Are you new on the job and trying to figure out how older USPS employees finish their routes so quickly? Like most things, it simply takes practice. While a few tips from us can’t make you zip through your route, these tips will make your route easier and save you a bit of time.
The best thing you can do is ask for advice from your coworkers. They’ve been doing the job and will likely have tons of advice to offer. You may choose to simply ask for tips, or ask for more specific information. A better question to ask is to find out any locally relevant information. Find out if there’s anything you need to know about your route. Learning more about your route can save you a lot of time.
If you can’t get advice about your route, drive around the neighborhood to get a better idea of it during your time off. Familiarizing yourself with your route will make things much easier.
Delivering your mail will also go faster if you have it neat and organized. It makes mail delivery smoother and by extension, faster. There’s many ways you can choose to do this. Casing your mail is important, so take your time and make sure it is ready to go before you leave on your route.
Postal employees are delivering parcels more and more, so loading your packages in an efficient order can be a huge time saver. If you don’t do this, you’ll find yourself unloading parcels onto the street while looking for the ones you need. You’ll also want to do this before you leave on your route.
This one may seem obvious, but use your satchels. Yes, they may be heavy, but it saves you a lot of time to have your satchels with you instead of having to return to your vehicle multiple times, which will slow you down. Carry the mail in bulk in your satchel if you want to move faster.
Between stops you’ll also want to check the addresses of mail. Sorting the mail order beforehand helps you avoid backtracking. If you work on foot this is easy enough to do while doing deliveries. If you drive you have less time for this task, but it’s still possible.
You’ll also want either a map or GPS device to help you while on your route. Until you know your route well, there’s a good chance of you getting lost. Maps can sometimes be outdated, so it is up to you which you’d rather go with. Either way, some type of mapping device is extremely useful and will save you tons of time. But don’t use your phone while on your route beyond this, unless you need to call someone with a question. Distractions slow you down.
As you get to know your route, pay attention to streets that often have a higher volume of mail and parcels. Once you know this you can sort out the high volume streets to make it easier on yourself.
Remember that everyone does things differently, including sorting the mail and loading their vehicle. It will take some experimentation to find what works best for you.
