Saving Time With Forms

I have a folder on my hard drive called Forms.  In it I keep master “form” type documents:
Budget forms: purchase requisition, check request form
Calendar request form
Event promotion request form
Labels formats
Spiritual decision card form
Event Sign-up sheets
Event checklists
Envelope forms with different return address info
Fax cover sheet
Journey Group Connection Cards
Labels of various sorts
Signs
Vacation requests
Etc.

I also have a folder called “Letters” where I keep all the letters I send out to people.  I keep these forms and letters handy, because every minute I take to recreate something I’ve created before is wasted time.  I figure I should not take the time to re-write a letter I’ve basically written before.  I can just personalize the content as needed and send it on.  This is especially true with letters dealing with baptism, new believer decisions, thank you letters for people donating goods and services, etc.

I’m sure some of you already do this, but I copy myself on some of my emails and put them in a folder in my email box called “Form Emails.”  I do this so I won’t have to create email content every time for questions that arise on a regular basis.  For me, I have form emails for Egg Drop interest, Baptism interest, Journey Group interest, and some others.  Again, I copy and paste the basic info then personalize it as needed.

If I’m writing something that could potentially be used in future emails to lots of people, I try to structure the content to be relatively generic.  This cuts down on the amount of personalizing I have to do when I send it to someone new.

I also save my various writings for the Journey Groups page on the website.   The info changes from time to time during the year based on what is going on, but info usually gets cycled in and out depending on the time of year, so I keep what i write.  A couple of months before JumpStart, I copy and paste the JumpStart info on when it is, how to RSVP, etc.  After a JumpStart, I take that info off and replace it with alternate content directing people how to get in groups, since the next JumpStart is usually several months later.

If you have areas that you update on the web, you might want to save your writings so you don’t have to recreate content every time.

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