Tag: NAPO-Chicago

Take Your Accountant’s Advice (or mine)

Leave a comment

I’m writing this on Tax Day, April 15, 2024.

Did you know? I have two accountants in my life, my husband and now my oldest son.

We all have our strengths, and these two are very organized about a lot of things and especially around helping people with their taxes.  It’s funny to me, neither my husband nor my son are in tax accounting for their job, but they both help friends and family members this time of year.

And, in keeping with last week’s topic of deadlines, I will be very happy for them both when the tax deadline has passed and they can get back to a more regular schedule!

At dinner last night, I asked Greg that if he was on this week’s podcast,  what would he want you all to know? So here we go: a collaboration between my accountant, the most organized person I know when it comes to money, and me, your certified professional organizer.  Maybe some day I will get him on the podcast!

  • First up, he and I both recommend that you create a couple of file folders this week.
    • Name one 2024 Taxes, or 2024 Supporting Tax Documents or something like that.
    • Start another one called 2024 Paid Bills.
    • The 2024 Supporting Tax Documents is a waiting receptacle for anything that comes along that you need to keep for next year’s tax time.  During the year, we might receive, for example, thank you letters or receipts for charitable donations, and you can just drop those in the waiting file. In addition, you now will have a safe place to keep your 2024 tax documents when they start to arrive the end of January, 2025.
    • The 2024 Paid Bills file is for for just that – Paid Bills in 2024.  If you still receive paper bills and if you keep them after they are paid, drop them in there as the year progresses.  We don’t really need to keep them in separate folders. I mean – how often do you go back and look at them anyway?
    • These first two files need to be kept close at hand.
  • Next up, make a folder for your filed 2023 taxes, if you have them in paper form.  This file does not need to kept so close at hand, but it certainly needs to be kept.  In the safe? Bottom file drawer?  Or digitally, save them on your computer and back them up on your external hard drive or the cloud.
  • If you really want to do next year’s you a a solid, make a note of what documentation you required for your 2023 tax filing – W2s, 1099’s, interest statements from investments, etc..
    • Let’s face it, our financial life – at least the accounts, not necessarily the amounts – don’t vary too much from year to year.
    • So, 2023’s filed tax return is going to be a great place to get ready for your 2024 filing in 2025.
  • Ok, now here is the real tax advice:
    • Here is the other thing I want you to do for future you.
      • Go to your calendar on your phone, on your to-do list, in your paper calendar for 2024 on the last page that is for planning for 2025.
        • On February 1, 2025, make yourself an appointment on your calendar to check out your 2024 Supporting Tax Documents file. Look at whatever information has accumulated in there from this current year. Look at the list in there that you made for what end of year statements, wage information, etc. that you’re waiting for and start keeping an eye out for it.
        • Also on February 1, 2025, put a date on the calendar to do your taxes or to go and meet with your accountant.
  • Finally, learn from your 2023 tax experience.
    • Are you getting a tax refund?
      • Cool. That works.
      • Some people intentionally use their taxes and tax refund as a savings account.
    • Do you owe taxes?
      • Less cool, I know. But it means you brought home more pay during the year.
      • And some people just expect that they will owe taxes and plan accordingly.
    • If you would like to adjust the taxes that get taken out of your pay during the year, to also then adjust your tax refund or your tax bill, you can do that.  Adjust your withholdings with your HR department, if you have one, or send in quarterly tax payments.
    • And here is a public service announcement: if your accountant gives you suggestions on how to make the tax process go easier next time, please listen to them and take action. They are our experts and we need to heed their advice.
      • For example, I have some homework to do. I need to make changes about how I note things in Quicken, because apparently my accountant and I have vastly different definitions about what constitutes as “Owners Equity”. My accountant is honest and patient, even when I was confused. But we’ll get there.

Don’t scramble, don’t procrastinate.  Give yourself the gift of calm competence in 2025.

How Does Your Brain Work? Learning Styles

Leave a comment

Learning Styles: Does This Sound Like You?

  • “I’m more of a visual person.”
  • “I really need to talk some things out.”
  • “If I hear a song once, I remember the words.”
  • “I’m more of a hands-on person.”
  • “If I drive to your house once, I will always remember how to get there.”

Yes, yes and yes!

Today, let’s talk about learning styles. In coaching, we call them processing modalities. I am going to use the terms “learning styles” and “modalities” interchangeably.  Our processing modalities are how OUR brain best deals with information.  These learning styles are part of what makes you you, but they are not character or personality traits. They are the paths your brain uses to process and cement information and turn it into something useful for you.

The most common ones, or at least the ones we will talk about today, are

  • Visual,
  • Auditory,
  • Verbal and
  • Kinesthetic (and relatedly, Tactile).

Simply put, visual processors learn by seeing, auditory learners learn by hearing, verbal learners learn by speaking, and kinesthetic and tactile processors learn by doing.

It is helpful for us to understand that there are learning styles, that everyone is a blend of learning styles – you and me and everyone else that you interact with – and how to support our blend and the blend of the people we interact with.  Knowing you are a blend, and I am a blend, and that every other person in your life is their own blend of learning styles gets us closer to awareness, acceptance and understanding.

An important thing to remember is that you have options. Options on how to support your own learning styles, and options on how to manage yourself with other people whose learning style is different than yours.

When you think of a traditional classroom, consider all the ways the teachers engage multiple learning styles.  We read aloud, or listen to the teacher or other students read aloud, or we may listen to a recording.  We may use our hands and use manipulatives in math, or word cards on our desk in ELA. We write our own notes, we look at things around the room or on the board, we might move around to stations or act out a scene from literature or history.  There are many ways to reinforce learning styles.

