Posts filed under 'Scheduling'
It is possible to get everything done that you have on your list for this week. If you are like me, your to-do list reads more like a short story than a list. Every time you look at it, things mysteriously add on. It just keeps growing. But it is possible to finish your to-do list and still have time for yourself and for your family.
1. Start now. The early you start on the tasks the more time you have to get things done. Procrastination is one of the biggest busters of time that exists today. If you put it off until tomorrow (not matter what it may be) then you probably will be complaining about how you never have enough time.
2. Spread it out. Give yourself one or two hours (in thirty minute chunks) to get your to-do list done. Spend thirty minutes in the morning, thirty before lunch, thirty before dinner and thirty before bed. It will be amazing how much can be accomplished in such a seemingly short amount of time.
3. One big project a week. If you want to completely clean sweep your home then do it one room at a time and only one room a week. It won’t feel quite as overwhelming and you will feel a sense of accomplishment each time you complete a room.
4. Enlist help. If you can’t get your family to help you out, then ask a friend. Sometimes it helps to have someone there with you even if they don’t physically do anything.
5. Keep going. Even when you get distracted, get right back on track. Focus will be the key to keeping you consistent in your efforts.
6. Be realistic. Evaluate your to-do list and shift those things you know you can’t do or won’t have time to do. I WANT to clean out my garden, but the weather hasn’t cooperated. I just keep shifting that to-do until it’s time.
To get the to-do list done you have to stay on it. Work some here and there and be sure to set aside at least one day for catch up. When you get all your to-do’s done during the regular week, you will have that extra day to just be free and relax.
March 11th, 2008
There needs to be more time in my day. Theoretically, daylight savings time is suppose to create it. For me it just means I have to get up during darker hours of the morning and that bedtime has to be pushed back (because what kid wants to go to be with the sun still up?). There has to be a way to squeeze one more hour out of my day.
1. Multi-task – since I’m still on dialup, I spend a good deal of time waiting for research pages to load. Instead of clicking on solitaire to pass the time, I need to have a non-computer project near by. I can work a bit on it while the page down loads and then return to the screen when it gets there. This is the best time to do bills!
2. Focus – my dad has a saying that he repeats to me (too) often, “Don’t put your dogs in that fight.” When I’m working, I have to remember that. It is easy to let issues or matters that have nothing to do with my life, my family or my work get me riled up. Focusing on issues and situations that actually matter will help me add time to my day.
3. Plan – make a list, a schedule or post-it-notes, what ever it takes to help you know what you need to do. Include everything – from taking the library books back to scrubbing the toilets to submitting your novel. Seeing it will help you keep from getting to the end of the day and remembering you didn’t do anything that you needed to do that day (although you may have gotten your Christmas list completed 
).
4. Hide – if you have a place of your own to work then lock the door and stay in it. If you are fortunate enough to get to spend all of your time right in the center of your family’s daily lives, then buy a laptop and run away for a few hours. You will be amazed at how much you can accomplish with uninterrupted time.
5. Unplug – the television is the time curse of the modern era. It eats more hours than any other single thing you have to deal with. Television can spark procrastination, gluttony, sloth and so much more. Turn off the television to guarantee more time in your day – or cut the cable all together!
There may be a limited amount of time that anyone person gets in one day, but there are ways to make it feel like so much more. Use what you have wisely and completely and you will feel like the day just goes on until you are done.
March 6th, 2008
Yesterday was a bad day for me. I sat down for a “break” to catch a ball game, and I don’t thing I ever looked back. There was always one more show or one more game to keep me from what I knew I needed to be doing. My excuse was that everyone needed a break now and then.
It didn’t matter to me that I wasn’t done doing the few things I needed to do. I was ready to take a break – so I did. That one break lasted approximately 11 hours. Once I got started, I couldn’t seem to stop myself (or is it once I got stopped I couldn’t seem to get started). Either way, I wasted the entire day doing absolutely NOTHING!
Taking a break is perfectly okay. Spend the day at the park with the kids. Lie outside and enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. Go for a long walk for no reason other than to go for a long walk and enjoy the quiet of that walk. Sitting in front of the television for 11 hours (no matter what programming might be on) is just a waste of time.
Next time I need a break, I’m going to ask myself some questions first.
1. Is it good for me? Will I get some kind of benefit from the activity that I will be doing?
2. Is it good for my family? Will the people I love most be hurt are helped by what I’m going to do?
3. Is it good for my life? Will the activity increase my health, add to my career or help my education or knowledge or will it decrease it?
4. Is it good for the people in my life? Will what I do be a blessing or encouragement to the people I encounter during the day, the week, or my life?
