Organization!
Most of us are probably not as organized as we would like to be. Disorganization can contribute to stress in a major way. It's hard, however, for many of us to manage our work and our lives as well as we would like.
Here are some key tips to help you get, and stay, organized:
- Use a Calendar. Record work assignments as well as personal appointments for you and your family. Make sure to include the kid's activities. Carry your calendar with you so that you can record new appointments and activities as you become aware of them.
- Keep Work Hours. They don't have to be nine to five, but to be effective as a home business owner you should schedule regular work hours. Make a habit of refusing social engagements during your work hours.
- Get Others to Help. Unless you live by yourself, you can get family members to help. Teach the kids to do age-appropriate chores. Share routine household tasks with your spouse. If you can afford it, outsource some tasks, like mowing the lawn.
- Standardize Routine Work. Develop a system for re-occurring tasks. You'll save time by using templates for re-occurring letters, or developing a method for a household chore.
- Handle Mail Efficiently. Whether it's e-mail or snail mail, dealing with it can take up a big chunk of your time. Experts say that the best way to deal with mail is to address it as soon as you receive it.
- Slow Down. If you're going too fast and trying to get too much done, you're more likely to make mistakes. Mistakes mean rework and rework means more work. So, slow down and get it right the first time.
Eight Great Organizing Blogs
- Unclutterer. Learn how to get rid of the clutter forever!
- Your Life. Organized. Let a professional organizer tell you how.
- My Organized Biz. Organize your office.
- Declutter It. Everything you ever wanted to know about getting rid of clutter.
- Organize IT. Counter your bad habits with some organization.
- Neat and Simple. The name says it all.
- Ian's Messy Desk. Despite the name, this blog can actually help you get your act together.
- Get Organized Now! Blog. With these tips and tricks you can get organized.
What about you? What is your top organizing tip?
Leave a comment and let us know.
Image Source: Laura Spencer
Especially living in a fairly rural area, one thing that helps me is trying to make it where all my errand running is done in big lumps, preferably with some business errands mixed in. I set up my course ahead of time, looping around to save as much time and gas as possible, and as a bonus, if I have several business related errands sprinkled in, the mileage can be counted as a business expense and therefore deducted.
Also, I try to have at least one day a month, if not one each week, that is my "catch up" day. My grandparents generally ask to keep my daughter about three Thursdays out of the month, and these days are a big help. Running errands, accounting tasks, the more involved household chores, and basically anything else I fell behind on in the week to finish one project or another gets taken care of much quicker when I'm not busy strapping my daughter into and taking her out of the car seat half a dozen times or doing tasks one handed while holding her with the other.
Posted by: Tekaran Lady | April 15, 2008 12:03 PM | Permalink to Comment