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By Elaine, February 22, 2010 8:57 am

March break is less than a week away and as I sit here making my huge, really big, gynormous…OMG will I ever get it all finished in 4 days list, I wonder how people who are not organizationally gifted get it all done!

The tasks of this week in front of me are not even on the Top 5 …these tasks require a whole different strategy…

Batching these tasks will work to a certain point but it requires so much more…

Because I love all of you and know that this is a big struggle point with many people here are my techniques that you can use for getting things done.

I am sure that you have heard this saying before….I have, and I use it regularly in presentations and with clients.

How do you eat and Elephant? One bite at a time.

Meaning…you have a huge list, you have a certain time frame to complete all the things on the list and you are now paralyzed by the whole big thing….Did I hit that nail on the head?

This is how I am going to tackle the week so I can go away and have a great family vacation, confident that I have handled all that I CAN handle, delegated where I could and took control of the week.

***warning***

When you have a week like this lighten the load where you can and DO NOT….I repeat DO NOT take on anything else…not even if a cute little old lady needs help this week, stranded puppy dogs or even a good friend…you have enough on your plate…just say NO.

That being said here we go.

• Separate your list for the week into things that you have to do for work and the things that you have to do  for family/home.
• Delegate all the family/home  tasks accordingly. Enlist the troops and allow everyone to pitch in…you do not have to do this alone.
• Group things that require a trip to the bank, insurance company, drug store for supplies, etc and take one morning to do these running around things.

Get your highlighter out and as you finish each thing on the list scratch it off…that one technique always keeps me going as I get er done!

Attempt to accomplish as much as you can at the beginning of the week…leaving time for unexpected things as the deadline approaches.

I must go now and get at that list…may the force be with me!

No elephants were injured during this post…they were only used for illustrative purposes

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By Elaine, February 17, 2010 9:32 am

Yes there is an actual cost…real dollars that come from your bottom line if you are disorganized….I am not referring here to being messy…real organization means being able to find things when you need them.

The Cost of Disorganization comes right from your bottom-line!

Every minute you spend looking for something is time that you would otherwise spend on important company tasks like writing proposals, prospecting new clients, following up on leads…I think you know what I mean.

Disorganization has many costs:

• Money
• Time
• Productivity
• Your Health
• Your Reputation

Consider that the Wall Street Journal reports the average US Executive loses 6 weeks per year retrieving misplaced information from messy desks and files. The cost in salary and lost productivity is enormous.

Want to calculate the bottom-line impact of disorganization to your company…check out this calculator?

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By Elaine, February 16, 2010 10:44 am

OK …this is not a post about bicycling….it is another cycle we are talking about here!

***This post will be helpful to all my female readers who wonder why they work differently during the course of the month. For all my male readers this post will shed some light on the amazing ways that women work.***

A very wise woman friend and co-worker of mine shared this productivity secret with me many years ago. She was the most productive person in our office… she met and actually exceeded targets…she was the company superstar.

I asked her how she did this month after month…year after year

The productivity secret wasn’t really a secret…it was something that we all know innately but have forgotten. This gal was aware of herself and her cycle and she applied this to her work and because of it she was able to work circles around all of us. It wasn’t rocket science….

Productivity Secret-There are specific times of the month that certain tasks flow better than others….

I have mentioned this in my presentations before. The room goes quiet, eyebrows are raised….yes…deep thinking is happening.  That aha moment when we realize that there are weeks of the month that we could conquer the world, write 100 proposals, build a school….and there are times of the month when you could bite the head off a small child…ok that may be a bit harsh but there are days when all you want to do is curl up with a good book and a hot cuppa.

So why for heavens sake do you plan strategic meetings on a week where the possibility of hurting your co-workers is pretty high?

Just for fun;

• Figure out where you are in your cycle right now
• Evaluate how your week is going
• Which of your Top 5 items are you accomplishing
• What things are you avoiding
• What would you rather be doing

Now you need to get deliberate about what you do and when you do it. For instance on power week plan all the activities that need your highest energy level, on the introspective week do your deep thinking….etc.