If the activity or break doesn’t have some benefits (for me or those around me) then I have to just walk away and let it go. It’s time that I break the break habit and get on with what’s important.
March 2nd, 2008
Writing any thing on the same subject can began to wear you down. Writing online can be particularly exhausting because of the need for quick turn around. Avoid the urge to give up and walk away when the same subject starts haunting you in your sleep. Let a variety in your writing and in you schedule help to boost your enthusiasm once again.
1. Spread out the work. Recently I had an order for over 100 articles on similar topics but written in the same format. After about six in a row, I start to feel like I’m repeating myself (and some times it feels like I’m saying the same thing over and over). I pushed myself to the point of a nervous breakdown to get the first half done, but I’m taking it a little different for the second half. I write one or two of the articles in between blog posts or other projects. I’m slowly getting the project done, and I’m actually enjoying the process this go around.
2. Take a break. It doesn’t matter how much you enjoy the subject. If you sit in one spot doing the same thing for too long you will start to feel the burnout. Get up and go outside in the sun for awhile. Play a game with the kids and spouse (or just the spouse). Go for a short drive or an outing. A change of scenery and tasks is sure to give your writing a boost.
3. Find a friend. I have several online buddies (we chat through IM) that I can call on when I’m beginning to feel burnout. They are also online writers and are often going through the exact same thing I am. It helps to know that I’m not alone AND they usually know how to motivate me and get me back on track.
4. No more procrastination. There is nothing worse than having a due date pounce on you without having any of the work started. Begin the project as soon as you get the assignment and work on it in pieces. Use the due date to do any editorial work that might need to be done.
The key to avoiding writer’s burnout is to write about things that you enjoy, create variety through different jobs (or your own blog), and spreading out the writing over a longer period of time. Scheduling can be one of the most valuable tools, especially for an online writer. Take a few steps to lay out your writing so that burn out doesn’t fine its way into your career.
February 16th, 2008
Crock pots are one of the most amazing inventions of the entire 20th Century. Forget the automobile, the television or even the computer. Any thing that allows you to cook a family meal without being in the house has my vote. The crock pot rules!
The only problem I have with crock pots is that I don’t have enough of them. Right now I’m getting ready for a party (technically I have been all night long) and both of my crock pots are cooking away. If I had just two more crock pots, I’d start some desserts or some sides. The world should know that a crock pot is good for more than roast and stew.
1. Bake a cake. Crock pots make surprisingly moist cakes, but don’t try to serve it with a knife. Mix the cake according to directions. Spray oil around the crock pot before pouring the batter in the crock pot. Let cook on low for three to four hours then top with your favorite syrup (fudge for chocolate cakes and fruit syrup for white cakes). Use a spoon to dig down through all the amazing goodness.
2. Warm the guest with a fruit compost. Layer sliced fresh apples, peaches and pineapple (about two cups each) in a crock pot. Pour about ½ cup of honey over the fruit. Top with a couple of lemon slices and a cinnamon stick. Let cook on low for about 3 or 4 hours. Add sliced banana just before serving. You can include any fruits that you feel hold up well during cooking (blue berries) or go well with this combination. Experiment with sweetness, variety, and serving options (serve over ice cream, over fresh blondies, or alone with a fresh cup of coffee).
3. Kick up the sides. Don’t just start your roast before you leave for work. Get a second crock pot and start your sides as well. Mushroom rice is a great for pairing with a slow cooked roast. Combine a can of beef consommé, French onion soup, and 2 ¼ cups of water. Pour into the crock pot. Add ½ cup of butter, and two cups of rice (equal parts wild rice and brown rice make a rich combination). Cook on low for 7 hours.
4. Don’t forget the vegetables. Cut your favorite vegetables (or those that are available fresh right now) into small cubed pieces. Include potatoes (about 4 cups) that have been cubed as well. Combine with ½ cup of onion, 1 clove of garlic, ½ tsp of sugar, ½ tsp of dill weed and a dash of salt and pepper. Let cook on low for about 5 hours until the vegetables are tender.
There is so much that can be done with the crock pot. Remember that low and slow is the best way to utilize the crock pot. If you are in a tight, kicking the temperature up to high will decrease the cooking time by about half.
Another great invention that goes with the crock pots are these new crock pot liners. Now clean up is as easy as the cooking.
Drag out your crock pot and do some experimenting with your favorite casserole dishes. You may find that you fall in love with these wonderful contraptions. I know that just as soon as I can clear out some storage space, I’m adding to my collection of crock pots. Dinner will be a simple as a flip of a switch. Now, if I can just make it to dinner with all the aromas wafting through the house.
February 16th, 2008
Girls may want to have fun, but kids just want some attention. You can save yourself and them a lot of trouble by planning time for the kids every day. It doesn’t have to be much (or extravagant). They just want to know that you are there and available.
