Organize More

There are hundreds, even thousands, of ideas to help us manage our time, get and stay organized, and reduce stress. Below are ten that I think offer a lot of "bang for the buck".

Please take and use these Ten Key Organizing Tips as cliff notes for your organizing journey!

1. Use One Calendar

I can’t stress this enough. There are only 24 hours in a day. You can only allocate a block of time once. Keep business, family, and other items on one calendar. If you consolidate calendars, you’ll never have the feeling like you’re supposed to be in two places at once again.  Find out more about how to Keep One Calendar 

2. Make Appointments for Everything

The only way you will ever find time to do the things that you never seem have time to do is to schedule them in. Schedule in an hour for exercise… schedule in time catch up on your reading… schedule in your grocery shopping. If its in your calendar, you’ll do it without guilt or worry.

3. Use timers to stay on schedule

Sometimes we lose track of time when engaged in certain types of tasks. For times when you know you tend to “lose yourself”, use a timer to signal when you need to move on. At home I set the timer on the microwave… in the office I use the timer on my PDA. We all need a little “beep” now and again to keep us moving.

4. Save a tree by cutting back on junk mail

Visit this site and have them remove you from lists you don't want to be on: DirectMail.com .

5. Make the most of idle time

We throw away a lot of time in our day in many ways: waiting for appointments, standing in long lines, commuting, etc. Use that time wisely, doing something you love. Read while in line. Knit in the waiting room. Listen to “books on tape” during your commute. You’ll be amazed at how productive those precious moments can be.

6. De-clutter and Label

My favorite gadget is my label maker. When you take the time to straighten up and organize your clutter, you need to make sure that you are labeling what you are putting away. Label the boxes, and label the things that go into the boxes. Our memories are already over-taxed. Trust me: In three months you will need help remembering what the green key in the brown box opens.

7. Keep receipts

Keep an expanding file with appropriately labeled sections for all of your receipts. Keep the file near where you do you household business (paying bills, etc.) or in your office. As you run through your day, have a preselected place in your wallet where you keep your receipts. When your wallet is full, transfer the receipts to the correct section of the expanding file. The process should take less than 5 minutes but it will add hours to your life, especially around tax time.  Or better yet, ditch the paper all together and learn how to go paperless.

8. Manage directions

Create a folder in word (or whatever program you are comfortable using) with directions to places that you go infrequently. Whenever you need them, you can print out a copy or download the directions to your PDA. For ease of use, do the same for directions to your house from several different starting points. When you need to give someone directions, you can email the file to them.

9. Use a “to do” list

I write down everything. If I don’t write it down, it doesn’t get done. Keep a list and take control of your day/week/month/year. I start with a huge list of everything I need or want to get done in the week. I then take those tasks and fit them in to my operating schedule for the week. Each day ends up containing a subset of tasks from the larger “to do” list that is manageable for that particular day. On most days, I get it all done, and have a great feeling of satisfaction. Here's a great article about managing your "to-do" list.

10. Toss it (into the recycling bin, of course)

Go through your paper… all of your paper. If you’ve read the magazine, pass it on. If you’ve looked through the catalog, recycle it. If you haven’t had time to look through the magazine or catalog, put it in your bag and look at it while in line at the bank/grocery store/whatever. Recycle your newspapers every week, and have a place to keep them in the interim. Immediately put all junk mail in the recycling… you didn’t ask for it, you don’t need it, don’t waste your time reading it.