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We know how busy you are. So once a month we'll pick one topic to highlight and offer some tips and ideas for you to explore. We hope that these In Focus features will help you get organized, find new resources, and make your work-life juggling act go a bit more smoothly. This month, Work It, Mom! focuses on getting organized -- at work, at home, and in general.
1.) Get a great planner to help organize your schedule. Put your PDA to good use, try managing your time online with Google Calendar, or go with the tried-and-true -- an old-school day planner. Even a basic, notebook-style planner with plenty of room for you to jot down notes -- the Mom Agendas at See Jane Work are great -- will help you manage your time more efficiently.
2.) Get a great tool to organize your stuff. Lara Gallagher calls herself The Lazy Organizer but, really, there doesn’t seem to be anything lazy about her. She makes some great points and has real-life tips on her blog, but we just love her organization bags. They come in several different sizes and are made of sturdy nylon and transparent vinyl, so you can see what you’re keeping inside each one.
3.) Talk to an expert. Professional organizer Christine Rice offers 10 great tips to help you get organized at Organize It Today, but if you need even more, you should subscribe to her free e-zine, Organi-zine, and check out Organizing U, her six-month-long online school.
4.) Cut out the clutter. One of the biggest obstacles to overcome when organizing is cutting back on clutter. Life Organizers offers several clutter-reduction strategies, including tips on how to recognize different kinds of clutter, and how to drastically change the way you accumulate stuff.
5.) Try a timer. Multitasking doesn’t always work when it comes to keeping yourself organized. Sometimes, you need to be able to focus on a single task in order to really get it out of the way. Using a timer can help. Try the FlyLady principal and set it for 15 minutes -- it’s amazing how much you can get done if you’re trying to beat the clock!
Need more ideas? Have some to share? See what other members are doing to stay organized here at Work It, Mom!
