Tuesday's Tip - Use Time Pockets

Now and again we find ourselves waiting. Waiting for the kettle to boil, being on hold on the phone, standing in a queue or waiting for the computer to boot up. You can use those time pockets to get small jobs done. There are dozens of little mini jobs that always need doing, such as wiping up a spill, emptying/filling the dishwasher, putting a few items away, filing a couple of papers, deleting some emails that clutter up your inbox, etc., etc. Keeping on top of those little jobs using your time pockets will save you a lot of time in the long run.

Overcoming Procrastination - Part 3

In this final instalment on procrastination I want to go through some more reasons why someone might be prone to putting things off. We have already discussed the "no time" factor and reasons that might be to do with the project itself. Today I will highlight the reasons to do with someone's personality. These could be

1. Perfectionism
2. Thriving on adrenaline
3. Lack of self confidence
4. Internalised negatives
5. Externalised positives

Let's look at these hurdles for getting things done in detail, see what they are about and how they manifest and what you can do about them.

1. A lot of people have a perfectionist trait. Some more, some less. "I can't start this project until I have got everything I need and until the conditions are absolutely perfect." This kind of mindset is fine if that perfect condition is feasible and you have a good track record of starting and finishing your projects. If you don't, then your perfectionism is probably an excuse for not starting the project at all. Turn it around and ask yourself, what is the minimum I need for this project? Once you've got that sorted, put a start date in your diary and get that project on the road.

2. "I work better under pressure." We all know people like that and we might have used that phrase ourselves. Again, there are two ways of dealing with this. Number one, it's a good excuse not to start until the last possible moment, and it's simply a way to put things off. Make life easier for yourself; and divide your project into segments and do one each day until it's done. Number two, if you literally work better under pressure, and some of us do, then make the project more challenging. Set minigoals with a shorter deadline. This way you keep yourself on your toes but are still making timely progress towards your end goal.

3. If you suffer from a lack of self confidence and feel that you simply can't tackle the project try one of these options. Find out what the first thing is you need to do to start the project and divide the project into smaller chunks. Smaller bites are easier to digest, the same goes for project size. If you are unsure of how to do this, find someone who has done a similar project before and ask for advice. That way you get some expert help and you will soon be on the way to completing the once daunting task.

4. What I mean by internalised negatives are that you look for faults within yourself. If you do this, you will quite easily come up with negative emotions, such as "I'm lazy that's why I don't get things done" or "I'm stupid that's why I don't know where to start". First of all, I can assure you that none of this is true. You are neither lazy nor stupid or anything else of that kind. You might lack motivation or not be an expert on a particular subject but you can easily do something about that. Why don't you think of a treat that you reward yourself with, once you have completed the first part of the task and then keep rewarding yourself for every bit that you achieve until the project is completed. And just as with number 3 (lack of self confidence) there is no shame in asking people for help and advice on how to tackle a particular project. We don't all have to reinvent the wheel and most people are very happy to share their skills and knowledge.

5. Externalised positives are usually the reverse side of the same coin as internalised negatives. It means that you attribute anything positive that you do to outside influences and not to your skills and abilities, such as "I was lucky last time and it was easy. I could never do that again." It is usually a sign of lack of self confidence. Achieving something has most often nothing to do with luck. It is more likely to be the result of hard work and skill. Luck is good for gambling and that's about it. And when you found something easy then you had the skills and talent to do it and nothing less. Don't hide your light under a bush - as the saying goes and be proud of your achievements. Especially when it comes to what you tell yourself. We are usually our own worst critics and forget to be our own strongest supporters.

Tuesday's Tip - Set a regular date for decluttering

We all lead very busy lives and sometimes it seems impossible to get anything else done. We do, however, tend to stick to appointments we have put in our calendars. So why not make an appointment with yourself, and pencil in an hour (or even just half an hour) per week for decluttering. You won't have an excuse that you have too many other things to do and you are less likely to procrastinate once it has become an appointment, rather than an item on your To-Do-List. It will become a routinely task that you simply do because it's one of the things that need to be done that day.

Overcoming Procrastination - Part 2

In part 1 I talked about the number 1 reason for putting things off - no time. And you saw how easy it is to put that reason aside. If you find yourself still procrastinating, then there must be another reason behind that.

These possible other reasons fall into 2 categories, one concerning the project itself, the other your personality style.

Today, let's look at the project itself. The project might be perceived as

1. Threatening
2. Too difficult
3. Boring
4. Impossible to finish
5. Waste of time

1. If a project or the outcome of the project is perceived as threatening, thoughts like "I'm in trouble if I get this wrong" might be going through your head. In this case a natural reaction is not to start the project at all or not to progress beyond a certain point so as to avoid failure. In cases like this make sure you have all the facts right. Ask questions:

"What is the worst thing that could happen - realistically?" And how likely is this to happen? - You will probably realise that things are never as bad as they seem.

What exactly do I need to do to get it right? - Once you know exactly what to do and how to do it, you have already won.

