Your Most Organized Year Ever

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Your Most Organized Year Ever

Each year as we start the new year, we think of ways to make a change and improve our lives.  Did you know that organizing is one of the top three goals each year?  Throughout the month of January, I will be offering 31 tips to help you have Your Most Organized Year Ever.  Implement just one of these tips, tools, techniques or tweaks this year. 

 

 

It can be surprising how much alarms, timers and other reminders can help us during our day. We have so much to think about, these tools help us execute our intentions.

 

Alarms can help us

  • remember to leave for an appointment on time
  • switch tasks and remember to complete a task on time
  • remind us to turn off the sprinkler, move the wash to the dryer or take the brownies out of the oven

 

Timers can help us

  • get started and work for just 15 minutes on a project
  • help us know how much time it takes to complete a project
  • break a project into smaller chunks

 

Other reminders we all love and use

  • extra large post-it notes with a task written on it, posted at an exit or on your planner
  • with one task per note attached to a wall, reminding us of all the work to be done
  • used as a week at a glance calendar with dates and actions

 

Make this Your Most Organized Year Ever with alarms, timers and other reminders.

Your Most Organized Year Ever

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Your Most Organized Year Ever

 

Each year as we start the new year, we think of ways to make a change and improve our lives.  Did you know that organizing is one of the top three goals each year?  Throughout the month of January, I will be offering 31 tips to help you have Your Most Organized Year Ever.  Implement just one of these tips, tools, techniques or tweaks this year. 

 

Notice where there are clocks in your home and office?

 

Are these digital or analog clocks?

Adding more clocks in your home and office will help manage  your time more effectively.

 

An analog clock helps you judge that time is passing. It’s a visual tool that helps us assess.  It can also help remind us of what step in a process we want to be at in order to get to the finish line.  Having a clock in a bathroom helps us get out the door on time. Having a wall clock hanging in your office helps you finish your work to be home on time.  Make this Your Most Organized Year Ever by adding more analog clocks in your home and office.

 

More ideas on time management on my Time is On My Side pinterest board.

 

Your Most Organized Year Ever

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Your Most Organized Year Ever

 

 

Each year as we start the new year, we think of ways to make a change and improve our lives.  Did you know that organizing is one of the top three goals each year?  Throughout the month of January, I will be offering 31 tips to help you have Your Most Organized Year Ever.  Implement just one of these tips, tools, techniques or tweaks this year. 

 

Checklists make performing or completing anything easier.  When there are many complicated steps to complete a project, a checklist helps you remember and complete each step. When there are many parts to a project, a checklist helps you keep them all together.

 

There are so many different ways to use checklists.

  • Create and use a checklist for your end of the month procedures.
  • Use a checklist to complete paying your bills each month.
  • Create and use an annual home maintenance checklist to be sure all maintenance is complete.
  • Create and use a packing checklist to be sure nothing gets left behind.
  • Where will a checklist help you?

 

Check out these checklists to help you this year.  Make this Your Most Organized Year Ever with checklists to help you stay more organized.

 

Ideas to make you more productive at home and work on my Powerful Productivity pinterest board.

 

 

 

 

Your Most Organized Year Ever

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Your Most Organized Year Ever

Each year as we start the new year, we think of ways to make a change and improve our lives.  Did you know that organizing is one of the top three goals each year?  Throughout the month of January, I will be offering 31 tips to help you have Your Most Organized Year Ever.  Implement just one of these tips, tools, techniques or tweaks this year. 

 

Email floods in daily.  The best way to keep ahead of the wave is to triage daily.

 

Triage? It’s when you sort through your email, delete all that’s not needed immediately, and leave what’s important to work on, add to your project list and do what can be done in 1 minute or less.

 

  • It takes decisive action to keep your inbox chopped down to size.  There are some basic email solutions, but the triage approach makes a difference.
  • Check your email just three times a day with this strategy. If you check more, you won’t be as decisive.
  • If you are struggling with a task or project in the email, move that to a list to complete later.
  • Check email from your computer mainly, rather than your smart phone, to make the most of this strategy.  Never check email at a stop light or while driving.

