Professional Organizers Blog Carnival for February 2010: Time Management

Janet — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 14:16:00 +0000

Today I am excited to bring you the first Professional Organizers Blog Carnival with a specific theme. Since February is National Time Management Month, the topic for this month is Time Management, and this month's participants have lots of great tips to share with you and your clients.

The first step to any time management system is Setting Priorities. As Lisa Montanaro says in Time: The Great Equalizer:

The problem with time management is that it is an oxymoron. We can't manage time itself - only what we choose to do with it. Until we stop blaming time and take responsibility for our role in "time management," we won't be able to fully change our relationship with it.

Kimberly Eagles tells us how she plans her time in Organizing My Time- My Ideal Work Week. Kim says that:

Setting priorities is so important when trying to maximize the use of time. I think knowing what is most important is the starting point to being productive and can take you from being very busy to very effective!

If it seems that other people are taking you away from your priorities, you need to read Ramona Creel's post, Teaching People How To Use Your Time. Ramona says:

I can't tell you how often I hear my friends, colleagues, and clients complain about how other people just don't respect their time. You've probably experienced it too -- either at home or at work. But it doesn't have to happen that way!

Sometimes it's not other people, but our own habits that keep us from completing our most important tasks. Does this sound familiar?

"I can't help it! I was born to procrastinate." That was the statement I heard when talking with a new client about a week ago. So I asked her, "Are you happy with your procrastination? Does it serve you well?" "No!" she exclaimed. "That is why I called you. I'm missing important deadlines and my co-workers and family are fed up with me." Do these statements resonate with you? If so, then keep reading. You can overcome procrastination if you learn a few simple secrets.

Stephanie LH Calahan covers this common problem in Learn 5 Secrets to Put Procrastination Off Until Tomorrow. I found it interesting that two people both recommended an online tool called Rescue Time. Is someone trying to tell me something? :) If you've ever run out of day before you ran out of work, be sure to read Joan Kosmachuk's Where does the time go? A free tool to track your computer time and Margaret Lukens' Need a Net Nanny? Rescue Time Provides the Loving Discipline. Once you've identified your challenges and determined your priorities, you're ready to begin Scheduling. Elaine Shannon suggests Batching Tasks a Recipe to Manage What you do with Your Time, and Jane Veldhoven describes her system in her series which begins with Keys To Effective Time Management #1. If the thought of a schedule seems too confining, you need to read Sarah Kimmel's post on Changing Your Mind About Rules & Routines. Sarah tells us to:

Change your attitude about having a set routine for the day. It will actually allow you MORE freedom!

Of course, it's much easier to create and maintain a schedule when you have a time management system that suits your learning style, and Hellen Buttigieg provides some great tips in her post, How To Choose the Best Calendar for You. Several bloggers contributed their favorite Time Saving Tips, including Michelle, who offers a Quick Tip : Keep Reading Material Handy. Angela Esnouf reminds us that time is The Precious Gift and asks:

Do we treat each of our precious hours as a gift? Do we value our time enough?

Ellen Delap recommends Delegating at Work, informing us that:

Delegating can be one of the most important tools for productivity!

There's a lot of excellent time management advice here, but if you know someone who needs a more structured approach to learning, take a look at Anne Blumer's 4 Weeks to Reclaim Your Time eBook, which she describes as follows:

For 28 days follow my Four Week Plan to More Effective Time Management and I will teach you habits that will lead to more control over your time and skills to manage yourself within your time more effectively. Each week covers a different focus: Week One (habits 1-7) creating new habits, goal setting (the foundation of effective time management) and prioritizing Week Two (habits 8-14) time management tools Week Three (habits 15-21) planning and scheduling Week Four (habits 22-28) addressing procrastination.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this month's Professional Organizers Blog Carnival! I'm sorry I couldn't accept all the posts that were submitted. Although all organizing strategies will ultimately save the individual time, I wanted to focus on the specific topic of time management, so I hope no one was offended. To help people get ready for tax time, the theme for March will be financial organization, and you are welcome to submit your post at any time. For those of you who like to plan ahead, the topic for April will be green organizing. If you'd like to suggest a topic for a future Professional Organizers Blog Carnival, please feel free to leave a comment or to contact me directly.

Professional Organizers Blog Carnival – November 2009 Edition

Janet — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:20:48 +0000

Welcome to the November issue of the Professional Organizers Blog Carnival! It's exciting for me to watch the carnival grow, with new bloggers participating every month. Be sure to take advantage of this opportunity to connect with and learn from your organizing colleagues! There's a lot to read here, so if you can't get through all the links at one sitting, I hope you'll bookmark this post and come back later.

We'll kick things off with some posts about Working with Clients. If you've been watching Hoarders, you might be wondering whether you have what it takes to work with clients with hoarding issues. Find out by reading Geralin Thomas' post, Cleaning a Hoarder’s Home: Not for the Faint of Heart. Can you ever combine friendship and business? Lisa Montanaro says "yes" in Mixing Business With Pleasure: Professional Organizer + Disorganized Friend = Valuable Lessons. Next, we have some Business Strategies in Deb Lee's post, The Entrepreneur's Toolbox: 8 Things You Need to Get. Effective Time Management is crucial to the success of your business, and this topic is covered by Christine Simiriglia in Thirty Minute Time Management Miracle and Margaret Lukens in The Jump-Start Meeting. Alex Fayle says:

Many of us, even Professional Organizers, put off doing things because we think there will be plenty of time to do it later. There won't be. As author Mignon McLaughlin said: "Don't fool yourself that important things can be put off till tomorrow; they can be put off forever, or not at all."

Read more in his post Someday Doesn't Last Forever. Procrastination is also addressed by Claire Tompkins in Why I Procrastinate. Several bloggers share some great Organizing Tips that you can use with your clients or in your own life. In Decluttering Adventure - the Roadmap, Angela Esnouf explains that

The Roadmap is just the start of a Decluttering Adventure, with more steps in the journey to follow.

Hellen Buttigieg explores the psychological benefits of decluttering in her post, Letting Go. Preventing clutter is also important, and this topic is covered by Ramona Creel in Ways To Bring Less Paper Into Your Life, and Jeri Dansky in How to Shop So You Don't Wind Up with Clutter. In Organizing myth: Organize once and never do it again, Lelah Baker-Rabe explains that

Organization requires maintenance; there is no one-time "organization vaccine."

Julie Bestry, AKA the Paper Doll, uncovers some eye-opening information in Who Knows Your Secrets? Part 2: Checking Up on Your Checking History. We'll close off this month's Professional Organizers Blog Carnival with an announcement from Janet Baker about a “Smooth Sailing Document Management” contest drawing for a FREE 7-day Caribbean sailing vacation! Thanks very much to everyone who participated this month! Please show your support by visiting their blogs and leaving some comments – it's a great way to get to know one another! If you've never taken part in the Professional Organizers Blog Carnival, perhaps we'll see you next month!

Organized Assistant » procrastination

Professional Organizers Blog Carnival for February 2010: Time Management

Professional Organizers Blog Carnival – November 2009 Edition