Effective Time Management
When you first begin to undertake a time management program it is beneficial to record your daily activities for no less than one week. One option for doing this is to keep a journal or notebook with you throughout the day, for the period during which you will be doing the recording.
Using both the front and back of a plain sheet of paper in your journal draw 12 rectangles, several inches wide. (You will have 6 on each side.) Each rectangle will represent an hour of time, in a typical 12 hour day. Label each rectangle with hour increments, such as 700 to 800 am for the first, 900 to 1000 am for the second, and so on. You will do this everyday for one week.
Each block is reserved for you to record the activities that you perform during that specific time period. An example of a block of time could be;
“7:00 to 8:00 am, Monday- Showered. Brushed hair, teeth. Made and ate breakfast. Dressed for work. Applied Make-up. Balanced check book. Drove to the office.”
Make notes as often as you can, and be specific in the details that you record.
At the end of the week look back through your journal and make note of any blocks of time that you could have made better use of. Some amount of fun and free time is important to your overall health and well-being, but if you notice that there are continuous blocks of time that are not being managed wisely, this is a good place to start to make some changes in your daily time management habits.
Read MorePlanning For Long Term Goals
Learning time management skills often requires the setting of long, medium and short term goals. When evaluating the number of goals to be completed, planning when, exactly how you will meet your specific goals is one of the most important steps in the process.
One example of a long term goal might be to build a home of your own. Simply setting this goal is not nearly enough. If you really hope to accomplish your goal you must have a detailed plan in place to help you achieve it.
Effective time management skills include setting deadlines for when you will meet your entire goals, as well as thinking through all of the small steps that you will need to take along the way. This is the planning process and it requires that you make commitments to yourself, in order to meet your long term goals.
If your goal is to build a house within the next two years, then the next step is to detail all of things you will need to do in order to accomplish that goal.
It is also important to set shorter deadlines for each phase of this process. In this case some of the things you might to need to accomplish in order to fulfill your goal, and the deadlines you might apply could be find a piece of land on which to build by December; blueprints for the home complete by March; hire contractors by June; purchase materials by July etc… In this way you break down complicated, long term goals into smaller, more manageable pieces.
Read MoreDelegating Tasks
One way that many people can increase their productivity, and thereby improve upon their overall time management skills is through learning to delegate responsibilities to others. Whether in personal or professional life “no man is an island unto himself.”
When time constraints and looming deadlines threaten, it is not the weak person, but the strong one, that can assign some of the burden to others.
Many people with time management difficulties simply have taken on too much. In one’s personal life it can be difficult to say “no” and in one’s professional life it can be downright impossible. An angry boss or supervisor is not something anyone wants to deal with. If you find yourself in a crunch that you can’t possibly get out of, this may be the time when you simply must call in the reinforcements.
Whenever possible a team approach to large projects and difficult tasks should be adopted in the professional world. While some people may have a difficult time trusting others to carry their share of the load, learning to delegate can be an important step in to more effectively using your time.
Decide upon what skills you have, and which aspects of the project are most suited to your own level of ability and creativity. Assign smaller tasks, such as running copies, doing research work, to others. This frees up your time and energy to concentrate on the more important aspects of the job.
At home tasks can be delegated to other family members. Even the youngest child can learn to do some chores, such as picking up toys, or putting towels on a shelf.
By requiring children to share some of the burden of household chores you are also teaching them to be responsible, and helping them prepare for adulthood.
Read More10 Steps to Getting Rid of Clutter
Are you ready to get started on your journey to clutter control? Here are 10 things you can do right now:
- Get rid of your largest items first. Eliminating exercise equipment and large stuffed animals that don’t belong in a room can result in an immediate improvement in clutter reduction. Once you get rid of the big pieces, it will make it easier to move on the the smaller pieces.
- Return everything that has been borrowed from someone else. Magazines, books, CDs, videos and tools are just a few of the things that may below to friends or neighbors. Return them to the people they belong to.
- Pick up everything that is on the floor. Sort into boxes, baskets – and most importantly – trash bags. Take laundry directly to the laundry room.
- Recycle newspapers, magazines and catalogs. If you’ve read them, throw them into your recycle bin. If you haven’t, put them into a “to read” basket or shelf. Cut out articles that you want to keep and toss the rest of the magazine.