We all possess all of the learning styles, but we each our own special blend of strengths.  The styles or modalities show up differently in each of us at times, too. When he was little, I thought one of my sons was being difficult because we didn’t see things the same way.  And the answer is, we absolutely DID NOT see the things the same way.  And, that’s ok. 

When we talked it through, he and I discovered that he is a visual learner and that when I told him to go in and clean his room, he saw everything in his room as one thing, one composite item.  He would get overwhelmed.  It was difficult for him to break down the big composite item into smaller pieces of the room, like making his bed, then putting the laundry on the floor into the hamper and hanging up his baseball cap.  Once we figured out that we literally didn’t see things the same way, we figured out how I could change my language and he could change how he looked at things and then we started to communicate better.

Now that we know that there are learning styles, and that we all have our own strengths in those learning styles, let’s look at how we can use that knowledge to navigate our life.

I will use myself as a case study:

I am strong in multiple modalities, which is quite common.  One of my strengths is auditory learning. I am a really good listener, which serves me well in my role as an organizational coach and musician. And, that can also be a problem because I get stressed out with prolonged or chaotic loud noise. I LOVE and I mean LOVE a good concert, either seated in plushy seats listening to a full orchestra but more so, in a bar listening to one of our favorite bands.  AND, though I love the concert, I’m also somewhat relieved to walk outside in relative quiet to let my brain process all of the awesome new input I just experienced.  Both can be true.

I am also a professional speaker and singer.  Not surprisingly, I am a strong verbal learner. For myself, I know that I benefit from talking through challenges and ideas, and very often I gain awareness when I hear myself say something out loud. And I can get to a point some days that I am talked out.  I am a verbal learner, but I dislike talking on the phone. I would rather speak in person. I am aware of my learning styles, how they show up for me, how to manage me and what tools I can use as I go through my day.

So, let’s look at the specific learning styles.

A visual processor:

  • learns by seeing, or imagining something in their mind;
  • recognizes patterns;
  • appreciates aesthetics; and
  • appreciates visual representations like graphs or pictures.
  • Ways to work as a visual processor:
    • use color to indicate category or priority, in our homes or professional life;
    • use highlighters or fun colors of ink in writing;
    • make a good list or map of things, take pictures of things to help you remember;
    • be purposeful in the physical arrangement of space; and
    • become aware that we are impacted by visual stimuli.
    • For example, to support my visual learning, I request communications in text or email form so that I can refer back to it if I need reminders.
  • Times it can get in the way:
    • one visual learner may want to see everything all the time and doesn’t put things away;
    • another visual learner may get distracted or overwhelmed by seeing everything, and we need to put it away behind a closed door; and
    • for some visual learners, if they don’t see something, it ceases to exist for them.

An auditory learner:

  • learns by listening, hearing and even reading (we often hear the words in our head);
  • remembers things by how they sound, or what they were hearing when they learned it;
  • may hum or talk to themselves or others; and
  • may learn ideas while listening to favorite music, instrumental music, white noise or other noisescapes, or silence, depending on the person.
  • Ways to work with it:
    • learn new material by reading flashcards, directions, stories or assignments out loud;
    • record yourself spelling words or working through new content, and then listen to the recording;
    • use mantras or repeated phrases to reinforce an idea or learning; and
    • listen to podcasts, or use recordings, books on tape, or having test questions read to you out loud to help you study.
  • Times it can get in the way:
    • auditory learners rely heavily on hearing, but can also become overwhelmed with loud, chaotic, off-key or repetitious sounds; and
    • as with all learning styles, age and health can have an impact, for example, our hearing acuity changes with age, so we need to get our hearing checked regularly.

A verbal learner:

  • learns by speaking and expressing themselves, by “talking it out”;
  • is often strong in written communications, too, and reading and writing; and
  • is often strong with auditory learning.
  • Ways to work with it:
    • many of the tools with an auditory learner works with a verbal learner, too, as we are doing the reading of the materials; or
    • learn new material by reading flashcards, directions, stories or assignments out loud;
    • For example, I often “write” my articles while I commute or travel.  I open the Voice Memo app on my Iphone, and record my article, then use a transcription website to turn it into text. And at rehearsal the other night, I used the voice record to text option to send a text for follow up, and this sparked a conversation among my choir members.
  • Times it can get in the way:
    • as I mentioned in my case study, verbal learners can get talked out; and
    • verbal learners may speak too much, disrupting themselves and others.

Kinesthetic and tactile leaners:

  • learn by touching, doing, moving, building or drawing.
  • Kinesthetic learners use major muscle groups and gross motor skills;
  • tactile learners work more with fine motor skills and their hands;
  • learn best when there is some sort of movement involved with the experience;
  • learn by taking things apart and putting them back together; and
  • communicate with your whole body, physically and by touch.
  • Ways to work with it:
    • floor plans, maps;
    • factor in activity, gravitate towards sports or careers that incorporate movement;
    • physically manipulate learning tools like flash cards into categories, topics, etc.;
    • accept gum chewing, fidgeting, tinkering and taking physical breaks;
    • do hands-on activities that involve touching, building, moving, acting or drawing; or
    • offer to be the note taker in a group setting, to use the activity to keep your mind engaged.
  • Times it can get in the way:
    • a K or T learner may struggle if and when they are physically fatigued, injured or sore, or if space does not permit movement;
    • it is difficult to sit still and you may need to take frequent breaks;
    • fidgeting and movement may be mis-construed as lack of focus or impulse control in a traditional class room setting.

I could write forever about learning styles, but this is a good place to start.

Consider the different learning styles mentioned, and reflect on which one or ones resonate with you the most. Consider some of the tips suggested to help you in your day-to-day experiences. And take an active interest in the learning styles of the people around you as well, to foster communication and support!

P.S. I write this with gratitude to Denslow Brown with Coach Approach for Organizers, https://coachapproachtraining.com/, where I first learned about learning styles and processing modalities.