 

What if you have gotten above 1000 emails in your inbox?

  • Sort by subject view, group together, and either delete or move to subfolder.
  • Spend an extra 15 minutes a day for a week just deleting emails.

 

Make this Your Most Organized Year Ever with email triage.

 

If paper is overwhelming too, check out this paper triage post.

Your Most Organized Year Ever

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Your Most Organized Year Ever

Each year as we start the new year, we think of ways to make a change and improve our lives.  Did you know that organizing is one of the top three goals each year?  Throughout the month of January, I will be offering 31 tips to help you have Your Most Organized Year Ever.  Implement just one of these tips, tools, techniques or tweaks this year. 

 

Overwhelmed by paper?

 

Ready to take the paperless plunge?

 

Not sure where to start?

 

Keep information digitally to access it more easily. It can be a small start.

  • It could be keeping your contacts in one place in your smartphone synced online with your email.
  • It can be finding your medical explanation of benefits online and declining paper statements.
  • It could be purchasing a scanner and scanning in your insurance documents.
  • Remember to have a back up in place to keep your information safe.

 

Decide what’s your baby step to keep information digitally to make this Your Most Organized Year Ever.

 

More ideas on Going Paperless.

 

 

Organizing for Couples

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couples organizing

 

 

We never marry our organizing soul mate.  It’s like opposites attract for organizing. One partner is all about minimalism and one is about consumerism.  One partner has ODC and one partner has ADHD.  One partner loves getting organized and one is cluttered with paper.  Clutter causes a LOT of stress in relationships and about one third of us avoid going home to our clutter.  It can cause the end of relationships too.  Organizing as a couple makes a difference in your every day life and your relationship with your partner.  Organizing for couples can make each day happier.

 

It’s all about respect.

  • Refer to your partner’s belongings with a respectful tone and with respect to the stuff.
  • We all have something that is special to us.  Every one of us has prize possessions.
  • Respect is the bottom line for all relationships that work.

 

Being organized looks like many many different things to many different people. But we can come together when we recognize how important it is to respect each other.

  • Talk through difference in organizing by coaching each other.
  • Use a respectful tone referring to each other’s belongings.
  • Acknowledge the different backgrounds we all come from to create order in our lives.

 

Collaborate about your goals about organizing, timeliness and paper management.

  • Take time each week to talk about being organized.  Start with baby steps.
  • Support each other in creating order in your home by partnering on tasks and responsibilities.
  • Set standards and create charts that help everyone stay connected about their goals.

 

Make action happen

  • Be specific about work habits. Specify what tasks will be done when and what “done” looks like.
  • Work together each day on getting items back to where they belong. Have time together to get this done.
  • Acknowledge successes.  Successes create bigger successes.
  • Start with your own organizing. Start with your closet, timeliness or other spaces. Help you partner enjoy less stress by seeing your stress being less.

 

It’s not easy but couples working together for organizing success create happy relationships.  Be the model for your partner by starting first with your clutter, then helping them.  Organizing for couples is hard, but yields great reward.

 

Join my newsletter to get a boost of organizing and productivity.

 

 

Your Most Organized Year Ever

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Your Most Organized Year Ever

Each year as we start the new year, we think of ways to make a change and improve our lives.  Did you know that organizing is one of the top three goals each year?  Throughout the month of January, I will be offering 31 tips to help you have Your Most Organized Year Ever.  Implement just one of these tips, tools, techniques or tweaks this year. 

 

A little structure helps us all in our work day.

 

Having a pattern to our work week can help us prioritize and focus.

 

What’s a “little” structure?

 

Structure or routines are creating a consistent pattern for specific tasks.  This pattern helps you be sure these tasks are completed regularly more easily.  Once your routines are in place these become habits.

