The following post by T. Boone Pickens originally appeared on his LinkedIn blog. View the original article.
One of the biggest challenges any business owner faces is making the most of his or her time, on the clock and off. At BP Capital, my team and I are deluged with more reports than you can ever imagine, everything from pricing data to rig counts, weather forecasts, and more. There’s no way I can digest all that and get anything done during a normal business day.
What’s my solution? A black-rope folder. It’s pretty old school. A hard-plastic briefcase-like folder closed by a black elastic band.
Whenever I leave the office — for the night here in Dallas, out to my Mesa Vista Ranch, on a business trip, or a Reagan Library board meeting — Sally Geymüller makes sure a black-rope folder is by my side.
What goes in there? Items that I need to see — just not right away. That might include:
- Insight on OPEC’s latest announcement
- Analysis of a new energy technology
- A personal note from a family friend
- A thank-you note from the proud parents of an Oklahoma State student
My black-rope folders help me turn downtime into gold. I’m better informed on essential matters. My team can share key documents with me. And there’s always a surprise or two that brightens my day.
OK — now that you’ve got an idea of how I use my black-rope folders, I’ll admit I don’t always get through all the material in there. But more often than not I do. Each piece is processed and routed to the appropriate people in the office for information or action.