How To Get Back On Track

When naming this article and episode, I tried Catawampus – as in, “when it all goes catawampus”, but my SEO score on my blog did not think that was a good idea. Noted.

I was a guest on the EP podcast episode that dropped last Tuesday, March 12.

We recorded on Monday, March 11th because that is the day I record my episode, too. And I was a guest on the EP Podcast because Chris, my producer, had a family emergency over the weekend with his 18 year old daughter. And she’s fine. Healing well.

And everybody’s fine in my house too. Everybody’s okay. We’ll start with that.

But we talked through, first of all, the situation and that it was crazy for them, I know. And then the question he asked me was, “After the fact, what do you do to pick up the pieces?” You’ve been through this dramatic and potentially traumatic situation and what do you do to get back on track?

In his situation, he has children other than the post-surgical one to take care of. He needs to take care of his daughter while she recovers. Anything he had planned for that day and also for the days to follow obviously just went out the window because, well, that’s what the situation required.

We’re going to do it because it needs done and we’re going to do it because our kids win and because we love them. And guys, I really do love you. So if you’re listening – well, I don’t think my kids listen to my podcast, but some of their friends do. And then we pick up the pieces and get back to normal, get back to work.

Here’s the twist. We recorded at noon on Monday because we usually record at noon on Mondays. We have systems for these things and everything else. I’m still like a week behind. I’d like to get back on track with that personally. That is a leftover from my recent surgery.

My college age son was home for his Spring Break and there was an incident and he lost consciousness in the kitchen. I’ll leave it at that. It was scary. He ended up going to the ER in an ambulance. So, a shout out to the Evergreen Park Fire Department, the EMTs when we called 911 were awesome and competent and kind. They took care of business, they took care of my son, they loaded him up and we went to the hospital.

One thing Chris mentioned on his episode was that his 18 year old was still eligible for the pediatric ER, and if you have to choose, the pediatric ER is a better place for a young person than the regular ER. And I found it surreal that, within 8 hours of having that conversation with him, I found myself in the front seat of an ambulance while they unloaded my 19 year old in the ambulance bay next to the door labeled Pediatric ER at Christ Hospital.

Never, in no imagination of my day could I have foreseen that I would be confirming that information from him within 8 hours of recording that episode. But there we were. And to repeat, he’s fine. My son’s fine. And I have his permission to write about and talk about this. He’s ok.

Let me make the rest of this very long story short. We were there for 24 more hours. We arrived around 7:30 pm Monday. They ran tests and started the admission process at 11 pm. He was finally discharged from the ER at 08:00 pm on Tuesday night, they had not yet found him a bed in 24 hours

When you’re in the ER, you gain perspective. Obviously, other people were having a much worse time of life than we were. My son’s ok.

Simple things. My son was in the ER but he had a room with doors. A lot of people didn’t. He didn’t have a bathroom or a shower, and I didn’t sleep at all because the room is not set up with a chair for a non-patient to sleep in. I never pulled an all-nighter in college, that didn’t happen until I was a parent!

We had family and friends texting and checking in on us, with offers of support and assistance if we needed anything. I am so grateful. And I’m grateful for Greg, my husband, so that we could tag team and I could go home for a few hours of sleep when he came back first thing Tuesday morning because we didn’t want to miss any of the doctors in consultation, etc.

But as Chris mentioned, once the dust settles, right, after all this happens, then what? When you look around your house and you realize that all of the routines that you normally have that support your life were completely abandoned, for a few days. Where do you start? Where?

I’ve talked about emergencies recently. I had a recent surgery as well. Five weeks ago I had surgery on my nose. It was planned. It was February 13, but I had known about it since the end of November. It wasn’t news. It ended up being more complex, more invasive, and I had a lot more downtime and a lot more healing that I needed to do. That was news, but the schedule was already cleared, I had no expectations of myself already. It wasn’t an emergency, it was a hassle. I won’t say it was fun. I’m still not done healing. I still have swelling and follow up appointments. It’s not don, but for the most part, I’m good to go.

But trips to the ER, for your daughter and her appendix, for my son in the ER for 24 hours and a lot of diagnostics to determine what’s going on and what to follow up on. Those are emergencies. They both have had good outcomes so far. I know it could be worse. Oh, my God, do I know it could be worse.

Once the emergency has passed, now what? What do we do to get back on track?

I came home at 830 Tuesday morning after tagging my husband out at the hospital, having not slept for 27 hours. I set up my phone and apple watch to charge, took a shower, brushed my teeth, had a really big glass of water and slept for 2 hours. Then I got up and I made sure things were taken care of, sent a few emails, took a shower, got dressed, grabbed a protein shake for the road and headed back up to the hospital.

On Tuesday night, when we were finally discharged, we asked the question again.

First things first: We’re headed home, do we need to eat? We can pick up something on the way.
All right, I’m going to drop you guys off, and go to the pharmacy for my son’s prescriptions.

Anything we need grocery wise? No? Okay. We just had people over, so we have a full fridge of food.

Everybody was comfortable and happy.

Next, Laundry. Unpack the bag from the hospital Yes, let’s start a load of laundry.

Next, let’s make sure maintenance has been occurring. Load the dishwasher, bring in the mail, make sure that there’s no packages out front.

None of this new. I think that was the point that I made when I talked to with Chris on his podcast. We don’t do new stuff. We take a minute and remember what our routines are. And routines are there to help us make sure that our needs are being consistently met. That’s what routines do for us. And so first things first, we’re to check in on the needs. Needs are food, clothing, shelter, safety, warmth. Right? Basic bottom level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?

Check in on those, make sure that all of those are functioning. Food, clothing, shelter, safety, warmth. Once we take care of those needs, then we can move up the list.