1. Eat together as a meal every chance you get. Even if it’s just fast food, still take the time to sit around the table and talk (about the day, the weather or the normal nonsensical stuff that kids can come up with).
2. Say a prayer at night. Do it one on one with each child or as a family with everyone getting a chance to add something if he wants. Not only is this great family time, but it also teaches a habit that will help your children for the rest of their lives.
3. Turn off the electronics. Read together as a family instead. It will help everyone wind down at the end of the day and make sleep something that comes easy.
4. Just say yes. When your child asks if you’ll play with him then say yes – even if you had something else you needed or wanted to do. Taking thirty minutes to play a game of Go Fish will not bring the world to an end.
5. Talk in the car. When you are shuffling from activity to activity, don’t drown out each other with the radio. Use that time to find out about what your child is doing or experiencing. They will know that what they are doing is important and that you are interested. (It will also make them less likely to misbehave or skip out since they know you’ll be asking questions).
A little attention now can help you develop lasting relationships with your children – something that will be extremely valuable as they grow up and face situations where your guidance could help. Make time to enjoy your children while they are still children enough to enjoy.
February 3rd, 2008
How I feel is no reason for not doing what I know to do. It IS an excuse, but those are a dime a dozen and don’t really mean anything. The truth is that if I’ll just do what I know to do then it usually over comes my feelings anyway.
I’ve challenged my family (veiled attempt at challenging my husband) to follow the chore chart for 21 days in a row. According to some expert I read somewhere, if you do something for 21 days then it becomes a habit. I figure if I can get my whole clan to do the chores on the list everyday for 21 days then I won’t have to nag them any more.
Times like that (when I put them in print) help me see just how delusional I am.
Delusional or not, I’m still going to attempt to form some kind of consistency in my family.
1. Use a timer to clock the chore time. A specific amount of time at a specific point in the day with the challenge to do as much as you can in that time – EVERYONE participates (which means mom will have to quit writing!).
2. Focus on baby steps. Instead of pushing them for the 21 days, we can start at just one day. After a week of getting a “treat” for consistently doing it each day we will move it out to a week (and a bigger treat). After a couple of weeks of being consistent with the week then we will move it to a month (that’s even MORE than what “they” say sets a good habit).
3. Be an example. It doesn’t motivate anyone when I sit at the computer working while yelling at them through the house. I need to pick up a broom or mop or rag and get to work. If I am will to work and make it fun then the kids will jump on in. It’s the dictatorship that they rebel against.
4. Reality has to come into the picture. We live in the woods (dirt and sand seem to jump right through any open door). We have pets (pet fur wads together under a standing piece of furniture in the attempt at creating new animals. It doesn’t matter how often you sweep, the fur will find each other). We have kids (do I really have to explain?). The house will never be prefect for more than a few minutes (unless the kids are away). It is lived in and will show it, but that is okay.
Our family can reach a place of consistency. We are already on the way (we just don’t do EVERYTHING consistently). By this time next year, the house will be lived-in clean, clutter free, and ready for company at the drop of a hat!
See – I really am delusional.
December 20th, 2007
Cleaning has never been a priority in my life. My clothes were often separated by piles – (a) these need to be washed and (b) these have just been washed. My lack of organization almost drove my husband nuts in the beginning of our marriage. Now he says he’s just given up (or given in).
In the spirit of compromise, I have been working hard to become more clutter conscious. My mother-in-law was over the top, so I will never compare to that. Plus, there are three boys (and often a gaggle of guy friends) all running in and out of the house on a regular basis. It’s getting there, though. Now I can have guests over without needed a one week warning that they are coming!
1. Make a schedule. The things that have to be done weekly or monthly are charted out and hung for the whole world to see. It has gone through more changes and tweaking than I can remember, but what hangs there now works for our family most days. Mon – Thurs each has about three or four things that need to be done. On Friday, I tackle an entire room (organize, de-clutter, wash curtains, clean the ceiling fans, and re-arrange – mostly to annoy my husband). Saturday and Sunday are both kept empty. It’s free time for the family!
2. Enlist the family. Not only is there a chore chart for the weekly chores, but daily chores (sweeping, picking up, feeding the animals, even fixing meals) is divided among the whole family. The chores are printed out on individual cards and at the first of each month we take turns dividing them out. At least no one can come to me and ask, “What do I need to do?” Everyone wakes up knowing just what is expected.
3. Work as a team. The more we cooperate, the faster we get things done. It’s important that we all understand that the jobs aren’t about the individual, the jobs and chores are about keeping the home looking and feeling its best. It’s about good stewardship. Twice a day (first thing in the morning and just after dinner) we come together to knock out all the chores (personal and weekly). We make it a race against time to see how much we can do before the buzzer goes off.
