Making the Most of Each Day - Got Pockets?

In this four-week series, we will look at how to make the most of each day by making the most effective use of the one commodity we all share – time.

It would be wonderful if we had large blocks of time. We could really get a lot done if we had an hour or two or even more to devote to getting organized, study, clean, spend time with loved ones, write, read or indulge in a hobby. It’s rare, though, to have that kind of time on your hands. The sad thing is that we sacrifice a lot based on something that really doesn’t have to be a problem.

You have time. Trust me, you do. You just don’t see it because you don’t have great big boulders of time, you’ve got small rocks, pebbles even. However, if you use these small blocks effectively, you’ll be able to find a couple of larger rockers and even the occasional boulder.

• Want an extra 30 minutes? Wake up 30 minutes earlier or go to bed 30 minutes later. Use half of your lunch time to get things done.
• Got 15 minutes? Use it. A quarter of an hour can be enough time to get some cleaning, straightening, or organizing done. Fifteen minutes of filing or cleaning out your email box can get a lot done. I even write sometimes in 15 minute increments. It isn’t a lot of time but done consistently, it can make a big difference.
• Have just 5 minutes? Five minutes is enough time to return a few phone calls, especially if you are just have information to communicate and don’t have to have a conversation. Leave messages. Call work colleagues before the work day begins, at lunch or right before you leave work. Call family and friends during the work day.
• Drive much? Use your time in the car to return phone calls (Use your hands free headset. Safety first!). This is also a great time to catch up on the news or listen to an audio book. It could be a good idea to turn off the radio or music and use the silence to recharge and get a moment to yourself.
• Dog Gone It! I return a lot of phone calls while walking the dog.
• Use Your Smartphone Wisely. On my Android, I have apps for most of my bills, and my bank. I also have apps that let me check the weather, get movie times, create and update a task list and a calendar for appointments. While I never advocate this while driving, this can be an excellent use of your time when you are standing in a long line, on breaks at work or waiting at the doctor’s office or at the mechanics. Recently, I paid several bills on the train ride to my salsa lesson.

Using the time you have is empowering and effective. It’s a great feeling to know that you are getting things done and saving time to boot.

Get It Together Girl!: Time Management edition

This brief four-week series will introduce the workbooks in the Get It Together Girl series.

As the holidays approach, it's a great time to talk about time management. The second in the series, Get It Together Girl!: It's About Time - Finding It, Saving It and Making the Most of It is a collection of time-saving tips doled out one per weekday.

A common excuses that many people have is that they don't have enough time. One thing is certain, you aren't going to get anymore! The trick is to do better with the time you have. Most people get defensive when I say it, but I can squeeze an hour out of the average woman's day.

The trick is to not look for large blocks of time; but to use small pockets of time more effectively. I had a client who claimed she couldn't study for the bar because she couldn't find enough 3 hour blocks of time. I agreed. Three hour blocks of time are hard to come by. I gave her a question and a challenge. My question was how long are the blocks of time she did have. She told me an hour. Next, I challenged her to take those 3 hour subjects and break them down into hour-long subtopics. Working with the time that she had, she was able to finally study.

This book starts with a question? What would you do if you could find an extra two-hours in your week? Next, we spend two weeks looking at different ways to get that time: bundling errands, using the Focused Fifteen outside of organization ....

What makes this book different, is that I've included a lot of extra information in the Appendix. There is a chart for age-appropriate chores for kids, tips on how to delegate as well as web-based and mobile applications that will help readers save even more time.

Challenge: Ask yourself the question: what would you do with two extra hours a week? I start with this question because saving time is a task that is hard to track. If you have a good answer to this question you'll have something to work towards as well as a great way to tell if you have succeeded!

Got a Kindle? Well, I’ve Got a Deal for You!

From now through Sunday, I am offering my eBook, Get It Together Girl!: It's about Time - Finding It, Saving It, and Making the Most of It for free!

For two weeks, get a different time saving tip every day. Plus, there are lots of time saving tips as well as phone and web applications that will help you tame the time tiger!

Sorry Nook users. For now, the book is being offered exclusively through Amazon.

Take advantage of this offer because it ends Sunday night at midnight (EST).

Get It Together Girl!: It's About Time!

Boy have I been busy!