Now, when we got home from the hospital, finally, it was after 08:00 on Tuesday night after very little sleep. At that point, another need, very rapidly was becoming sleep. I could have tried to do more, but it wouldn’t have worked. Sleep is also a need, and that was the answer. Meeting needs consistently so that everybody can continue to function in survival. I’d love to get into optimal thriving mode. But first things first is survival. Food, clothing, shelter, safety, warmth, right? I mean, that’s where we got to start.

So, when in doubt, that’s where we spend our first hours of attention, is making sure that those needs are met for the moment. In the moment. Then, how to continue to meet those needs for the next couple of hours and then days. We start with needs, we start small, we start with what is right in front of us. We don’t need to do the big stuff right now.

So to recap: First things first. Having routines, very helpful routines, helped me to grab what I needed to grab, throw it all in my backpack (which is my purse) that is always sitting in the same place and run out the door with the ambulance people. Anybody I need to contact was already programmed in my phone. All of my apps are up to date. Everything is up to date. My wallet has our insurance card and has all of John’s information, all of my son’s information.

There are things that maintenance, that routines absolutely provided. My son is otherwise in good health. I’m in good health. Maintaining good health eliminates helped rule out some potential problems because he’s in otherwise good health.

When emergencies happen, that’s it. That is where you need to be. Everything else needed to fall away. With my son is the only place I need to be. The rest of life will all be waiting for me when I get back, for better or for worse.

But that’s the answer. So we create routines because in the heat of it, in the heart of it, in crazy times, we need to have those structures in place to keep things going. So we have habits around needs, so those needs continue to be consistently met. And to give us the habits, the reminders of how to get back to some semblance of normal when our days haven’t necessarily looked normal.

Start with needs. Start with what is right in front of you. Don’t create something new, but get back to your routines. And that, my friends, is how to get back on track.

Body Doubling and “How Does Finish Line Friday Work”?

How Does Finish Line Friday Work? And, What Is Body Doubling?

I’d like to reintroduce body doubling. 

I was driving to a client appointment as I started to dictate this content out loud.  One benefit of slowly easing back into in-person clients this week is that I increased my commute time. I don’t really look forward to commuting time, but it is also uninterrupted time for me to think, and that is helpful! 

I like to be productive with my time. And while I love quiet uninterrupted time, there is still something to be said about working with other people, too! Enter, body doubling.

My phone has a name, my laptop has a name. Believing that there is somebody on the receiving end of what I have to say anchors me to the space. Believing that someone is expecting me and someone’s on the other side of that anchors me so I don’t get distracted.

A new community member reached out to me via email.  I believe she has started following me and my content in the last few months at one of my recent presentations. She visited a recent Finish Line Friday and wasn’t sure how it all works.  So, this is for you, Karen. I will endeavor to explain more clearly what exactly Finish Line Friday is, and how we use the strategy of Body Doubling and the Pomodoro Method of time management to increase productivity.

Body doubling is a productivity tool, a strategy, call it what you would like. In my own experiences and with my clients, body doubling helps us be more productive. Body doubling is one of the many perks of working with a professional organizer because having a person with you in your space as you work can be very motivating. It anchors us to the work and the space.  

Same goes for coaching. Body doubling is absolutely vital. For example, early in the pandemic lock down, a number of my clients struggled with the new phenomenon of unattached work time, of working virtually for the first time and it was not working for them.  They did not feel that they were being as productive as they could be, because it turns out that being around other people who were also working on similar things helped them to stay on track.

There were hours when I would sit in a zoom room or on Facetime with a client and they were doing their work and I was doing my work, and that would help my client stay on track. If a question came up, I’d be happy to answer it or I was ready to listen attentively. One client in particular would sometimes need to verbally work through something because she’s a verbal processor, and we would do this parallel play, this body doubling, for a few hours at a time because she knew that she needed support around some of the tougher projects.

Body doubling isn’t needed for every task.  You are a capable, productive person.  But some tasks are harder to tackle than others, and that is when we bring in tools. 

My middle son lives alone, but in community, in theater housing. He has his own apartment but he and his fellow actors all live in the same apartment complex.  He mentioned that there are times when he needs to get things done. Maybe he needs to tackle a project that he’s having some kind of mental or motivational block around, and he’ll have his friend come over and she can work on whatever she wants to work on or play video games, it really doesn’t matter. That’s not the point. he point is, having somebody else physically in his space keeps him from getting distracted.  She doesn’t have to remind him, it’s just her presence that will remind him.   He calls it Parallel Play, like when two year olds play next to each other on the floor with some blocks.  They’re developmentally too young to play together but they play with their own thing side by side.

Finish Line Friday is like parallel play. And here is how it works:

Finish Line Friday uses the Pomodoro method of 25 minutes of work and five minutes of rest.  Studies have shown the most efficient and effective ratio of work to rest is 52 minutes and ten minutes. For every 52 minutes of work, we need ten minutes of rest. And after three or four cycles of that, we need a longer period of rest. Imagine you start your workday at nine. You work from nine to 9:50 then take a 10 minute break. You work from ten to 1050, take a 10 minute break. You work eleven to 11:50, and then maybe you take half an hour for lunch. Right?  So, this cycle is something we may already be familiar with.

As a participant in Finish Line Friday the other day said, we know these things, but it’s really helpful to hear them said out loud by others.

Finish Line Friday helps us get into the healthy and productive habit of 50 minutes of work and 10 minutes of rest. 