Here are some more great articles and resources that I have found about this Productivity Secret.

Miranda Gray- A 28-day plan to help you Boost  Productivity and Work satisfaction

Honoring the Feminine

Do the cycles of Moon affect us? I found this great resource at Evolving Alchemy

Now if you will excuse me I have to go and curl up in ball, pull the quilt up over my head and have a good cry!

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By Elaine, February 15, 2010 8:14 am

I was warned that this would happen…

People told me to be prepared…

Well that day has come…

I woke up this morning and the creative well is dry, it is shriveled up,  I don’t have one thing that I feel like writing about. The productivity of the past few months is fading fast.

Could it be that I have hit a creative wall?

Did the ups and mostly downs of the past 7 days finally take their toll?

Oh my…will the thrill of writing these posts and feeling the words flow seamlessly out of my fingertips on to the virtual paper come back to me?

I am sure that tomorrow or even later today I will feel inspired…I Hope!

How do you handle creative dry spells? What techniques do you use during the creative times to help with the not so creative days? Please share.

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By Elaine, February 9, 2010 9:24 am

I have been asked  this month to be a part of Janey Barclay’s Professional Organizer Blog Carnival . This carnival is a collection of Blog Posts written by professional organizers. This is a huge honor to be in such esteemed company and for you this is an awesome collection of resources to help you get and stay organized.

This months theme in “Time Management”.

The Dictionary says that management is…the act or manner of managing; handling, direction, or control.

Let me start by saying that I do not believe that you can control or manage time!

….yes I have said it out loud. Let the controversy begin….What I do believe is that we can manage, direct, handle or control how we use our “Valuable Time” and how we manage, direct, handle or control how to fill the “Valuable Minutes”  in our day.

With this all in perspective now I would like to introduce you to “Batching”.

I am not talking about cookie baking here I am talking “Tasks”….you know the stuff that fills our day and uses up our Valuable Time.

“Batching Tasks “ is quite simple….you take similar tasks that require the same thinking process or have similar activities attached to the tasks and you do them at the same time.

Here are some real life examples of how you can use “Batching Tasks” to increase productivity and save Valuable Time for other activities.

• Checking and replying to e-mail at certain times during the day….not every second of the day.
• Returning phone call from the day at a specified time at the end of the day.
• Combining tasks that take 5 minutes or less to do using your “5 Minute File“.
• Bookkeeping and finances, yes it has to be done, pick a time batch it up and Just Do It…

I am sure that there are many more examples but these are the most common, you will certainly find ways to Batch your own tasks as you maneuver through your activity filled days.

Managing your tasks and not your time!

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By Elaine, February 2, 2010 9:15 am

If you ask anyone that knows me really well… TODAY they will say that I am a Ready, Fire, Aim kinda gal….Well it has not always been that way. They will probably say that I have no fear and really do Take Charge! in my life….

It was not always so…and how does someone go from having a difficult time with decisions, becoming stuck at every turn and letting great things pass you by because you were waiting for the PERFECT time to do something….to someone who jumps at opportunities and loves challenges.

Life happens….and I am sure it happens to everyone at some point or another…mine happened one day when I could not live the life I had and wanted something different…but I did not know that yet.

I had to put the need for perfection into perspective, I had to stop being afraid and lastly I had to stop procrastinating. Procrastination is essentially postponed decisions…the last step in my evolution was to start making decisions, decisions that are right for me…and not being afraid of mistakes….

For more information on Procrastination please read this awesome article by Monica Ricci.

Finally be honest with yourself today….what decisions are you postponing and if you took a stand and made the decision where would that road lead to?

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By Elaine, February 1, 2010 10:27 am

Over 5 years ago I learned one of the most valuable KICKASS Business Tips ever… No really I am not kidding.

I learned it from Cameron Herold who read it somewhere….and used the concept for himself with some…OK lots of success…check out his bio…and, at that very small conference that he happened to be at 5 years ago…actually he was not supposed to be there at all, he was the stand in speaker…he shared a very simple yet profound concept that not only changed my life but all the people I share it with.  Just in case I never said it personally…Thanks Cameron for that nugget.

