Recently, a friend – a fellow mom and business owner – wished me a Happy New Year, and that is really how I feel about September.  The schedule change, the life transitions, the brisk weather – I always feel renewed!  Use this time of renewal to clear mental and real clutter, and get a better handle on your time management, just like our students do!  Here’s how:

Re-Commit to Good Routines.

I love summer, but all facets of my life, personal and professional, benefit from Back-To-School consistency with waking and bed-times, meal times and nutrition, and more structured workdays.  Use this new season as an opportunity to return to routines that work, or tweak your routines and make them work even better!

Go to bed.  No, seriously.  Go to bed.

This is an uphill battle for me most days.  As a parent, I daily try to convince my teenagers to listen to their tired bodies and go to bed, instead of staying up late just because they can.  And personally, I wish I could say I get enough sleep, but sometimes I don’t. Most nights, I’m in bed at a reasonable hour, but some really great books have kept me up lately!  This week, now a little colder and darker outside, I will listen to my own tired body, close the book or IPad, and hit the pillow earlier.

We think better, work better, feel better and act nicer when we are well rested. Go to bed.

Remember the care and consideration you spent on that First Day outfit? 

September is a great time to take a look at your wardrobe, and make a few changes!  Cooler temperatures and Autumn colors have us shuffling through our closets in search of something to wear.  Take time to clean summer clothes, review and purge accordingly, and put them away into seasonal storage on a high shelf or in underbed storage. Shop in your closet for surprises (those great scarves I bought last Spring), and favorites. Refresh your wardrobe without leaving the house or spending a cent.

Re-new friendships and strengthen relationships!

I always loved going back to school because it meant I got to see my school friends more regularly.  We can learn from this as adults, too!  It is always a good time to reach out to a friend.  Whenever you find yourself wondering about someone and how they are, reach out!  And I mean via facebook, email, texting or a greeting card, in addition to the obvious “call them”!  Wouldn’t it be nice to know someone is thinking of you?  Your loved ones feel the same way.  Connect!

Out with the old, in with the new.

Out with the old:  It’s also always a good time to clear clutter!  This week I dropped off a couple of bags of donations, arranged donation of some old cell phones and cords, and sold used items on-line.  I cleaned out, cleaned up and made some space.

In with the new:  I love back-to-school for new gear and gadgets, but I don’t really need anything right now.  I did spend my morning clearing memory, installing updates and cleaning up my tech.  That’s all new!  And it feels great!

Learn something new.

Keeping up with your kids on a new technological gadget?  A language? A musical instrument? A cool new app, or a new way of doing something?   You-tube, google or your local library are all great places to imagine and explore new skills!  In addition, I already have a lot of new information right in front of me – I am working through my professional reading pile:  here’s irony, I have two time management books next on my pile, guess I need to find some time to read those!

With the new season comes meetings and events and an influx of new ideas to process and act upon.  It’s energizing!  Learn something new all the time.

How will you choose to embrace the new season this week?  Let’s Go!