In practice, for Finish Line Friday:

  • We all hop into the zoom room at 9 am;   
  • We arrive with our own work for the 2 hour session;
  • We spend a few minutes chatting;
  • We set our intentions for our first 25 minutes of work;
  • I share my screen with a 25-minute countdown clock, counting down to the next 5 minute break.
  • Then, I mute all of us, though we can stay on screen.  That’s how that works.
  • We work for the 25 minutes, check in for the break with another 5 minute countdown clock, and start all over again.
  • And we just do that for four cycles. 
  • There are not assignments, at least not from me!  Come to us with your own agenda, with your own work, with your own ideas about what you want to get done.

Yes, I’m happy to talk to you about productivity or triaging your to-do list or prioritizing.  We can absolutely do that in the breaks or in the chat.  I facilitate productivity, but we are working side by side. We are working together on our own things, myself included. We all come with our own agenda, and I supply the structure and the community. 

I supply the structure and the community. That’s Finish Line Friday. 

Recently, the work has included: 

  • one participant was uploading artwork to a shared drive;
  • another was getting ready for houseguest and was grateful for a 2 hour block of time, knowing that they would get some stuff done, maybe talk to people on the break, and have fun (and that is FLF does for them);
  • a first-time participant was excited to get through a couple of planning tasks and then start working on a professional project; and
  • I cleaned out my in-boxes, wrapped up messages for the week, then moved on to writing presentation content for a project I’m working on for my national association. 

Now that I have more fully explained Finish Line Friday, please assemble your to-do list and plan to join us for a Friday morning of getting things done!

Meal Planning: Start With What You Know

Last week, we got started on Meal Planning by asking two questions: What does healthy mean to you? And, What are your meal planning goals?

I hope you have had some time to think about your answers to those questions! With answering those questions, you have gained some awareness for and about yourself. Awareness is the first step for progress!

I know Meal Planning may sound like a lot of change and a lot of work, but it is easier than you think, especially to get started. I am not here to tell you what and how and when to eat. Those are personal choices. What I am here to say is that meal planning can help support your intentions and achieve your goals, whatever they may be.

So, as we get started with the HOW-TO for meal planning, let me suggest starting with what you know.

So, what do you know? 😉 Let me tell you, You know more than you think you do!

First, you know you.

You know what healthy means to you, and you know your goals.

You know your preferences, your allergies, your schedule, your finances, and your family situation and who else you need to factor into your meal plans.

Let’s get to it. Starting with what you know, Make a list of your favorites.

I don’t know about you, but sometimes coming up with ideas for what we want to eat is the hardest part of meal planning for me. It’s not checking inventory, or grocery shopping or even cooking – the IDEAS are what stump me. To circumvent that trouble, I have a list on the inside of my cabinet door of 30 of my family’s favorite meals.

What are your favorite meals, or your family’s favorite meals? Favorite doesn’t have to mean complicated, it just means meals I know we will eat. Items included on this list for us are:

  • chicken pie
  • chicken enchiladas
  • chicken soup, with noodles or with rice
  • chicken breasts
  • tacos, ground beef or chicken
  • pork roast
  • pork chops
  • smoked sausage gumbo (crock pot)
  • andouille sausage and grits
  • kielbasa and pierogi
  • BLTs
  • ham and sweet potatoes
  • beef stew
  • meatloaf
  • chili (crock pot)
  • burgers (summer)
  • pot roast
  • fish, shrimp
  • stuffed pepper casserole
  • egg roll in a bowl
  • breakfast for dinner, etc.

Right there, for us, are more than 20 ideas. Now consider that these days I make a big batch of two or three meals once a week and then reheat them, with veggies or a salad. With 20 ideas, that is 6-7 weeks of planning, if I wanted new ideas every week. And, I have to say, knowing that I have ideas for more than a month feels pretty great!

If you want to use meal planning to make changes and therefore are looking at new or different recipes, the same strategies hold true. Start with a list of recipes you would like to try, or foods that you want to incorporate into your plan. Try a new idea or a new food every week, and once you find winners, add them to your Favorites list!

The next two “Start with what you know” steps are related! We look at the schedule, we look at the inventory, we look back at the schedule and match things up, etc.

Take an inventory of what food you already own.

What is in the fridge, the freezer and the cabinets?

For example, on Saturday morning, I was getting ready to batch cook that evening for a few days. So I checked the freezer for what proteins we have on hand, and planned accordingly (chicken enchiladas and some lovely frozen, fully cooked lemon chicken).

The great thing about having a list of favorite meals and recipes is that I tend to have the ingredients for the items we eat the most often already on hand. So, the chicken enchiladas used homemade enchilada sauce, diced chicken, canned green chiles, canned black beans (I used red kidney because that is what was in the cabinet), tortillas and shredded cheddar cheese. All of which I had on hand.

I need to do more batch cooking later this week, and as I planned my batches for Saturday looked ahead at what else we might want to eat coming up, and added those items to my grocery list.

A suggestion that I will plant here is that, as you start this process for yourself, now would be a great time to Pantry Shop! What that means is to review your foods, checking for expiration dates and making sure everything is safe, and then incorporate what you have on hand into your meal plan for the next week or two. It’s a great way to clear clutter in the cabinets and also save some money by not grocery shopping this week!

Once we know what we have, take a look at your schedule for the next 7 days.

Consider, too, if you need to plan for breakfast, lunch and dinner each day, or just 2 meals or even just one. When my sons were little, we meal planned for dinner. Breakfast and lunch were easy and basic, but dinner was a little more complicated.

Now that I cook typically for just my husband and myself, our needs have changed. I still don’t plan for breakfast, but I factor in extra left overs because we tend to eat lunch at home more often with remote work. A friend who homeschools her children plans for all three meals every day because that makes her week flow more smoothly. Perhaps you don’t need that much detail. Your choice.

Also, when looking at the schedule, note days that either don’t need a meal, or perhaps need a special one. For example, my college student comes home on Friday for his Spring Break, so I’m guessing there will be pizza from our favorite local pizza place Rosangela’s for dinner, no need to cook that night!

