Tuesdays Tip - 100 reasons to get rid of it

(For technical reasons this week on Wednesday)

If you are a regular reader of this blog you are probably wondering how I can get 100 reasons into one short and sweet Tuesday's Tip (and these tips are usually quite short, you have to be the judge whether they are sweet). Well , I'm giving you a link to a page with exactly those reasons on it. It's one of Martha Stewart's Organizing gems that landed in my inbox and I would like to share it with you.

Just to whet your appetite, these 100 reasons include:

number 2: people burn 55 minutes a day looking for things
number 3: 80 percent of what we own we never use
numbers 12 - 40: because someone else needs it
number 50 (one of my personal favourites): getting rid of clutter will reduce housework by 40 percent 
and so on .....

And here is the link:

100 Reasons

Now go and find YOUR reasons and start getting rid!

Professional Looking Labels

The best way to make any organising project look a lot more professional is to use a label maker or label writer. Or you could also print out labels from your computer, of course.

If you use your PC or laptop you need some word processing software. You can use MS Word for instance. If every label is different you need to use the Mail Merge Assistant to create your labels. If all labels are the same or you only need one you can use the Envelopes & Labels function in the Tools menu (not sure how that would work with the new Office 2007 and its "ribbons" but a little scour through the help function should be able to sort this out).

The beauty of using a label maker is that it is portable and you can create your labels there and then. There are dozens of different makes and models in a wide variety of prices. The cheapest I have seen was a whole £15, the most expensive over £200.

The next thing you need to consider is the consumables cost for refills tapes. Again that varies tremendously and a bit of shopping around is a good idea. For one single type of refill (same brand, same size, identical product number) I came up with a price range between £3.39 and £5.99 .

So all you have to do is decide on a label maker within your budget and you can finish off your organising project in style.

Tuesday's Tip - Check before Washing

A friend told me the other day he had an amendment to a previous Tuesday's Tip, the one about using a diary. He said to add the following: Make sure you take your diary out of your jeans pocket before putting your jeans into the washing machine. Unfortunately he spoke from experience.

I thought there was another Tuesday's Tip in there somewhere and here it is. Whether you carry your diary in your jeans pocket or not, make sure you  check all your pockets before putting any item of clothing into the wash. It only adds a few seconds per load but will save you so much hassle in the long run. Just imagine my friend had kept his mobile phone in that pocket instead!

What Are My Top Priorities?

Finding out what you really want and need to do.

First of all, sit yourself down, with a cup of tea if that helps, and do a complete mind dump. Write down all the big and little projects that you need to do. Don't worry about any particular order just get them on paper. Consider it a shopping list for the great supermarket of life. You wouldn't go shopping without a list, would you? Of course not. Well, I don't recommend you do anyway.

This is your master list. Now look at the list in detail. There will be obvious groups. Items related to your home for instance, your work, your family, your health etc. (I did say "complete" mind dump.) You can either colour code them, or if it works better for you rewrite the list and this time put each item on your list in a different category. These categories can be on different sheets or in columns or any other form of visual separation.

Next you need to decide which of the categories are your top priories. I am sure there is more than one and that is absolutely fine. You don't need to sacrifice your health for your family or your family for you work. All of these can be top priorities. But you choose. Whatever is really important to you.

Next look at the items within the categories, which of these are urgent and important? These are your A priorities. Next find the ones that are urgent, but less important. These are your B priorities. And finally the ones that are important but not so urgent. These are your C priorities. Whatever is left are D priorities, if they don't get done, nothing bad will happen, but if would be nice if they did get done. Items from your less important categories will probably never make it into the A priorities. Now using the Rock, Stone, Sand and Beer Analogy from last week, fill your diary with these items, scheduling them, given them the time and attention they need.

Using lists and writing things down can really help you accomplish things. Tasks that are written down and scheduled, have a much higher chance of getting done than tasks that are kept them in your head.

Tuesday's Tip - Do a Little Planning Every Day

Every morning spend a few minutes going over the tasks for today. Check your diary. What is scheduled for today? Is there anything else you need to accomplish? If so, add it to your diary. Are there any items you need for your appointments? Get them ready.

Depending on your personal style you might prefer to do this the night before, just before you go to bed. It will take only a few minutes but time can be precious in the morning.

Whatever time you choose for your little planning session, you feel more in control and better equipped for the day if you have done some planning.

Organising your Day

A university professor showed his students the following experiment. On his desk he had a small bucket, a few large rocks, quite a few stones, a heap of sand and a pint of beer.

He filled the bucket with the rocks and asked his students: "Is the bucket full?" A few of them answered: "Yes, it is." He then put the stones into the bucket. They filled up the gaps in between the rocks, and he could fit quite a few of the stones into the bucket as well. He asked again: "Is the bucket full?" Again a few answers: "Yes, now it is full." The professor now took a little shovel and filled most of it into the bucket, filling up all the gaps in between the rocks and stones. And again he asked: "Is the bucket full?" Now quite a few students said: "Yes, it's definitely full now." Finally the professor took the pint of beer and poured it into the bucket. It seeped through the sand and filled up the final gaps in between the grains of sand. "Now is the bucket full?" Yes, everybody now agreed that the bucket was definitely full. One student piped up: "And it shows that no matter how full you are there is always room for a beer." Everyone laughed.