- Have you looked into your closet lately? I mean really looked? How many pieces of clothing and shoes are there that you never even wear? Donate them or put them in a box for your next garage sale.
- Go through your dresser drawers and toss old socks, pantyhose and lengerie. Also, get rid of sweaters and jeans that no longer fit you. Are you really going to be able to wear them within the next few months?
- Now, go to your office. How many old pens are in your desk drawers that don’t work? Toss them! While you’re there get rid of used ink cartridges and other things that you’re never going to use.
- Clean off your desktop. Go through each piece of paper and decide how important it is. Put bills and statements into your “in” box to pay. Throw old newspapers and flyers away.
- Empty all of the wastebaskets where you have tossed your decluttering efforts immediately – before you decide there’s something in there that you just can’t part with. Believe me, after a few days you won’t even remember that item!
- Wash each room’s windows. There’s nothing that will make a room look brighter and cleaner than a little sunshine.
There it is. Start with this ten items to make a huge difference in the clutter of your rooms. You’ll be glad you did.
Read MoreWhat Is Clutter and Where Do I Put It?
I define clutter as anything that doesn’t have a designated place to be put away when not in use. For instance, if you purchase a new tablecloth and you don’t know where it’s going to “live” when not on the table: that’s clutter.
Only keep things in your home that you know you love and will use. If it is not something that you need then it qualifies as clutter. Perhaps you were given something as a gift but you don’t really like it…so…you don’t use it. That is clutter. Don’t feel guilty about giving it away to charity or to someone else who will use it!
Any item relating to an incomplete project is definitely clutter. Maybe you started an afghan years ago and have it (and its yarn, needles, etc.) stuffed in a drawer. You know you’ll never finish it but there it sits. That is clutter. Give it away or put it in a “garage sale box” for a future garage sale.
If you have children and have clothing that they’ve outgrown or that need to be mended, that is clutter. You might want to keep the outfit that he or she came home from the hospital in for sentimental reasons but…everything else goes.
Do you have a “junk” drawer? I’ll just bet that you don’t use everything in that drawer. Go through in and toss, toss, toss. Only keep the items that you know that you use frequently.
Holding onto items (be it clothing, toys or craft projects) for the future, without setting an actual date for use or completion is called a dream. You might think you have a plan for them but without a date on your calendar or an item on your “do” list, it’s considered clutter. Have a plan for these items or let them go.
Often, clutter is simply a postponed decision. If you put off making a decision about how to use or where to put something, you will set it on a counter or stash it in a drawer until you’re ready to make that decision. Sometimes, it will sit there for months until you stash it somewhere else. All these things are also considered to be clutter.
Go through all the clutter that you have sitting on counters, drawers, closets, floors – and in places only YOU know about – and make a decision. Keep or throw away. But remember, if you keep it, you must use it!
Read MoreWhere Do You Start?
While some home-organization gurus will tell you to start in the kitchen, I’m going to advise beginning in another area. The kitchen will be the third place we attack and this doesn’t make it less important, but I will explain why I’m starting elsewhere.
First, if you look around your home, you probably see lots of clothes. Am I right? You’ve got clothes in closets, you’ve got clothes in piles (meaning to put them away and not having time, eventually just pulling them out of the pile and wearing them), and you’ve got clothes in laundry baskets. You might even have rumpled clothes in the dryer or (heaven forbid!) the washer. If it’s the former, the clothes are only rumpled. If it’s the latter, they’re probably rumpled AND smelly and (potentially) mildew-y. Yuck! Somewhere in this Mt. Vesuvius of laundry, dirty, clean, or otherwise, is your home. And I’m guessing that if you have a laundry room, you keep the door closed, as there are multiple Mt. Vesuvii piling up in there. If you don’t have a laundry room but have a laundry closet (with room for the washer, dryer, and some shelves), I’m betting you haven’t seen the top of your dryer for weeks or even months. It’s covered in rumpled clothes and towels, right?
Have you guessed where we’re starting? That’s right! The laundry area of your home. And here’s why: if you get your laundry room cleaned and organized, you’ll be much more apt to actually DO the laundry that plagues you and helps your home to be disorganized. And because you won’t want to undo the work you’ve done in the laundry room, you’re more likely to fold the laundry when it’s done, and put it away. There’s something that’s a breath of fresh air about a straightened laundry room, sort of like when you walk in to a closet where everything is hanging neatly.