So, before you say – No Way, Colleen, meal planning is way too much work! Or, before you decide you have to make HUGE Changes, which by the way are really difficult to implement and maintain, let’s start with what we know. We know ourselves, we know our favorites, we know our inventory and we know our schedule! Start with what is in front of you. Just start!

Meal Planning: What Is Healthy? And What Are Your Goals?

Today’s topic has been on my list for a few months now, and I am ready to share!  Over the last year, I have shifted to more coaching and less-in-person organizing, and that shift will continue. AND, not surprisingly, meal planning is still a hot topic for my clients and presentations.  Because, well, we all eat.

As I sat down to write this content, I had just finished wrapping up the dinner dishes. Two hours or so before that, in about an hour, my husband and I had assembled and cooked three separate dinners, ate one (with leftovers) and put the rest in the fridge for the next few days.

How?  Why?  And why am I telling you this?  Well, let me tell you a story!

Last summer, I rebooted my “An Organized Kitchen” presentation.  I had many speaking requests last summer for “An Organized Kitchen” and Meal Planning content and I thought it was time for a refresh.

I don’t remember a time when we didn’t meal plan. Much of my past content about meal planning is from the view-point of cooking with and for kids and my family, which is all really good content! But as I spend more time coaching my clients and thinking things through for myself, I recognize that what we eat, how we eat it, how it gets to our dinner plates – all of these impact our days and weeks and life!

I could be surprised by how many of my coaching clients want to be more productive… and eat better.  Or that want to find that next new job or career … and have better habits around eating a healthy breakfast. Or, are facing lifestyle shifts and changes, and realize that eating healthier and finding time to exercise would go far in helping them face their challenges.

I could be surprised, but I am not.

Nutrition is a building block for many other things, it is part of the foundation of our life, and we want it to be a strong foundation.

I follow personal development influencers, and a quote from Brendon Burchard comes to mind. I’m paraphrasing, but the idea was that we can start to make positive change in our lives by being intentional about what we eat. We have to eat, right? It is something we already do. While adding in an hour work-out every day 7 days a week may seem daunting, making adjustments on what we do every day anyway seems less intimidating.

In my newly re-booted Meal Planning content, we start with two questions.

  • “What does healthy mean to you?” and
  • “What are your Meal planning goals?”

There are SO MANY ideas on what healthy eating means.  Low carb, no carb, gluten free, keto, paleo, vegan, lo-cal, high volume, sustainable eco foods, plant based, intermittent fasting.

But my question to You is “What Does Healthy Mean To You?”  Because if you tell me you want to eat healthy, that can be something vastly different than what I consider healthy.  And since I am NOT a nutritionist, I would suggest you figure that out for yourself as you figure out meal planning.  Because there are SO MANY IDEAS AND OPINIONS out there, if you don’t have a way to focus in and narrow down your options, you are going to be overwhelmed before you even begin.

The second question then, is “What are your Meal Planning goals?”

Yes, goals.  Did you know you can have meal planning goals?  Meal Planning goals might be…

  • Save money. Or waste less food. (It’s estimated that the average American wastes 216 pounds of food a year. And an average family of 4 throws away $1600 in produce a year. (per rts.com))
  • Save time, have less hassle.
  • Teach yourself and your family how to cook.
  • Establish healthy habits and / or support. Or, most likely,
  • Some combination of these and others!

Just this week, two different clients reported wanting to make positive changes including meal planning. One was seeking a plan that would let her adhere to an subscription menu and eating plan that she receives via email every week on her own schedule.

For another, she works full time and wants to meal plan better for having lunches and dinners for the whole work week.

One of my sons moved back into theatre housing in Indiana last week since rehearsals start tomorrow. He stopped by and mentioned that he had spent time meal prepping after he unpacked his stuff.  I asked him those questions – What is Healthy ? And What are your goals?

For the What Is Healthy answer, he is aiming for 30 grams of protein per meal, and more home-cooked foods. His goal is to have nutritious food made ahead of time so he can pack his lunches to take to work / rehearsals, and also not have to cook when he gets home if he’s tired.  Brilliant.

My personal example: As we entered 2024, I realized that January was going to be very busy (and it was). I am not going to report out on what specifically I consider healthy eating because that is not really the point. I will say, though, that I want home cooked food, to eat well, to save time and money and minimize stress, and to not rely on take-out. And to meet those goals, my strategy was and continues to be to cook two nights a week, most likely Friday and Sunday, and make multiple meals on cooking nights to carry us through until the next cooking night.

The evening I described when I started is an example of supporting my meal planning goals.

I was home that afternoon and evening, which doesn’t always happen.  And since I knew that morning that I would have a little more time at home that evening, I pulled from the freezer some ground turkey and Polish sausage to thaw. At dinner time, we diced many green peppers, an onion and a few potatoes, browned some ground turkey, and using what we had in the fridge (left over rice plus staples) and freezer (already browned ground beef), assembled Inside Out Stuffed Pepper casserole, Egg Roll in a Bowl (a new recipe, and so delish!), and baked Polish sausage with diced potatoes, peppers and onions.

All of these recipes store well, warm up well, and are currently waiting patiently in my fridge for future consumption. We can eat well and free up time by not having to cook or clean up for a few days.  We save time, we save money, I stress less and we still eat delicious food.  Check and check!

Next week, I will delve deeper into the how-to.

So, what’s it going to be?  What does healthy mean to you?  And what are your meal planning goals?  Keep the answers in mind, and tune in next week when we talk about how to make it all happen.

Eliminate Brain Clutter With A Cranial Cleanse

In a recent Finish Line Friday session, one of my regular participants mentioned she was working on “The Smalls” during our time together.  She explained that it was the end of a very busy week.  She had been home long enough between events and appointments to make piles but not to put away the piles. She said “Every room had a pile of smalls.”