The second workbook in my Get It Together Girl series is now available on Amazon Kindle! The paperback will be available next month. Get It Together Girl!: It’s about Time: Finding It, Saving It and Making the Most of It is filled with time-saving tips that can help you tame the time monster.

It’s about Time was inspired by a conversation I’d had with a frazzled blogger regarding my first Get It Together workbook. She boasted that she didn’t have 15 minutes a day or even five minutes for that matter. The conversation stuck with me for a while and eventually, Get It Together Girl!: It’s about Time was born. Over a two-week period, I give daily tips on saving time. In the Extra Stuff appendix, I offer additional tips as well as websites and phone apps that can be helpful in saving time and being more efficient.

The GITG series is designed to help women (and men too) lose the excuses that stand between them, their dreams and the lives they want to lead. I’ve learned it is the little things that often stand in the way. If they were only more organized, had more time, access to more money or clearer goals, they could do more. So each Get It Together Girl workbook tackles one of these excuses in a way that is easy to read and just as simple to put into practice.

With the Get It Together Girl concept, I want readers to do more and read less. The workbooks are short, quick (and hopefully fun). And, when I say workbooks, I do mean work books. The idea is to work them and put the concepts in action .. not just read about them and mull them over.

My first workbook Get It Together Girl!: A 28-Day Guide to Practical NOT Perfect Home Organization is still available via Kindle and, as of this weekend, also available through Amazon in paperback. It focuses on home organization because a home that runs more smoothly saves time and reduces stress. Each weekday for four weeks, readers are given a 15 minute assignments to help them reduce clutter, increase organization and establish some realistic routines.

More Get It Together Girl workbooks are forthcoming. Hopefully, by year end, book three will be available. Just in time for the New Year, this one focuses on goal-setting. All of the books are affordable. If you have a Kindle, you can get both books electronically for $1.99. They are also available in paperback for just $6.99.

So, if you need to get yourself together, here’s your chance!

The Time Tale

One day a woman Tessa attended a motivational seminar for work. One of the exercises asked her to list the things that mattered most to her. For Tessa this was easy. She quickly jotted a few things down. At the top of her list were: God, family, health and her writing. She felt proud as she put her pen down. "I know what is truly important," she thought to herself.

Next the facilitator asked her to think about how much time and attention she gave to the items her list.

Of course God was important, but she hadn't attended church in ages or even cracked open her Bible since she didn't know when. She meant to carve out prayer time in the morning, but how could she get up any earlier? Her days were packed and at night she was just too tired.

Surely she'd fare better with family. "Did time spent shuttling the kids back and forth count?" someone asked jokingly. He said only if it was quality time. If everyone was listening to iPods, texting and talking on phones then it didn't count.

This cut the time Tessa spent with the kids in half. She didn't even want to think about how much quality time she spend with the hubs. Date night was a nice concept, but that was about it.

Now, she cringed as she thought about exercising (which she rarely did) and eating right (a Snickers for lunch might satisfy but it's not actually healthy).

Writing was something she always planned to do when there was time, and there never was time.
Now Tessa was discouraged. She had a full-time job. She had kids to raise. She had other obligations. She'd seen the movie Eat Pray Love but who has months at a time to devote to spirituality and love? Definitely not her!

However, as the facilitator continued, the amount of time was less important than the quality of time and the fact that she made time for these things at all that was most important. She could make a lot of little changes to accomodate the things that she valued. She left the seminar vowing to do just that. 

A month later, she had made some significant changes.


God:

• She got some inspirational books on CD and started listening to them on her commute to work.
• She found a bible study that was close by that she could attend once a week.
• She and her family started attending church more often.

Family:

• Although they objected at first, she made some of their car time (some, not all), talk time and not iPod/gaming/texting time.
• She worked out a babysitting schedule with another couple so they both could get a date night once a month.
• She and the hubs tried to find at least a few things that they could do together as a family (like brunch after church) or even watching a favorite TV show together.

Health

• She started planning her meals which made dinner at home healthier for everyone.
• Sometimes she'd pack her lunch and other times she'd go to the cafe in the building and make better choices.
• She started taking short walks in the evening (and sometimes even during lunch at work). Her daughter often accompanied her so it served as family time too.