That nugget is The Top 6 things I must do Tomorrow . It is a story about Ivy Lee and Charles Schwab.

Around 100 years ago, Charles Schwab, president of Bethlehem Steel, wanted to increase his own efficiency, and of the management team at the steel company. Ivy Lee, a well-known efficiency expert of the time, approached Mr. Schwab, and made a proposition Charles Schwab could not refuse:

Ivy Lee: “I can increase your people’s efficiency – and your sales – if you will allow me to spend 15 minutes with each of your executives.” ….read the rest of the story

Over the years I have modified Ivy’s method and have come up with my own version, it goes like this.

• At the end of the work week take 15 minutes and think about your annual goals.
• Take a simple recipe card and write down 5 things you want to accomplish that feed into your annual goals.
• Any paper or files that are related to the 5 goals needs to be gathered together.
• Take those 5 things and put the most important on the top and organize the rest in descending importance.
• E-mail a copy of this list to yourself and mark it important.

What you have now is your game plan for the next week. Wow…you can actually relax this weekend knowing that you have a game plan. It is out of your head and on paper…what a stress reliever.

Oh and did I mention that they are the goals for the WHOLE week…not for a single day. So by the end of the week if you accomplish only the first 2 items you have tackled 2 very important tasks that add to your bottom line.

Now I have to ask…”Is that the most awesome KICKASS Business Tip Ever?”

As a side note here is my Top 5 for this week.

-Mail Organizing Connection Home Organizing Videos to Costco Head Office Buyer.
-Add Clutter to Clarity Lunch and Learn page to website and promote to 10 local companies, get testimonial from past clients for the page.
-Send E-Mail out to Professional Organizer Biz 101 participants regarding the schedule, payments and what we are doing each week.
-Add 6 Blog posts this week
-Finish reading “Made to Stick” and do a book review live on Ustream .

Please note that all these goals feed into my annual goals. This is not everything I will do this week as urgent things come up and to be honest you need to address some urgent stuff when it happens. If I accomplish one of these items every week for the next year I will have completed 52 strategic steps towards my goals. I would say that is better than nothing!

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By Elaine, January 25, 2010 6:59 am

Today while catching up on several blogs and cleaning out my in-box I was struck by a very simple message from a hard working guy,Gary Vaynerchuk , a guy who says what he means and means what he says…and these 9 words he said hit me like an ICEBERG…”HARD WORK is never not part of the formula”.

I got a visual on this very simple message right away and it was an ICEBERG. Typically only one-tenth of the volume of an iceberg is above water…that means that the 9/10 that is unseen is holding up that 1/10 that you do see…now lets compare this to the amount of work that goes into an “Overnight SUCCESS”.

Investigate any of the so called overnight successes and you will find the story behind the story;

Lady Gaga started playing piano at 4, writing songs at 13, playing in bars at 16, was rejected more times than she can count and never gave up. At 23 she is an Overnight Success!

Adam Lambert has been a stage actor since 10, at age 20 he was acting in musicals and in 2005 started his music career. In 2009 at age 27 he was runner up for American Idol…another overnight SUCCESS!

In 1990 Jack Canfield shared his vision for the Chicken Soup Series with Mark Victor Hansen, which he had been contemplating for years. After 3 years of compiling stories the first book was published and October of 1993 hit the best seller list. Was this another instance of overnight SUCCESS?

Do I need to continue..I think you get what I am saying!

Next time the little green monster shows up when discussing someone else in regards to their Overnight SUCCESSs..think about that Iceberg and that fact that you have only seen 1/10 of what that person did to get to where they are and then ask yourself if you are willing to do the HARD WORK necessary to be an Overnight SUCCESS.

Again, I would like to thank Gary Vee who’s latest post  inspired me on this post…OH, by the way you are seeing 1/10 th of the work that was put into what you are reading…

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By Elaine, January 18, 2010 2:26 pm

I challenge you right now to take 15 minutes to gather up all the bits of paper currently cluttering your desk, floor, chair…etc, and put it aside…together…in a folder…to work on at a time that is more convenient. By convenient I mean when you can take some uninterrupted time to Git-R-Done!