The professor stayed serious. "You are not wrong, my friend, but it also has a more serious meaning. The bucket represents your day. It is a vessel that you choose what you fill it with. The large rocks represents the important things in your life, your top priorities. The stones stand for other important things in your life. These might be not quite at the top of your list, but still need to get done. The sand symbolises all those tasks that are easy to do, only take a few minutes, are quite low on the priority list and are not very important. And finally the beer. I've chosen this liqid for a very good reason. Most of you like it a lot and you don't want to live without, yet it's more of a reward than a priority. It satisfies instantly, takes up precious time of your day yet doesn't accomplish any of your goals."

Using the order that the professor filled the jug, large rocks first, stones next, then sand, and finally the beer - this is the perfect order to structure your days, weeks, and even your life.

Define your top priorities and make sure that they are scheduled into your day first. Then you will still have time gaps to fill with the itmes that are next on your list of urgency and importance. Finally fill in the gaps with smaller jobs, that you need to do or want to accomplish and can get slotted in or added to the next day's list if you don't get to them. And finally the rewards, the time wasters. I'm thinking here of watching telly, playing computer games, chatting on the phone. All of these are enjoyable activities and we all need to wind down, but make sure you have accomplished your more important tasks for the day first, you'll feel all the better for it.

Next week, we'll have a look at what those top priorities are and how you can to find yours.

Tuesday's Tip - Use a Diary

At the beginning of a year, when we are full of good intentions it might be a great idea to start using a diary. It doesn't have to be a big fancy thing, just make sure that the space for each day is big enough for you to write something in. Appointments, things to remember, etc.

Carry it with you at all times and refer to it when setting up appointments, planning outings, needing to remember things such as phone numbers, websites, or items to buy etc. Make it your external brain and it will serve you well throughout the year. You will seem more organised, you will feel more organised and you will be more organised.

Keeping New Year's Resolutions - Once and for all

2009 is a brand new year and I bet lots of people started it with well intentioned New Year’s Resolutions. But how many of those will actually be kept? Unfortunately, they mostly won't. Why not? Why is it so difficult to keep those New Year’s resolutions. We have all the best intentions and plans to keep them and are really motivated, aren’t we?

Well, lets have a look at an average list from an average sort of person. Let’s call him Joe Bloggs (I guess that’s an average name).

In 2009 I want to:

• Get fit
• Lose weight
• Stop smoking
• Drink less alcohol
• Get my finances in order
• Use my car less
• Do something for charity
• Get organised

Now how many of those resolutions is Joe going to actually keep? He might start out on the first of January with high motivation and best intentions but by the end of the first week, he will probably have had a few cigarettes, a greasy portion of fish & chips, postponed his running or cycling at least twice because of bad weather, and given up on writing down what he spends every day. In other words, things will have gone down the drain again, and by the end of January his resolutions will be nothing but a faint memory and life goes on as usual.

What could Joe have done differently? What would have increased his chances of keeping any of his resolutions? Should he have even bothered?

I will answer the last question first – Absolutely!! With a capital A.

Joe, like so many of us, wants to improve himself and that is a good thing. We all want to better our lives and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It’s just how we go about it, that makes the difference between failure and success.

What should he have done differently and therefore increased his chances of success?

1. He should have had fewer resolutions. If you need to make changes in your life, don’t expect to make too many at once. You’re only setting yourself up for failure. If you need to make big changes, choose 1 thing, and 1 thing only that you are going to change. It will keep you focused and you are more likely to succeed. (If it’s minor changes, don’t attempt more than 3.)
2. Change the resolution to a SMART goal. SMART is an acronym and stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely. Let’s take the old favourite of Losing Weight. If you simply state, I want to lose weight, how do you know when you have achieved it? You will have lost weight once you have dropped a pound but that is probably not enough for you, but what is? And by when? Here are a couple of suggestions for SMART goals relating to weight loss:
   - I want to lose 20lb (ca 1 ½ stone) by the end of March.
   (With an average and healthy weight loss of 2 lb per week this is definitely achievable.)
   - I am now a size 16, I want to fit into my size 12 dress at the end of March by losing 9 kg.
   (This is a similar weight loss to the previous one, so again achievable.)
3. Write your goal down and underneath write specific actions you are going to do to achieve this goal. Make your plan as detailed as you can.
4. Be accountable.
   Tell a friend, colleague or relative about your plan and promise them that you are going to stick with it. You have already set yourself up for success by creating a SMART goal and creating an action plan. This step will help you by making it more difficult to give up if you involve someone else in the plan.
5. Don’t give up if you slip up.
   If you have a down day and you stray from your action plan don’t give up on the whole thing. Simply restart again the next day with fresh enthusiasm. Remember how often a little child falls before they can finally walk unaided. If we had given up at that stage, we would walk on all fours for the rest of our lives.
6. Plan a reward. Once you have reached your goal celebrate, do something nice for yourself. You deserve it.

And finally:

"We are judged by what we finish, not what we start."
-- Anonymous

"It takes the hammer of persistence to drive the nail of success."
-- John Mason, Writer