Writing

• She started keeping a journal and jotting her thoughts down in the evening before bed.
• She's even thinking of blogging.

The great thing about these changes is that they were small, doable changes. They didn't require a lot of time. Although they took some effort - planning meals, arranging date night - most of the planning took just a few minutes.

When Tessa looked over her month, she could not only see the changes she'd made but she felt she was living a life where she made time for what mattered most.

Get Back to Work!

The holidays are over. Unless we work for the banks or the federal government, most of us won’t get a long weekend until Memorial Day. That’s the end of May! It’s time to get back to work.

Here are some tips I use for getting the job done.

1. Plan Your Days: I have a weekly planner. Throughout the day, I jot down upcoming tasks and place them on the day I plan to work on them. Before I leave for the day, I give my list another once over, focusing on things I need to do the next day. This goes a long way to eliminating that feeling that I’ve forgotten something or that something will fall through the cracks.

2. Set New Goals. Look at what’s on your plate and decide what you want to accomplish in the next month, three months and six months.

3. Clean It Out: There is a fascinating statistic that says 80% of the things we file, we never look at again. If you find you have some down time, spend a few minutes going through your files. If you have it electronically, you probably don’t need the paper copy. If the project ended years ago, keep a few pertinent summaries and maybe the finished product and get rid of the rest. If you are feeling really bold, tackle your electronic files. Delete what you don't need. Move old versions of reports and documents to an Archive folder and organize the rest.

4. Reestablish Your Routine: It’s not just for kids you know. Make a point to get back on track – have a consistent bed time and wake up time. Holiday splurges are over so get back into the habit of making healthier food choices.

5. Remember What You Like About Work: It might not be the job of your dreams but there must be a few good things about it. Coming back to work shouldn’t be a complete downer! Think out what you enjoy about your work: favorite co-workers, the work you do, a favorite lunch spot. Focus on what you enjoy about work and you’ll experience a lot less dread and negativity!

Crush the Rush

Once we get out of bed, in a rush to get dressed. It’s a mad dash to get to work and once you get there a lot of time you are running from meeting to meeting. At the end of the day, you rush home, blow through an errand or two, gulp down dinner, blaze through what’s left of your evening, and plop into bed exhausted, just so you can get up and do it all over again.

By Friday you are wondering where the week went. What’s really sad is that the weekend is no better. You find yourself Sunday evening asking where the weekend went!

Rushing has ruined many a day and a frantic morning can set the tone for the rest of your day. You know what they say, an ounce of prevention beats a pound of the cure. So here are a few of my favorite personal tips to help you crush the rush and get success over your stress!

Take five: I take five minutes (sometimes less) to lay out my clothes and accessories the night before. Get your kids in the habit of doing this as well.

Put It in Its Place: I make sure my keys are on the little high table near my door and that my purse is in the kitchen ready to go. Anything I need in the morning has a specific place and after I’ve gotten my clothes together, I make sure all of those items are where they should be. No frantic searching for misplaced items in the morning. If you have young kids make sure your places are high enough up that they can’t reach them.

Quick Fix: I love, love, love my Steamfresh veggies and side dishes. I throw a bag in the microwave and five minutes later, I have steamed broccoli or green beans or even nice little vegetable medleys. Mmm, mmm good! I’m loving them even more now that I can get rice, pastas and even potato dishes in Steamfresh too. When they go on sale, I make sure I stock up!

Eliminate Morning Emailing: I do not turn my computer on in the morning! Nothing sucks up your precious morning time like a ‘quick check ‘of your email. If you must, add another 20 minutes to the step below.

Ouch: This is going to sound ugly but get up 10 minutes earlier. I know, you are saying to yourself, “I’m not a morning person!” Neither am ! Just 10 extra minutes in the morning can give you just enough time to avoid the mad dash that can color our whole day if we let it.

Little changes can make a big difference to improve your mood and help you enjoy your day that much more!

Find the Time

A friend of mine is an author-in-waiting. She has two books inside of her just waiting to come out. She has the ideas. She knows the story. She can see the characters vividly in her mind, almost as if they are friends. When she talks about it, you can see the excitement in her eyes and hear it in her voice. If only she would sit down and write it.