This gathering of the papers does not include client files or projects…they are THE most important things that you are working on right now…the things that you determined in your annual planning add to the bottom line.

I mean the notes, bills, receipts, invoices, and non-urgent mail…now, are you getting my drift!  Take it all right now and stuff it in a folder. Go do it…what are you waiting for.

Welcome back…feels good to have that control!

By doing this one simple task you will save yourself some VALUABLE  TIME in the long run, you would be less DISTRACTED by all the unimportant things that are messing up your workspace…the crappy stuff that you really don’t like to do, that really doesn’t get done often enough.

If you did it today it would make you more effective and productive in your Home Office. You would feel in control of all that paper that is laying around. Gosh darn it you would be using basic Time Management and Productivity principles.

If you did take the time to do this today you would have just created the “5 Minute File”.

I always like to try these new ideas out first before sharing, so at the start of the month I created my own “5 Minute File”. A very plain white folder with a label that reads “5 Minute File”. I gathered all the loose papers that did not relate to important client stuff and filed it away….and totally forget about it…that is not the intention of this file. My first mistake was to file it away in my side desk drawer.

So the tweaking began…I am an out of sight out of mind kinda gal….Yes I am “Visual” I need to see what I have on the go. So the file has now moved from the desk drawer to the table behind my desk with all my current files.

Gathering and creating the folder was just the first part. Getting to the task at hand is another issue. I have scheduled a time slot in my week to tackle the “5 Minute File”, it will be on a day that I am focusing on non client related stuff and I am giving myself a reward for completing this CRAPPY task…because to be honest I would rather do anything else than do this paperwork stuff…so believe me you are not alone. What I do know is that not doing it is not an option. So by batching all these quick 5 Minute Tasks into one session I am using my VALUABLE time more effectively and I am Gittin-R- Done.

I hope this “5 Minute File” works for you as well as it has been working for me.

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By Elaine, December 4, 2009 10:57 am

Planning day for 2010 has been a few days in the making. The Skipper is off at sea and the children are at the Grandparents in the country decorating and having a great visit. I am now home alone with my flip-chart, markers and a head full of possibilities.

Now comes the tricky part… taking all my ideas, possibilities and dreams for 2010 and Organizing them into a plan for the New Year. For this to happen I have a system I am going to use to keep me on track and focused. To be honest this focus stuff is why most people say they want to do planning but can’t… you need to stay focused.

I am breaking my next 2 days up into segments where I will focus on 5 key areas of my life… and thanks to James Ray and his book Harminic Wealth… The Secret of Attracting the life you want I have a great template for this first step.

James refers to the 5 pillars of your life as;

• Financial – This is your wealth building pillar, I will deal with my life’s work in this section.
• Relational – By knowing and loving yourself you are able to love others, I will dig into all my relationships here.
• Mental – Turning your thoughts into action. What is my unique Genius and how am I using it?
• Physical – Moving toward life. Checking on my health and all areas related.
• Spiritual – The bridge to Spirit. How have I been showing up in my relationship with my creator?

I question and challenge myself in all of these areas and how I am showing up in all these areas of my life. During this questioning I use another resource from a mentor of mine. Michael Losier from my hometown of Saint John NB Canada is the How To Expert on the Law Of Attraction. His Contrast through Clarity worksheet is always the basis I use for doing this check-up.

Although I have 2 full days to work on this amazing process I will probably spend the whole month of December tweaking my Vision for 2010.

Tonight after I have all the ideas on paper and out of my head…. sometimes I have so much in there it hurts, I will create a vision… Thanks to Tracey for helping me with this part. I will close my eyes and imagine it is December 31st  2010 and I am reviewing the past year. Savouring all the wonderful moments I have shared with my family, belly laughs I have shared with close friends and recalling the excitement of successes I have enjoyed in my life’s work.

As Stephen Covey says in his second habit, you “Need to begin with the End in Mind”.

As the time nears 10:00 am I am ready to start my planning, I challenge you today to join me and create your own plan for a ROCKIN 2010!