone has that can help them plan, order and prioritise tasks in their work and everyday life. Employees with organisational skills have excellent communication skills, analytical thinking and time management skills.
What are some examples of organisational skills?
Organisational skills can include:
Collaboration / teamwork:
Collaboration in the workplace can mean individuals working together or with their managers to achieve the team’s goal. It can also mean that various people from different levels or parts of the business/organisation are working together to achieve a bigger goal or result. Teamwork and collaboration skills also include other types of skills such as conflict management, listening, reliability, and respectfulness.
Delegation:
Delegation skills are important for the continuity of work. Managers need to be able to trust subordinates with responsibilities, but also to know which work to delegate to whom. Usually, managers know how to carry out the tasks needed to complete work; however, they should not do every task, as team members should be able to do those tasks, but also for the managers to avoid overwhelming their own schedule.
Time management/planning:
Time management indicates working efficiently while making good use of the time available. It also entails planning, assigning priorities, decision making, and delegating. Always complete the most important and urgent tasks before moving forward with other less important tasks.
Working under pressure
The ability to work under pressure relates to how you respond when put under pressure, which could be defined as “the stress or urgency demanding attention[1]” of matters at work, which could cause a burden of physical or mental distress. Unexpected situations and unprecedented circumstances may require you to make a quick decision.
[1]Merriam Webster dictionary: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pressure
Often, the pressure involves dealing with constraints which are usually outside of your control, which may include time, level of difficulty, having insufficient knowledge, unforeseen changes of problems etc.
Employers value the ability to work under pressure, as changes are likely to happen in business, and the ability to respond while being effective is crucial in those situations. It is important not to panic and to take steps to improve the situation.
A checklist to help you organise:
If you find yourself spending more time organising your work than you are on the work itself, take a step back and think again. Here are five everyday strategies worth trying, that will help you organise without stress:
- Celebrate small wins: This could mean treating yourself to a cup of coffee, when you complete a small report.
- Use one calendar: Avoid using different calendars or records, as this would make it harder to keep up with everything.
- Schedule small tasks: Small tasks will help you with the bigger ones. For example, make your weekly to-do list.
In the SEAL training course, you can learn more about organisational skills. Visit https://seal-project.eu/outputs/ or register directly to https://seal-hub.eu/login/index.php.
[1] Merriam Webster dictionary: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pressure