Have I got all the skills and abilities to do this project? - If the question is yes, great! If it is no, then you should probably consider to get someone to help or delegate the task itself.

2. If you think a project is too difficult, you might never start it. Sit down and thing about what is difficult. Are you just unsure of how to start and how to break the project into smaller manageable chunks? Find an expert on the subject, someone who has done a similar project before and ask for help.

3. If you think a project is boring, try and make it more interesting, Set yourself a challenge. See how much you can achieve in a certain amount of time. And then for the next chunk, see if you can beat your previous record. Or put some of your favourite music on while you work. If the project allows (like a mountain of ironing, or shredding) watch TV while you work.

4. If you think a project is impossible to finish, there might be two reasons. Either it's the type of project that literally never ends (like housework) or it is a very large project. Again, breaking it up into smaller portions will help. Even Mount Everest can be climbed by doing one step at a time! Set yourself a daily target and you will be up and running in no time.

5. Finally, if you consider the project a waste of time, re-evaluate it. Does it really need to be done? If you are doing it to please someone else, and you see absolutely no sense in it, try to find out why it is so important for the other person. Or is it simply one of those jobs that need to be redone on a regular basis like tidying up or ironing. Use one of the solutions from number 4 to get the job done. Some jobs do seem to be a waste of time but we would sink into crud and chaos if we didn't do them at all.

Tuesday's Tip - Always welcome offers to help

It might contradict your perfectionist tendencies but never turn down offers from friends or family to help. You do not have to do everything yourself. Learn to delegate and if you are lucky enough to get voluntary offers without asking for help, the better. If the job is not done perfectly, so what, it is done and you did not have to do it. Rejoice!

Overcoming Procrastination - Part 1

Procrastination, now there's a topic for organisers. And how long did it take me to write this blog entry, not sure, kept putting it off - hmm, yes I know, very funny.

But to be serious and professional again, procrastination is one of the main hurdles that keeps us from getting organised. I know this very well, because in my case it's - been there, done that, got the T-shirt. And I am still battling it. Procrastination is a little bit like an addiction, once you suffer from it you have got to battle it and keep on top of it for the rest of your life. It is so easy to slip back. But also, like any other addiction, it can be overcome.

Now lets tackle the reasons why you procrastinate.

Reason Number 1:

"I haven't got the time right now."
This is the most popular excuse for procrastinators. I know, I've used it often enough myself. The thing is you are probably right. You have not got the whole block of time it takes to tackle the spare room, or the whole of the ironing pile, or the complete reorganisation of the kitchen. BUT, and there's a good reason for the capital letters, you have got 10 minutes, or maybe even 20 or 30. And that is all it takes to make a start. Start by sorting through one box, iron 10 or 20 items, tackle one single drawer. And if you do that every day, or maybe even twice a day if motivation strikes then you will realise that you are making slow but steady progress.

A chinese proverb states: Even the longest journey starts with one single step. And this is exactly how you will be able to overcome the lurking monster that is procrastination.

In the coming weeks I will help you brush away other reasons why you might be procrastinating and will basically leave you with no excuse to simply get on with it.

If you have any comments, please feel free, I would love hear people's opinions on the subject.

Tuesday's Tip - Audio Books

We all lead very busy lives and one of the real pleasures for many of us is reading. But reading takes up time, and time is the one thing many of us don't have. If you find yourself in this dilemma, have you ever considered audio books?

You can play them while driving your car, doing the cleaning, ironing or any other activity where you are able to listen to music.

10 minutes is all it takes - As taught by Flylady

Have you ever put yourself off from cleaning, tidying, organising or similarly riveting tasks because it "takes too long", because "I haven't got the time now" or simply because you thought you'd do it later. All of these brilliant reasons for procrastination can be swiped away with a simple rule.


Do it for 10 minutes.


First of all you will be surprised how much you can accomplish in a mere 10 minutes. The first time you sort out a drawer or tidy up a small area completely in such a short space of time you will be very proud of your achievement.


And that is what it is all about. Giving yourself that feeling of success that will spur you on to do more. Now don't go overboard and add more and more time until you reach burnout again, because you've marathon cleaned or tidied for hours. Simply see whether you can speed up within the 10 minutes to achieve more.


If you then do something else for a while, even take a little break or do another 10 minutes somewhere else in the house you will come back refreshed and with "new eyes" to do another 10 minutes.

You can accomplish quite big things with 10 minute bursts. I once managed to clear my daughters bedroom, which had been in quite a state, with this technique. We both worked for 10 minutes together, in effect making it 20 minutes (10 each). It took us about a week or so and the room was in great shape. Now I send her up every few days to "do 10 minutes" and this way she keeps on top of things and she's been able to maintain a decent state of her bedroom for several months.

If you check out the link in the title of this post, you will see that Flylady actually recommends 15 minute sprints and that works just as well. I personally prefer the 10 minute sprint, since I then have even less excuse to procrastinate for such a short assignment.