So start with small steps:
Can you see the floor? No? Then pick up what’s on the floor and put it in laundry baskets. If you don’t have enough laundry baskets to accomplish this, then just sort the things in to piles outside the laundry room. I make piles of light clothes, whites, darks, and towels/rags.
Can you see the top of the dryer? If not, put the excess clothes in the aforementioned piles. Grab one rag to dust and have two plastic grocery bags, one to collect junk, and the other for later. Dust the dryer from the lint-leftovers and use a little window-cleaner if it doesn’t come off readily. Don’t neglect the area where the “start” button is, that can be grimy, too!
Can you see the top of the washer? If not, repeat the steps in #2, using the window cleaner if necessary.
Okay – now you’ve got your washer & dryer cleaned off. Congratulations! Let’s continue to take small steps in the laundry room”¦.
Now take a critical look at your supply-shelf. Do you have empty bottles or boxes lying around from spent detergent and/or fabric softener? Clean those out. Use that grocery bag that you’ve put excess dryer lint in and pitch those empties. Then organize what’s left. If you need to add things to your shopping list, now is the time, now you know what you’ve got and what you need to buy. When you organize your supplies, I recommend putting the detergent and any liquid softener above the (gasp!) washer. Make it easy to reach. Put the dryer sheets over the dryer, why reach more than you have to? If your shelves are higher than you’d like, use the top ledge of your washer & dryer to hold supplies! I’ve never seen a washer and dryer that don’t butt up to a wall for the electrical plugs they need. So use that space to your advantage. Put the detergent box or bottle on the top of the washer, along with whatever other washing supplemental you have. Put the dryer sheets on the top of the dryer so you don’t forget and end up with a load of static cling!
If you have wire-shelves above your washer & dryer, you’ve got a built-in place to hang a trash bag. Use that extra grocery-sack and cut one of the handles in half. Then tie those two ends around some of the wire-shelf and use the bag to collect dryer lint and empty containers from your emptied laundry supplies. When it’s full, cut it down and put it in the trash and put up a new one.
Now look at your floor. Does it need sweeping? If so, grab a broom and sweep. It won’t take you more than 5 minutes and you’ll feel much better about your room and your work, especially if something you’ve just washed falls on the floor as you’re transferring stuff to the dryer.
Congratulations! You’ve done the preliminary work of organizing your home, you won the battle in your laundry room! Take a 15 minute break and enjoy this victory. Then start the task of doing the excess laundry that you’ve been collecting, one pile at a time. When the first is done, swap it out immediately to your dryer or to hangers, if that’s more appropriate. Take it one pile at a time, in other words, small steps! Soon, you’ll find that it really only takes 5-10 minutes to fold warm clothes from the dryer and put them in laundry baskets, ready to transfer to the appropriate rooms, closets, and drawers. The rewards are huge here, keep up on it (one load every day) and you’ll win the war against the Mt. Vesuvius of clothes in your home.
Read MoreTips for Getting Kids Organized
- Be ruthless: Clean out kids’ rooms before birthdays and holidays when you expect new gifts. Encourage children to give outgrown toys to friends or a family shelter.
- Suggest that children put their favorite artwork and mementos in scrapbooks. Others might be used as wrapping paper for Grandma’s gifts.
- Give each child an inexpensive foot locker in which to save prized clothing or toys for the next generation.
- Equip children’s rooms with as many shelves, hooks and bins as possible. Ask them to help you assign a space for every belonging. (They’re more likely to use a system they helped design.)
- Train older children to leave written requests for special purchases or phone calls.
- Don’t expect children to store all their toys and games in the original boxes. Give them plastic baskets and zipper-type bags to keep all those little pieces together.
- Keep one basket for loose and mismatched parts and sort it periodically.
- Use shoe bags to store small dolls, stuffed animals and other treasures.
“Wrapping It Up” for Christmas
With the Christmas season fast approaching, it’s time to think about sending out those Christmas presents to children, grandchildren, relatives and friends. If you’re at all as “wrapping challenged” as I am, these tips will come in handy!
Gift Wrapping
- Set up a family gift-wrapping center with gifts, tissue, paper, fabric, ribbons, scissors and tape. Try to wrap a few gifts each day; have kids wrap the smaller ones.
- Prevent tape from sticking to itself by placing a plastic tab at the tip. Just remove the tab when you use the tape.
