Get On Top Of Your Life Admin

Life admin, also described as the ‘office work of the day to day life’ is the phrase to describe the collection of mundane tasks that we need to complete as adults. Tasks that include such exciting things as booking your dentist appointment, sorting out your tax or utility bills, sifting through emails, and assessing your finances.

Pixabay

Get a diary

Starting out any good resolution (in this case getting on top of your life admin) starts with writing them down, either on paper or on your electronic device. Buy a diary or download a planner that you feel comfortable using. There are so many planners and diaries that have multiple functions but just end up being too complicated or bulky to use. Finding something that is easy for you to use will ensure that you look at it regularly and get used to updating it when you need to. Add key events and occasions to your diary at the start of the year, so you won’t have to play catch-up when you get closer to important dates, but will have clear dates outlined in your diary well in advance. 

Will

Thinking of the future is never a bad thing, but when it comes to anything around death, people understandably find it uncomfortable to talk about. This is just a part of life that we will all go through, and having insurance in place, in the form of a will just be future protection for your loved ones. The sooner you meet with a professional to go over and draft a will, the sooner you can leave it behind and carry on with your life, safe in the knowledge that your family and future are secure. This is also the case with different types of insurance, life insurance being one of these, but including home and health. While you are getting closure with your will, it also makes sense to protect yourself and your assets while you are still around.

Time to negotiate a raise in your Salary?

Another taboo issue that people don’t like to talk about is their salary. The problem with avoiding a conversation with your employer about your salary is that it becomes more awkward when you want to talk about increasing your salary. The first thing you need to do is to understand your salary and be able to provide the evidence to back your request for a pay rise. If you feel like you are due a promotion, or you think you’re currently being underpaid, then you have to work out your weekly pay which will vary depending on the hours you work and your weekly schedule. knowing your weekly pay makes it easy to stay on track of your budgeting needs as well as helping you to create a savings plan. Once you have collected the evidence of your current salary, and how this corresponds to your working hours, as well as the additional hours you may have worked on top of this, then it is time to consider what strategy to utilize when talking to your boss.

Once you know your worth and have put pen to paper, make sure you are prepared to justify this worth to your employer and are able to provide the evidence in real terms. Ask for a meeting once you are ready. 

It’s also important to get your timing right. Do not simply ambush your boss without previously having requested their time. The best time to negotiate a raise is after a consistently good performance and when there has been some time since your last pay rise, or significant reason to justify a pay rise. Remember that it’s not just about the money, so be prepared to negotiate other forms of value that you might receive instead of a financial increase. You may, for example, get more time off or a bonus incentive. 

See Also

Safety Measures To Take When Selling Your Used Car to a Stranger

Pixabay

Pass some things on to other people

One of the major stresses for freelancers is keeping on top of their taxes. An easy way to help you avoid mountains of paperwork is to pass it on to a qualified accountant. In the same way, as you can pass your tax filing on to an accountant, you can also apply this to other parts of your life admin struggles. For example, if you hate organizing your emails, or sorting out travel insurance, then there are people you can pass it on to, either a virtual assistant, or this might even mean getting your partner to take on certain tasks that you struggle with. The reality is, very few of us enjoy sifting through piles of paperwork or going through spreadsheets, so if you can find someone to assist you with this, then there is absolutely nothing wrong with that at all.

Planning a major event

If it has fallen to you to organize an event such as a birthday party, a wedding, or any major celebration, there will be a lot of admin to get on top of. This organization and planning may include researching venues, restaurants, catering services, flowers, and many other services. The other things to consider when planning major events are the other people involved. Do you have to coordinate your planning with family members or colleagues? If so, it is important to delegate tasks so you don’t end up having to micromanage everyone and take on far more than you can handle. The key areas to organize are first and foremost establishing a budget, choosing a date, the number of guests attending, location and vendors, and then breaking down the event into different tasks required, and delegating these tasks out to those involved. If event planning isn’t your forte, but somehow it still falls to you to organize this, then do reach out to other people to help you with this. Having a team on board makes everything a little more manageable, choose carefully though as you want to make sure that the right people are given the right roles.