4. Be consistent – especially in the beginning. It takes about 21 days of doing something every day in order to make it a habit. Challenge the family to do all of the chores for twenty one days – offer a prize at the end that everyone can enjoy. After that, strive for a consistent chore time so that each person knows what is expected of them and when it is expected.
5. Create a home for your things. The new rule in our home is if you want to keep something, you have to make a home (and that home can’t be stacked on top of something else or sitting on MY desk!). If it is found outside its home, it is subject to banishment.
6. Do one more things. Every night before I go to be, I look over my list of accomplishments for the day. I try to push my self to do just one more thing before I go to be. It’s amazing how much nicer the morning is when you wake up to a home that is clean and clutter free.
Fourteen years of marriage has slowly guided me to the place I am today. My home is still not perfect. There are days when nothing gets done – or at least it feels that way. There are mornings when I don’t want to get up because I know what I will face when I walk in the kitchen. There is still a lot of room for growing and maturing in my clutter free life. It’s getting there, though.
December 8th, 2007
The schedule around our house has been a little warped these last couple of months. Just when you think you have it under control – bam! You’re hit with a major mix up. Trying to keep a semblance of normalcy is difficult enough without adding the burden of expanding my responsibilities. But it has to be done.
1. Keep it organized. Everything is written on one giant calendar the INSTANT it is scheduled (or as close to then as if physically possible). Like most things, if you wait then you’ll forget.
2. Keep it close. There is also a smaller calendar in my wallet, in case I’m confronted while I’m out. One quick glance will tell me if I can make that meeting, or if I have jury duty.
3. Plan ahead. You know those days that are going to be crazy long before they get here. Tuesdays are our crazies. We have bible study/play date at our home, Choir practice at church, and basketball at the local gym. This is not the day for a gourmet meal. Either something will go into the crock-pot first thing in the morning, or else the picnic basket will make its way into the menu (sandwiches CAN be fun you know).
4. Don’t give in. If no one has done the dishes, or the laundry, or the picking up, it can be overwhelming. Don’t give into the urge to panic. Start small. If you have a cleaning schedule (and you should) then follow that. If you can pick up an extra thing or two then do; if you can’t do more then don’t. Truth be told, you’ll probably be surprised at how quickly the jobs actually go once you quit dreading them and just start doing them.
5. Stay focused. Distractions will not get the job done – often they just add more work. If you know you have to get the laundry done, then don’t let the unexpected visit from you mother and law keep you from doing it. Politely excuse yourself while you start a load. If she’s still there after it dries then invite her to come in the laundry room while you fold.
Keeping a schedule really comes from making it a habitually part of your life. If you can keep your schedule for just three weeks, you’ll find that you can keep your schedule no matter what unexpected events get thrown your way.
October 31st, 2007
Having a balanced schedule does not mean giving up all the things you love to do in order to do the things you need to do. It simply requires that you manage your time and eliminate the things in your life that don’t enhance your goals or that do create more work.
1. Write out the goals you have for your personal life, your family life, and your career. Include short term goals (monthly or yearly) and long term goals (five years and ten years).
2. Make a schedule of all the things that you do in one week. Include all meeting, drive time, and commitments. Be sure you put in time for chores (like cooking, laundry, and cleaning).
3. Circle all the things you enjoy doing.
4. Highlight all the things you feel you are “called” to do.
5. Mark out those things that you don’t like to do and isn’t helping you in your long term goals.
6. Look at the things that you marked out. Is this something you can easily pass on to another member of your family or group? Maybe your husband is the chef in the family (or maybe one of the older children is showing a desire to work in the kitchen). Is it a job that would be better for you to PAY someone else to do (mow the lawn or clean the house)? Is it something that doesn’t really have to be done by anyone? Let go of those things that you don’t have to do.
7. Rewrite your schedule with just those items you have circled or highlighted. Overcome the urge to fill in the gaps. Allow your free time to be free time. You don’t have to schedule every minute in order to have an orderly life.
8. Think before you take on a new assignment. Ask yourself if it’s something that will enhance your goals, bring your family closer together, or make your future brighter?
9. Learn to say no. Just because you are asked doesn’t mean you have to agree. “Just say no” is a great motto to live by.
10. Enjoy your life. If you are doing things that make you miserable then you will be a miserable person to be around. Enjoy your life and the people around you will soon follow suit.
Being busy doesn’t mean you are using your time wisely. A balanced schedule is one that is focused and purposeful. By eliminating some activities, you can make your life (and your family’s experience) one that is full of joy.
October 15th, 2007
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