- If the piece of wrapping paper is coming up too short for your box, try turning the package and wrapping it on an angle. It often fits this way.
- To revive wrinkled ribbon and make it flat, pull it through a slightly warm curling iron.
Packing
- Save on bubble wrap by stuffing boxes with foam egg cartons, crushed newspaper or paper bags to cushion delicate items.
- Print the mailing address in large letters on the box. Always put an extra address label inside too, in case the original gets damaged or lost.
- To send an item you don’t want fold marks on (such as a poster or a scarf), wrap it around the cardboard tube from a used aluminum foil roll and cover with paper. To mail, just put it back in the foil box and wrap with brown paper.
- Buy holiday stamps early when the lines at the post office aren’t so long. Or just buy them online!
- To mail cookies, place them loosely in a cardboard box filled with unsalted popcorn.
Wrapping “Without Wrapping”
- Order your gifts from catalogs or online – they wrap, pack and mail for you.
- When you purchase an item at the sotre, ask whether they have free gift-wrapping.
- Buy pre-boxed, wrapped gift sets. Housewares, glassware and food often come in sets that are ready for giving without any extra wrapping.
- Buy gifts like magazine subscriptions, gift certificates or sports tickets that need little or no wrapping.
- Pack gifts in baskets or decorative tins. They’re useful and don’t need to be wrapped.
Clean Your Kitchen for Safety
The kitchen is the center of the home for most families. It’s the place where everyone gathers, both family and friends. That is one reason why the kitchen should be the first room to think about when it’s time to clean your house. It is also necessary for reasons of food safety. You certainly don’t want pests and bacteria invading your food.
The ideal kitchen should have plenty of cupboards, drawers and a pantry to organize all of the food and utensils that are necessary for food preparation. Unfortunately, we don’t all have that ideal kitchen. So, we must make adjustments. A kitchen crowded with small appliances, pots and pans can be extremely difficult to clean.
Cleaning supplies should all be kept together. I like to keep them in a plastic bin that has a handle so it can be carried from room to room. You might want to have a set of supplies specifically for your kitchen.
Your first step in cleaning the kitchen is to declutter counters and tables. Put those things away or toss them if they’re not needed. Put any dirty dishes that are on the counters in the dishwasher; if you don’t have one, wash them and put them away.
Clean the kitchen sink with a scouring powder and rinse well. Make sure that all dried foods are removed from crevices by using an old toothbrush to clean them out.
Now, look at the exterior of your cupboard doors and drawers. Do they need scrubbed or wiped down? If so, now is the time to do that. The interior should be left for a deep cleaning session. Wipe the cabinets with a soft, damp cloth with a mild dishwashing soap that won’t damage the finish. Also, wipe off the cabinet and drawer pulls.
To clean your countertops, going from area to area, remove all of the items from that area. Then, using an antibacterial detergent, wash all of the surfaces thoroughly. Avoid using abrasive scouring powders or steel wool because they may damage your countertop surface. Wipe off each appliance or item before placing it back on the counter.
Remove everything from your kitchen table. If you use a cloth tablecloth, launder it before putting it back. Scrub your table well and put everything back where it belongs.
Wipe off all major appliances. Your range, microwave, dishwasher and refrigerator should have no dried foods or fingerprints left on it. The old foods could spread bacteria to other foods.
Pick up your kitchen throw rugs and shake them out – outside. If they need cleaned, toss them in the laundry. Sweep the floor well and then damp mop. Sticky food spots may have to be handled by scrubbing with a scrub brush if they are stubborn.
Take your dirty sponges, dish clothes and dish towels and put them in the laundry. Replace them with clean.
Your done! Now, take a good look at your nice clean kitchen and feel oh, so, good about what you have accomplished.
Read MoreHouse Cleaning Tips
- Switch to liquid or glycerin soap to prevent scum buildup in tubs and showers.
- Ketchup (or Catsup) is good for cleaning copper items.
- Dilute 3/4 cup chlorine bleach in 1 gallon of water or apply full-strength white vinegar to prevent mold growth.
- Homes are easier to clean when they are first “decluttered.”
- Schedule major cleaning in the morning before you get involved in other projects.
- Move from top to bottom when washing windows or dusting.
- And last but not least: If it’s not dirty, DON’T CLEAN IT!