And the other participants nodded understandingly because we’ve all been there.  Regularly!

That always makes me smile. Not because someone is struggling, but because most of us understand what “The Smalls” means.

And because the words  – The Smalls – sound funny to me and many people express frustration about The Smalls, in sometimes passionate and colorful language! For example, I have another friend and client who, when I ask her what we’re working on today, will occasionally say “The Smalls, Coll!  It’s The Smalls!” with perhaps some frustration and colorful words!

Here’s the thing:

The Smalls can be physical things in our spaces.

They can be a jumble of papers on the kitchen counter, the pile of Lego bits, Barbie shoes and puzzle pieces at the bottom of a bin of toys, or the contents of an everything drawer in the kitchen. (I personally don’t call them junk drawers, because if you call it a junk drawer, guess what ends up inside?)  If the person I mentioned in my first example is like me, the smalls in every room that she mentioned are bag contents from meetings and events, random clothing items or shoes at the back door that have been cycled through and now need to be put away, neglected amazon boxes and mail at the front door, etc.

Bear in mind, none of these items is technically clutter.  They are all things we obviously need, use or love – they just need tended to.

But they pile and they distract and they call out to us for attention and energy.

Which leads me to – The Smalls can be thoughts and ideas in our brains.

“Small” doesn’t indicate importance, or in the definition of “small”, perhaps un-importance, but instead their size.  “The Smalls” means that SO MANY MORE can fit in a space.  Like I have 100 ideas or to-dos or tasks in my brain and they’re all crammed in there making each look small. And they’re all clamoring to get out!

Some of the challenges with The Smalls, either on the kitchen counter or in our brain:

  • There are MANY.
  • They aren’t just clutter.  They are likely important and require care and attention.
  • Right now, they are unsorted and un-categorized.
  • They are not prioritized in order of importance.
  • We believe that the small are important.  And we don’t want them to get lost.
  • We fear The Smalls will get lost.  We fear that brilliant blog post idea that just came to us will disappear, then we worry about that so long that it does disappear, or we forget other things while we spend mental energy on trying to REMEMBER EVERYTHING!
  • The Smalls DO get lost, and then we forget appointments, emergencies happen, feelings are hurt, etc.

Another regular participant in my Finish Lind Friday productivity sessions has used great imagery when we talk about what we plan to accomplish that day.

Imagine a room full of helium balloons with strings attached.

Now, gesture with your hands to collect those strings.  That is what she is often working on, on a Friday. Gathering loose ends, she calls it, with that gesture. Gathering them together.

And a coaching client, in our time working together, even created her own Loose Ends List, to collect The Smalls and all the other ideas / thoughts / tasks that occur to her and then require completion.

I want to applaud all four people that I have mentioned – they identify The Smalls, they identified the need to consistently collect The Smalls, and they have habits and ways to collect and deal with them.

Two Big Ideas this week.

In the interest of writing this article this week, I opened up my copy of “Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity” by David Allen, thinking I needed to re-read it to write this article. And I am … proud? Relieved? Yes, those feelings and more, to find out that since I read this book many years ago, I implemented and am still doing many of the things he talks about (and he talks about them clearly and concisely and the book is totally worth the read.) And I can do better, and I will share more about this book and his process in future podcasts and articles.

First big idea, this is a great book, check it out (and I mean, actually check it out of your local library – no need to buy it!).

To get started, though, in Getting Things Done, David Allen talks about collection. How first, we need to COLLECT all the thoughts and ideas in our head and get them out of our head and into a more user friendly, time specific, prioritized form.  He mentioned, among other things, a Mind Sweep.

Others call it a Brain dump, though I find that an inelegant phrase. My friend Jen recommended Cranial Cleanse when I asked my community for a better term for Brain Dump.

Whatever we call it, Mind Sweep or Cranial cleanse, it is a great place to start.

And it requires a place to put the collected items. For me, that means my Bullet Journal first, to collect items.  Then I insert them into my master to – do list to prioritize and take action.

But let’s talk about the collecting. I no longer do a cranial cleanse like David Allen recommends, as in, an event, because it is a constant process for me – I am ALWAYS doing a cranial cleanse.

For example, when I am working or out running errands, thoughts occur to me, like an idea or a task that needs completed, and I quickly jot it down.

Because…

Have You Noticed? Another problem is that very often a thought or idea or task occurs to us at a moment when we do not have time to act on it.

This

Happens

To

Me

All

The

Time.

I have noticed that certain events generate more thoughts and ideas.  For example, when I am driving.

When driving, my brain is focused on driving but also open to outside stimuli (which is a good thing while driving), subsequently ideas often come to me while I drive.  OR while I cook, or while I’m in the shower.

This goes back to the recent podcast and newsletter that talks about If I Don’t Write It Down, It Doesn’t Exist. 

The other side of that is, If I don’t capture and collect the ideas when they occur, they continue to float around in my brain with nowhere to go, and that makes things very crowded up there with all The Smalls! 

My suggestion, then, for all of this week – the Second Big Idea – is to have a trusted place to collect the ideas and cultivate a habit of collecting them.

I love my Bullet Journal, and that will be a live webinar sometime soon to look at how to make Bullet Journaling happen for you – but the take away is that I have ONE PLACE to write things down. 

It goes with me everywhere.

It is always ready to collect the ideas and safely hold on to them. To get all The Smalls out of my brain so there is room and space to actually get some work done.

And then I have the regular daily habit of reviewing those ideas, prioritizing and activating those ideas and putting them into  my master-to-do list or on the calendar, etc.

We can’t avoid The Smalls, and really, we don’t want to.  The Smalls are where it’s at, sometimes!  The genius is in The Smalls!  But not when all of the Smalls are cramped together in our brain. 

