Posts Tagged ‘Time management’

5 Rules to Manage Your Schedule

Posted on: February 23rd, 2016 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Get Productive...

 

         IT’S ABOUT TIME!


Professional organizers can help with time management. Here are our five favourite rules to manage your schedule, tame your to-do list and GET PRODUCTIVE.

1-    Write it down. Trying to keep it all in your head contributes to chaos and causes headaches!

2-    Prepare the night before. We waste SO much time running around every morning! Gather necessary items, lay out your clothes, and set the timer on your coffeepot before you go to bed.

3-    Remind yourself. If note-making is not your style, record verbal notes on your phone or leave yourself a voice mail message.

4-    Make allowances. Some tasks that you THINK will take fewer than five minutes will probably take twice as long. It is also a good idea to plan for an alternate route to appointments in case of traffic delays. Always allow yourself extra time!

5-    Just say NO! Don’t say YES to everyone asking for something. If you find it almost impossible to say NO, set aside time each week for these extra requests. Say NO once that slot of time is filled.

Do YOU have a favourite time management idea? Comment on our BLOG or FACEBOOK PAGE.

 



Timely Words from Ben Franklin

Posted on: February 18th, 2016 by Cathy Mendler No Comments



How Do Professional Organizers Do It?

Posted on: February 11th, 2016 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Cathy Mendler

 

                    HOW DO WE DO IT?

..

 

 

Having a neat and tidy space can feel great, but it is NOT the same as being organized! Professional organizers seem to work magic by finding order from chaos, but we all follow a few simple rules to achieve that objective. Here are our five favourites:

1-Find a place for everything. Store frequently used items nearby and the rest out of the way. When your things don’t have a home, clutter is the end result.

2- Say goodbye. It is tough to let go of things for which you’ve paid money or hold memories, but if they are not usable, dispose of them. It can be even harder to part with something in good working order, but if it doesn’t belong, it needs to go.

3- Time it right. As with anything, you can expect better results if you take on a project when you have the most time and energy to do so. Organizing can be an exhausting process, so plan to work when your energy is at its peak.

4- Break it down. Most organizing projects look huge on the surface, so break it down into smaller, more manageable tasks and smaller chunks of time. Even if you’re feeling overwhelmed, try to do something every day.

5- Find a buddy. Being accountable to someone, a friend, family member, co-worker OR your professional organizer, will help your motivation enormously.

There is much more to organizing, of course, than these five suggestions, but applying them to your own projects will help YOU to do a bit of magic yourself.

P.S.  Do YOU or someone you know need a professional organizer? TAKE OUR TEST and find out for yourself today!



GET CHECKING…Our Archives!

Posted on: January 21st, 2016 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Get Checking...

Check out the GET CHECKING archives on our blog and find YOUR perfect checklist!

 

 

 



Help for the Arm-Long To-Do List!

Posted on: January 19th, 2016 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Get Productive...

..IS YOUR TO DO LIST TOO LONG?

..You may be making THESE mistakes!

Is YOUR To Do list as long as your right arm? Whether it’s on paper, stored on our phones or stuck in our heads, we all have a long list of things undone that are with us constantly. We also tend to make two major mistakes with our lists that could make a HUGE different to our productivity if we could just overcome them!

First, we are often guilty of confusing quantity with quality. Don’t associate your self-worth with the number of things that you check off your list. Accomplishing tasks move us forward, but make sure that you are not working at smaller, urgent yet less important tasks instead of allotting time to complete what is most important first. Review your list again and set some new priorities.

The other huge mistake that we see people make is to use our to-do lists as a form of torture! We create lists that are so long that it is virtually impossible to complete them. Then we feel badly when we don’t accomplish everything that we had set out to do. Negative thoughts take far too much energy and often cause us to be less productive. Reduce the size of your list, reward yourself and feel better about your accomplishments. We wish you all the best in the New Year and hope that these ideas will help you to turn over a new leaf and make 2016 your most organized year yet!

Try these two small suggestions for yourself, and let us know how you did on our BLOG or FACEBOOK PAGE.

 



Melted Snowman Cookies… oh my!

Posted on: January 4th, 2016 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Anyone who knows me knows that I love snowmen. I couldn’t resist sharing this recipe for Easy Melted Snowman Cookies!

Check out this fun way to serve veggies and dip during the holidays.

For more healthy and delicious recipes, check out our Archives!



Melted Snowman Cookies… oh my!

Posted on: January 4th, 2016 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Anyone who knows me knows that I love snowmen. I couldn’t resist sharing this recipe for Easy Melted Snowman Cookies!

Check out this fun way to serve veggies and dip during the holidays.

For more healthy and delicious recipes, check out our Archives!



LAST CHANCE to Get 11 Banner Ads for $40!

Posted on: December 22nd, 2015 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

 

A New Leaf banner ad  GET THE WORD OUT TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS!

  Would you like to see YOUR ad in our next newsletter? For the month of
..December, we’re offering our readers the option to place banner ads in our
..newsletter for all of our 2016 issues. That’s at least 11 issues for the low
..price of $40 for the entire year. We LOVE creating this newsletter for
..you, and we’re proud of our high open rate.
..

Send us an email before the end of December, and we’ll send you the ad specifications and payment details.

 



Get Ready to Get Productive!

Posted on: December 17th, 2015 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

 

Get Productive...
  TAKE BACK YOUR CALENDAR!

  Here are our TOP 5 time-saving ideas for
..December!

MAKE A LIST, CHECK IT TWICE.  In addition to making a list before you head out, ask family members to provide you with their wish list in advance of the Holidays. Take advantage of online wish lists and store registries.

PLAN BACKWARDS. Look at your calendar in terms of deadlines. For instance, if you want your cards in the mail by December 10th, plan for all of the related tasks, such as writing a newsletter and getting stamps, and schedule enough time to complete them prior to your deadline. Do the same to plan for your gifts, meal planning, decorating and all the myriad tasks on your list.

STREAMLINE YOUR GIFT GIVING. Unless you REALLY enjoy them, avoid buying marathons by purchasing gifts online and even outsourcing to an assistant or family member. Having a list and a set budget can help reduce time lost to decision making and retracing your steps. Consider a gift exchange instead of giving a gift to all extended family members individually.

STRATEGIZE YOUR GIFT WRAPPING. Have a dedicated (and well-stocked) location in your home which everyone is expected to use. Encourage your family (and yourself!) to “wrap as you go” and NOT leave it all until the last minute. Another good idea is to purchase a number of the same gifts to give to teachers, hosts/hostesses, bosses, etc. Have a couple of these wrapped and on hand in case guests show up with an unexpected gift.

SIMPLIFY FOOD AND DECORATIONS. Stock your pantry with staples, so that you are well supplied for baking and food preparation. Not every dish and treat needs to be homemade–and neither does every meal! Consider a potluck dinner or giving out assignments. Have decorations like your tree and other greenery delivered.

These are just our TOP FIVE suggestions and you, no doubt, have many more. If you can think of some that we’ve missed, add your comments on our blog or FACEBOOK PAGE.

 



Give the Gift of Organization!

Posted on: November 26th, 2015 by Cathy Mendler No Comments

Gift Certificates

This year, give the gift of organization!
Send a gift certificate to a friend from A New Leaf Organizers!

CLICK HERE for more info.