Secrets of Organized People

So here we are, 100 days into 2011. Did you make resolutions back at the first of the year? If so, how are you doing?

Have you made any progress? Or have you forgotten them completely? Or maybe you’ve just given up?

Don’t be discouraged! Instead, let’s make a better plan.

It IS possible to make the changes you want in your life.  Sometimes we just need a better method.  Often we make our goals, resolutions, plans or even to do lists so vague that we set ourselves up for failure.  The problem is that what we’ve written down cannot possibly be accomplished.

Let me give you an example.  A common New Year’s resolution is to lose weight.  So let’s put that on the to do list:

                              * lose weight

Ok, now what?  There it is, staring at you, but what in the world do you do with it?

The key to accomplishing any goal is to make a plan.  Each step in your plan must be specific, not vague, this is often where we run into problems.  Getting back to our example, perhaps the plan is to count calories and exercise.  Ok, then, here’s our list:

                              * count calories
                              * exercise

That’s a little better, but still, how do  you accomplish each step?

Here’s my simple rule for items on a to do list or in a plan:

Each item much be such that after gathering the necessary supplies, you could start on it right now.

Once again, back to our example.  Let’s think of all the steps involved in “counting calories.”

1. Determine how many calories I should have daily in order to lose weight.
2. Find a tool that tells me how many calories different foods have.  (Like Fitday.com or a Calorie Counting book.)
3. Decide how I’m going to keep track of my daily calories. (A cell phone app, a notepad, computer software.)
4. Buy any necessary tools I need to help me measure calories. (Like a scale or measuring cups.)

Now, pick one item that list and picture yourself doing it right now.  Is it doable?  If so, then now you know you have a workable plan.  If not, then perhaps it needs to be broken down even further.   

If you apply the principle of making a plan that consists of doable steps, you’ll find yourself less frustrated  and well on your way to accomplishing your goals, no matter what the time of year.

Oh, and by the way, ANY time is a good time to start, even today. 

Wishing you blessings,

Sandy

Technorati Tags: life changes, life plan, making lists, resolutions

Last week I finally got around to a BIG organizing project that I’ve been wanting to do for a long time: reorganizing our entire bookcase. 

I thought you might find it helpful to see my methods and thinking process, so I took some video of the different steps.  (This is the way I approach just about any organizing project, by they way.)

Here’s the finished product:

And here’s the process: (The whole thing took a little over three hours, not bad!)

One thing to note is that as soon as I finished the last bit of video, I became aware of three more stacks of books in my house that needed sorting into the new system.  Augh.  But, you may have noticed on the video that there was plenty of empty space. 

There’s a lesson here for you:  Whenever you reorganize, make sure to leave some room for growth.  You will probably need it more quickly than you think!

Happy organizing,

Sandy

Technorati Tags: decluttering, get organized, getting organized, home office organization, home organization, how to declutter, how to get organized, how to organize, how to organize your house, organize bookcase, reorganize books

Are you the person responsible for keeping the memories in your family? Perhaps you’re a scrapbooker, or maybe you just want to keep track of those precious items like photos and memorabilia. Here’s a simple tip for getting organized:

Make a folder for each calendar year. As items cross your path, toss keepsakes into their corresponding folder. Some of these things might include special cards you’ve received, flyers, brochures, ticket stubs, napkins and the like.

As a scrapbooker this is very helpful if you have a backlog of photos to scrap, especially if you work chronologically. Once you start a particular year, you can pull out the folder that goes with it and see what else you have to include in your pages.

If you aren’t a scrapbooker, at least you know that these precious items are safely tucked away where you can find them and aren’t in danger of being lost or accidentally thrown out.

Technorati Tags: getting organized, home organization, how to organize your house, memories, organizing memorabilia, scrapbooking, scrapbooks

There are many occasions where it’s helpful to make organized lists.  Often these are things were do regularly, but not frequently.  Annual events like Christmas or vacations fall into this category, as do special events like throwing a wedding or shower, or even a large dinner party. 

Make sure that once you’ve gone through all the hard work of figuring and planning that you don’t have to do it all over again the next time.  Make a master list of everything, including all the details and information you’ve come across in your research.  Keep this in a safe place, filed and labeled clearly. 

Some examples of master lists would be:  people to give Christmas gifts, a packing list for vacation, things to do before taking a trip, packing for a move, yearly household organizing or vehicle maintenance.

One of the most useful master lists I’ve ever made I call “Settings on My Computer.” 

Sadly, there have been a few times when the best option for solving my computer problems was to reinstall the operating system.  Sounds daunting, I know, but it’s much less so with this list. 

It contains:

• Every program that is installed, listed in the order that I’ve found they need to be installed
• Notes next to each program for how to solve problems or deal with quirks.  For example, the first thing I need to install on my computer is the drivers and I have this note: 

Drivers (from Dell Resource CD – make sure to get Sigmatel for the audio even though it’s not checked)         

• What programs need drivers and where to find them
• Usernames and passwords for online access to my web server
• Serial numbers and passkeys for several programs
• The icons & folders that I like to keep on my desktop 

As you can imagine, this makes the process a million times easier than if I had to dig up all this info all over again. 

So the next time you find yourself working on a project and realize, “I know I’ve done this work before,” do yourself a favor, get organized and start making a list for next time.  You’ll be glad you did!

Wishing you the best,

Sandy

Technorati Tags: getting organized, home office organization, home organization, home organizing, how to get organized, how to organize, time management