She says she really wants to do it but she doesn’t have the time. I told her that I’d written 3 screenplays by devoting 30 minutes a day to writing. Some days getting through that 30 minutes was painful. I would sit and look at a blank page, and then I’d look at the timer and realize I had 27 minutes left! Other days, I couldn’t wait to write and when that buzzer went off, I couldn’t stop. Most days, I did my 30 minutes and moved on.

But I had to make the time. And if it really matters, you can make the time. I have a friend who would stop by Starbucks on the way home and take a book with her. She’d buy a bottle of water and read a chapter or two before she got home. A co-worker had a pair of tennis shoes she’d leave at work, she’d get to work about 45 minutes early, throw on her shoes and get a good half-hour of walking in before she started her day.

Me? I had a hard time working out in the evening. I had all day to talk myself out of it and dread it. Then something would happen and I’d convince myself that I had to pass on my workout. Since childhood, I’ve been a night person so when the suggestion to get up and work out was made, I’d immediately dismiss it.

As the number on the scale gradually increased, I knew I had to do something. What I had been doing was not working, so I had to do something else. I got up a half hour and did a light workout. I did that for a few weeks. Then I moved the clock back another fifteen minutes. After another two or three weeks, I moved it back one more time. I was getting up an hour earlier and working out. Me the quintessential night owl was getting up with the roosters!

If you want it bad enough, you’ll find the time and if you can’t find it, you’ll make it by getting up a little earlier or going to bed a little later. Because it would be a shame if my friend never wrote those books, or if my other friend missed out on the magic of reading or if I missed out on the benefits that I reap from consistent exercise.

Time is the treasure and you are on the hunt.

Time Clutter

When we talk about getting rid of clutter, thoughts turn to the overstuffed closet, the packed garage and all the piles of papers and odd knick knacks that we have lying around the house. It makes sense to get rid of all of that excess stuff.

But when we talk about getting rid of clutter, we should also look at time clutter. When you get to the end of the day and you realize that you’ve done a lot but accomplished little, chances are you a victim of time clutter.

When clients lament about not having enough time, I just smile. We all have the same amount of time and sure children, long commutes, demanding bosses that demand ‘face time’ in the office, and family and social obligations play a role, almost all of us can find some time in their day … if we want to.

I talk to people who insist adamantly that they don’t have time and for those people, I don’t have much to say. They are convinced that they don’t have time and nothing I say will convince them otherwise… if this is you, stop reading now.

However, if you want to create more time in your day and get rid of time clutter, then consider the following.

Question Your Obligations: There is probably at least one thing you do that you can get rid of – social activities you no longer enjoy, extra assignments you took on. Do you really need to do those things? I started a photography club some years ago. It was supposed to be a casual club and basically a way for photographers to get together. Before long, I had over 60 members. I was taking dues, and spending hours every week looking for guest speakers and finding events. I began to loathe that club. I continued for about a year out of obligation but when I disbanded the club after that, I felt a weight lift off of my shoulders; it was definitely the right thing to do.

Use Your Downtime: Use your work commute to listen to a book on tape. If you have a hands-free device, use that time to return phone calls. If you are waiting for the kids to finish a practice or a class, use that time to make your shopping list or to balance your checkbook. Time spent commuting on a train can be golden. I return calls while walking my dog. When I have a doctor’s appointment, I take something with me to do: checkbook, grocery list, to do list or just some reading I need to catch up on.

Be Strategic: If you don’t need to have a conversation, you just need to give someone some information, try returning calls during lunch time or in the early evening when the person isn’t likely to be in. If they aren’t around, you can leave a voicemail or better yet respond via email. Now, if you need questions answered or clarification on an issue, the best thing to do is pick up the phone and talk to the person. There is nothing more time consuming than having a conversation going back and forth voicemail. Emails that go back and forth are also major time wasters, if you are getting into a volley of emails, it’s probably best to just pick up the phone and call.

Be Mindful of Media: I know people who brag about not having time to watch TV. Yet, many of these people spend an inordinate amount of time on the computer: emailing, Facebooking, and surfing the Internet. In terms of media, moderation is key. Only watch TV shows that you truly enjoy. Set a time limit for how long you will be on the computer and honor it. You can almost always do with less TV and internet (but by all means, continue to read this blog!).