 

When you add a “little structure”, such as doing a few things routinely at the same time regularly, it adds to your productivity.  Deciding a baby step to your structure, such as going to bed at the same time nightly, it adds to your overall effectiveness.

 

Not sure what would make a good routine for you?  Try out one of these routines:

  • Check email only 3 times a day
  • Have a one hour power period once a day at your peak energy time.
  • Complete your expense account on the last Friday of the month.

Start with a baby step of routine to make this Your Most Organized Year Ever.

 

More ideas on routines here.

 

A daily dose of organizing and productivity on Facebook

 

Your Most Organized Year Ever

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Your Most Organized Year Yet

Each year as we start the new year, we think of ways to make a change and improve our lives.  Did you know that organizing is one of the top three goals each year?  Throughout the month of January, I will be offering 31 tips to help you have Your Most Organized Year Ever.  Implement just one of these tips, tools, techniques or tweaks this year. 

 

Accountability is being willing and obligated to a task.  It’ not always easy to feel or be accountable to others. It takes a trusting relationship and a perspective of learning from missteps.

 

There are many ways to accomplish a goal using accountability.

  • Working together as a team can help you get a task accomplished.  When you are accountable for your step of the project, you know you will follow through.  You have team ownership.
  • Just speaking out loud about a project, describing it and discussing it, can help you process your thoughts on a project.  You are more prepared to complete it because you have clarified your work.
  • It may be just to speak about a project out loud and it’s enough for you.

 

Check out all 31 Tips for Your Most Organized Year Ever.

Your Most Organized Year Ever

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Your Most Organized Year Ever

Each year as we start the new year, we think of ways to make a change and improve our lives.  Did you know that organizing is one of the top three goals each year?  Throughout the month of January, I will be offering 31 tips to help you have Your Most Organized Year Ever.  Implement just one of these tips, tools, techniques or tweaks this year. 

 

Do you have notes written on the back of envelopes, paper plates or whatever?

 

Are small piles of post it notes everywhere?

 

Feel like your to do’s are over the top?

 

Task lists, aka to do lists, are a great way to consolidate information. You may have tasks in your email, from meetings or monthly reports that need to be done.  Having it all consolidated on one task list makes it easy to keep track of all these details.  It’s a visual reminder and easier than trying to remember it all in your head.

 

Your task list could be as simple as a spiral notebook.  Be sure it’s easy to carry with you.

 

Your task list could be an app.  My clients love Evernote and Toodledoo.  My personal favorite is Notes, which looks like a small post it note on your smart phone.

 

Your task list could be a series of post it notes stuck on a wall.  You can peel them off as you finish each task.

 

Make this Your Most Organized Year Ever with a task list.

 

Check out these apps and see what will work for you.

 

Don’t miss a minute of organizing or productivity ideas.  Join my newsletter.

 

Your Most Organized Year Ever

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Your Most Organized Year Ever

Each year as we start the new year, we think of ways to make a change and improve our lives.  Did you know that organizing is one of the top three goals each year?  Throughout the month of January, I will be offering 31 tips to help you have Your Most Organized Year Ever.  Implement just one of these tips, tools, techniques or tweaks this year. 

 

What is written in your planner?

 

 

Is your planner full to the brim or barely completed?

 

 

Did you know you can use your for more than just recording meetings?

 

 

Your planner is a great tool to help you process and plan.

  •  Use your planner to record deadlines for important projects.  Decide what parts of the project you want to accomplish by certain dates, breaking the project into smaller pieces. These mini-deadlines help you complete the project on time.
  • If your project requires input from colleagues, write in dates you will request information and get it back.  Give your colleagues and yourself ample time to complete the project.
  • Write in tasks you want to work on during a specific time on a certain date.
  • Record deadlines for requests from your boss.
  • Record expense account deadlines and write in time to complete the reports.

Make this Your Most Organized Year Ever with using your planner to plan.

 

Not sure what planner is best for you?

 

Check out this free weekly printable too.