S.E.C. Real Estate Observer

Marilee Anderson, S.E.C., has stopped playing telephone tag. If she cannot reach a party, she leaves a complete message including the response she needs. She also makes telephone appointments and logs them into her schedule like her other appointments.

Before Ed Killian, S.E.C. leaves his office, he lines out his schedule for the following day and sets his priorities. When he returns to work in the morning, he knows his first priority for the day.

Bill Warr, S.E.C., says that the best system he has found for handling “hard copies” is a tickler file. This is a set of 12 file folders with the name of each month, and a set of 31 file folders for each day of “the current month”. Items are filed into the appropriate folder as they are received. At the beginning of each month, items are filed into the day folders. At the beginning of each day, Rita views what is in the folder for that day.

Rosebud Caradec, S.E.C., says that a lifetime of moving (16 houses and still counting) has instilled a sense of discipline with papers and stuff. When Rosebud receives something she asks, “If I were moving next week, would I move it?” She says she never just puts something down, she either puts it where it belongs or it goes into the trash.

Please send “Best Practices” to Vicki Yeomans-Klein, S.E.C.