Start Earlier or End Later: Get up a half hour earlier or stay up a half hour later. Or split the difference get up 15 minutes early and stay up 15 minutes later. Use that time to get some little things done: laundry, chores around the house, returning emails. It can make a big difference.

Keep an eye out for time clutter. Once you become aware of it, you will begin finding pockets of time that can be used more effectively or areas that need to be de-cluttered.

Karyn Cooks - Sausage and Black Bean Soup

My favorite recipes that are good for your health, good on your wallet and tastes good to boot.

My all-time favorite cookbook is Weight Watchers 5 Ingredients, 15 Minutes. All the recipes have five ingredients or less, or they can be prepared in 15 minutes or less. Weight Watchers released a new 5 Ingredient, 15 Minutes but the original is still the best.

Even if you don’t need to lose weight, this recipe creates a pretty hearty soup. It’s heartly enough to pass the husband test … he won’t even know it’s healthy!

Ingredients:
Cooking Spray
6 oz turkey kielbasa sausage, sliced
1 cup diced green, sweet red, or yellow pepper
1 (14.5oz) can fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 (15oz) can no-salt-added black beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup picante sauce or salsa
Chopped cilantro (optional)

Directions:
Coat a medium saucepan with cooking spray; place over medium-high heat until hot.
Add sausage, and saute 1 minute or until sausage begins to brown.
Add pepper; saute 1 minute.
Add broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; add beans and picante sauce, and simmer, covered, 5 minutes.
Top with cilantro, if desired.

I find this recipe to be a little thick for soup, so don’t be afraid to add some extra broth and some extra salsa. I pass on the cilantro too.

You can also alter the taste of this recipe by using different salsas.

(P.S. When I make it, I don't use the cilantro so mine doesn't look quite like the picture)

Getting It Together

I'm a Virgo and Virgos are notorious for being organized, efficient and logical. While I’m not always logical, I am nothing if not organized and efficient.

One important facet of living the life of your dreams is getting a hold of your time. We spend too much time on inconsequential time wasters. Time spent looking for lost items, time spent mindlessly in front of the TV, even time you spend on other tasks like cleaning and preparing meals can be put to better use.

So I’ve compiled a list of a few of my favorite time savers and organizational tips. What you will love about this list is that there is nothing on it that is difficult or that will take up more time. And yes, I do do these things.

Never Lost, Always Found: I have a place for the things I use regularly. It’s a place that makes sense. Next to my door, there is a small stand with a single drawer. When I walk into my place, my keys go on top. Inside the drawer is the dog’s leash. Sounds simple, but by putting my keys and the leash in the designated place, I don’t waste precious morning time frantically looking for my keys AND Marty doesn’t spend precious time with his hind legs crossed!

Keep it in the Closet: Get undressed while standing in the closet. Dirty clothes go immediately in the hamper. While you’re in there, hang up anything you can wear again.

Kitchen Economics: Wash as you prepare the meal. Waiting until the end guarantees that you will have a sink full of pots and pans and who wants to do all that work after dinner? Often times, when one part of the meal is done, you can reuse the pot for the next dish.

When possible, store leftovers in reusable microwaveable dishes so you don’t have to reheat in another pot.

Dishwashers make everyone’s life easier, yet, no one likes to empty the darn thing! The worst part for me was sorting through all the silverware. Then I realized the silverware holder comes in sections. So now, I put all the small spoons in one section, larger spoons in the next and so on. Emptying the dishwasher is a lot faster now.

Mail Madness: I open the mail while standing over the trash can. All junk mail goes immediately into the trash. As do envelopes and extra papers I don’t need.

Paper Clutter Cure: I went to the drugstore and purchased a few cheap colored two pocket folders. They are labeled: Take Action, File, Bills and Read. Anything that requires me to do something (make a call, complete a form) goes into Take Action. Things like bank statements and insurance info, goes into the File folder. When I thumb through magazines, I tear out the articles I want to read and put them in the Read folder. Every couple of days, I look through the Take Action folder and tackle an item or two in that folder. When the file folder gets thick, that’s when I make use of mindless TV time and file while I watch. If I’m bored over the weekend or going somewhere where I have a wait (doctor's office, oil change), I grab an article out of the Read folder and read it.

What are some of the little things you do to stay organized and on task? I'm always interested in new tips and tricks!