Entries Tagged 'Goals & Time Management' ↓

Recently I have started taking the time to sit down on Sundays and organize my week so I have a plan of action for what I would like to accomplish.  Let me share the easy way I do it and what I am finding the benefits are.

For this particular task, I have found I like writing my list down with pen and paper vs. creating a list on the computer.  I like having my list next to me on the desk and crossing things off as I accomplish them.  Although, the fussy part of me then feels an obligation to re-write the list when it gets messy from tasks being crossed off.  I think it gives me a sense of accomplishment to see the list get smaller though!

So, I look at my calendar to see what I have on my schedule and I look at what office tasks I need to accomplish and I write down a reasonable number of tasks.  Make this list manageable and reasonable!  If you accomplish everything on the list, then you have the freedom to make a new list.  What you don’t want to do is make the list so long you don’t get a sense of accomplishment by getting things crossed off.  The tasks can be as little as making a phone call. 

What is important is that you look at what the most critical tasks are that need to be accomplished to reach your goals that week.

The benefits I am finding with my new system are:

• It gives me better focus on what I want to get done that week.
• Having a plan helps keep me on track and better evaluate other unexpected tasks that come up.
• Not making my list too long allows me to handle other tasks that come up that also need attention.

Organize the next week Friday before you leave the office or Sunday night and get a better handle on your time!

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I always seem to have a stack of books on my nightstand, so much great information, so little time!  What really makes me feel bad is when I have a book on loan from a friend and I feel like it’s taking me a long time to get the book back to them.  I have a new book I am starting on and I realized how important it is to organize your reading time!  Make a comittment  to get through a book by breaking down your reading time into manageable chunks.  Here’s how to do it!

1. Look at the number of pages in the book.
2. Decide how many days/weeks you want to take to read it.
3. Divide the number of days by the number of pages and that’s how many pages you need to read every day to reach your goal. 
4. Put the date that you plan to have it read by on a sticky note on the front of the book as a reminder to stay on task.

Example:  Your book is 200 pages and you want to read it in 10 days, you will need to read 20 pages/day to reach your goal. 

Organize your reading time and make it manageable to get through a book in a reasonable timeframe!

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You can get organized by not trying to tackle a whole project in one shot.  Right now I have this big project I am tackling in the backyard.  It doesn’t have anything to do with organizing, but it’s still a task I have to complete.  Today I was working away at it when I decided I should try working on it for 10 minutes every day.  I can do anything for 10 minutes!

When I stay on the project, I start to see some progress.  When I step back and look at what I still have left to do-uh oh, it’s overwhelming!  But I know that if I just hang in there and do a little at at time, eventually I will get it all done.

The same goes for an organizing project, it may seem overwhelming at first, but if you just give the time that you feel you can give consistently you will reach your goals to get organized too!

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You can get important tasks done easily if you approach them from an organized way instead of putting them off or “procrastinating.”  Recently I had a project that I kept putting off and putting off.  I had it built up in my head as this “big thing” and actually put it off until the last minute.  I couldn’t believe it when I sat down to focus and it took me maybe an hour to actually complete.  All that build up in my head made it seem way bigger than it really was! 

I know better than that and I know I should have:

1)  Marked time off in my dayplanner to make a commitment to complete the task.

2)  Not left it to the last minute, had something gone wrong like a computer glitch-I would have been in big trouble.

3)  Broken it down into smaller tasks since I had built it up so much in my head.

Tackle tasks in an organized way so you don’t feel overwhelmed and you don’t procrastinate!

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There are a lot of little opportunities that you can use to get organized while you wait.  The other day I was sitting in my office at my computer waiting for something to download.  As I sat there I realized I could take advantage of the time instead of just sitting there staring at the screen.  Of course I didn’t jump into some big project, I just took on some simple, little tasks that I didn’t have to think hard about.  Some things you can do in your office while you wait:

• Quickly find as many papers as you can to place in the recycle bin.
• Put away a few books.
• Set things that need to be placed in another room by the door to take out later.
• Shred papers.
• Take out the garbage.
• Make a to-do list.

Take advantage of little moments to get organized while you wait!

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You can get organized when you are on the go with Jott, a great, easy service I have used myself.  How often we are busy and on the go while we have to-do lists and tasks swirling in our heads at a time that we can’t write them down.  Maybe it’s a list of what you need to pick up at the store.  Maybe it’s an email you need to send off to a friend or client. 

Jott  has three plans to choose from.  Basically, you call a simple phone number, speak your notes or message and hang up.  Jott then does the work for you.  It takes the spoken message, turns it into text and sends it to the correct destination via email, text message or web updates.

Check out the site and see how you can easily get organized with Jott!

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I still find keeping track of my schedule in a good old fashioned day planner with pencil to paper effective for myself.   It’s  not that I’m opposed to more modern methods, but this still works well for me and I like being able to flip through and look at the pages.  So as long as I’m consistent and it’s not broken, I say-don’t fix it. 

But with that in mind, maybe I am taking the first step toward going electronic.  We have been busy in our house and lately I’ve noticed a few things slipping through the cracks that I don’t feel warrant being written on the day planner.  We’ve forgotten some chores like feeding the fish at 8:30 at night when we are finishing our day or during spring break we forgot to walk the neighbor’s dog on one of our days because we were out of our routine. 

So, I’ve recently started organizing reminders by using the appointment feature with audio reminder on my BlackBerry.  It’s great because it’s quick, easy and you can set it for recurring reminders so you only have to set it up once. 

I’ve just started doing it, but I swear I already heard the fish thank me last night!

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My mom came for a visit for a couple of days and I was suprised by how fast I was thrown off my routine.  That extra shopping and eating out during the day was fun but it left me feeling like I was doing double duty in the evenings. 

When you are expecting company you can do a few things to make sure you don’t end up behind and rushing to catch up when they leave.

• If company asks you if they can help, say yes, people like to help and can feel awkward being waited on all the time.
• Have a plan for meals and snacks and do the shopping before company comes.  If possible have some meals prepped ahead or have your crockpot cooking for you while you are off having fun.
• Factor in a little bit of time each day to open mail and do some housework. 
• If company stays for a long time, then you will have to take more time each day for regular chores or set aside a catch up day.  They will understand and will probably also like a break from running and sightseeing every day.  They are on vacation so they probably want some downtime too!

Organize your house before and during your visit with your company so you can have fun without stress!

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I’m a professional organizer, yet I still benefit from the advice and feedback of my fellow organizers.  Sometimes the simplest advice we get is also the best advice we get.  I was talking to my organizing partner about how I felt like my days were choppy between meetings, office work and business.  Up until now I felt I could be pretty flexible with my schedule to pick and choose where I wanted to plug events in, but it was getting to a point where that flexibility was starting to be a detriment more than a benefit. 

Her advice?  Block off Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for clients and keep Tuesdays and Thursdays for office time, meetings and networking coffee dates.  Sound simple?  It is, that’s the beauty of it!  Now it doesn’t mean I can’t be flexible if I have a client that can only work on Tuesdays, but that’s ok.  If the majority of time I am following my plan, it will give me the comfort of structure and keep my days from feeling broken up.  I will get more done this way! 

Organizing my business schedule was simple and will provide instant positive results!

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You can organize yourself with clear goals for the space that you want to organize.  Really think about what you want from the space when you are done decluttering and organizing.

Let’s use a cluttered kitchen table piled with paperwork, magazines and toys as an example.  Currently a dumping ground.  What would your ideal outcome be with a clear table?  I’m going to guess that it will be that you would like to sit at a your table each day to enjoy meals with your family.  Another goal may be to have a clear, flat surface where you can play board games with your kids.

You can then continue to organize yourself by bringing a donation bag and a garbage bag over to the kitchen table and part with anything you are done with and ready to pass on.  Keep a box or bag on hand for all the items that belong in another room.  Place them in the box.  Do not take them to the other rooms until you are done organizing your table, you will get side-tracked if you leave the table!  Believe me.

Finally, think about what was piling up on the table.  The table had turned into a place where you dropped everything.  That means those items could come back.  The solution is to find new homes that are clearly labeled and get into the habit of placing them back in their “homes” every time!

Start with a goal to keep you on track to organize yourself easily!

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