We need the habit of moving The Smalls out of our brain and into a trusted collector. And then the habit of prioritizing and acting on them, too!  This is how we get things done.

Everything? Sure, But Not All At Once!

I was chatting with one of my Finish Line Friday participants last week before everyone else arrived in my zoom room. Not surprisingly, we were talking about goal setting for the new year. I said out loud, as a reminder to her and to me, that “2024 is 12 Months Long.”

Meaning, we have a lot of time and opportunity to make positive change and we don’t have to stuff everything into the first week.

And that really resonated with her.

Because, of course, every year is 12 months long. January, even when we try to pack all sorts of new habits and change in, is 31 days long. No more, no less.

Some years, we start out strong and believe that we need to change EVERYTHING ALL AT ONCE when the new year begins. And we set our selves up for failure or major anxiety when we think that way. Instead, let’s consider pacing ourselves.

On the other hand, I had grand plans for EVERYTHING at once when it comes to strategic planning in January.

6 weeks ago, I made sure to block out time on the calendar last week and this week for hours of strategic planning time to work on my editorial calendar, get ahead on my writing and plan my year in detail. And… as is often the case when it comes to big-picture strategic planning, more urgent issues squeezed into the space instead.

This is not to say that I am not planning strategically for the year this week. It IS to say, that I am using smaller pieces of time to do the planning. And as an aside, I will block MORE time at the end of 2024 and beginning of 2025 to ensure some sacred space for planning!

The balance seems to be, then – Everything? Sure. But NOT ALL AT ONCE!

Here goes – this week, I am working on the Qs.

I use a Bullet Journal. I have mentioned it in past podcasts and videos, but I haven’t delved too deeply. And I feel that it is time to delve deeply!

And one of the features for the Bullet Journal is called a Future Log. As we set up our Bullet Journals, we start with a few index pages (a topic for another day), and then we set up our Future Log.

I, like many others, break my year into quarters. Quarter 1 is January, February and March, Quarter 2 is April, May and June, etc.

This year on my future log so far, I have:

  • Q1, a procedure in February
  • Q1, coaching certification to complete by March 1
  • Q1, Liturgy planning for Easter on March 31
  • Q2, a wedding in Maryland
  • Q3, family vacation
  • Q3, moving my son to his college apartment
  • Q3, a trip to Massachusetts

There are also doctor appointments, presentations, client appointments and board meetings on the calendar for 2024. But those are typical items and don’t need to be in the Future Log. The Future Log and the Qs are for tracking big projects.

Working with quarters helps my brain every day.

Some of us stumble into all or nothing thinking, and that sort of thinking can disrupt our reason, our logic, our productivity and our peace.

With the Q’s and the future log, I have a consistent and reliable place to park ideas that are AMAZING but that do not need to be worked into today’s plan or this week’s, or even this month.

Yesterday, I had a meeting with my social media manager. We are working on a big launch for Q1, but then she asked (without knowing what this week’s topic was going to be) if we could look at Q2 and beyond as well. YES!!

We don’t want to lose track of the good ideas we have, but now or even this quarter may not be the time to tackle them.

I have a big project for a professional organization I am affiliated with that will take time in Q1 and Q2, so any other big projects will need to be planned for Q3 or Q4.

I also look back at last year’s Q’s, the plan for each quarter and also the list of things I completed. And I can learn from that, as I plot my Qs for this year as I look ahead. For example,

  • Last year, especially in the second and third quarters, I was helping my mom downsize and move to her new very cute apartment. I will not need to do that this year, as she is already settled. More importantly, my son and his wife got married the end of September! Amazing, but also not something I need to plan for again this year!
  • On the other hand, also 3rd quarter last year, we spent a lot of time with one of my sons and his friends at the lake, and that was awesome, so I should make note now on my planning for July to spend weekends with them, if they’d like.

We can zoom out from the day-to-day or even week-to-week planning, and look at our year in broader strokes or as a bigger picture. We can pair up what we want to accomplish this year with the time that we have available. We can cut ourselves some slack and recognize that we can accomplish great things AND not wear ourselves out and doom our goals before we even begin by pacing our work and our energy for the longer term.

We can let our ideas flourish by giving them a resting place until we are ready to act on them.

Consider your 2024 Qs this week and this month, and set yourself up to succeed in 2024!

Let’s Get To Know “Time Blocking”

I am writing this content on December 26th to be published the first week of January.

I have high hopes for getting some tasks done today while also staying in my jammies and eating Christmas cookies. ( So far so good.)

At 6:30 am, I opened up my laptop and my task-list, after a very busy 4 days of wonderful Christmas revelry. 

Those days really were wonderful.  We celebrated with friends and family in multiple states.  I am so blessed.  I have so many amazing people in my life.  So very blessed.

And now, today I need to make progress on some neglected tasks.  Two professional tasks specifically, writing this podcast content and working the infrastructure for my subscription service. I need to send out emails for two different ministries that I run, and I need to get my house back to normal before more houseguests arrive tomorrow.

At 6:30 am with my first cup of coffee, I had identified those are my Focus Areas today. Then, I looked at my schedule for the day. I realized that with the people sleeping in my house right now, that house tasks and making noise should probably be an afternoon and evening endeavor.

I need to head to the grocery or place a grocery order, but that entails tidying the fridge and freezer and asking questions of the still sleeping family members, so this too is relegated until after noon.

The professional tasks are more time specific anyway, with two appointments with my assistant and my podcast producer this morning.

I looked at the transcription service that I use to turn my road-trip recordings into text so that I can edit it and publish articles.  And it isn’t working.  And I was less than excited about the topic I had chosen for today anyway.

So when I checked in on my editorial content calendar, I re-committed to my plan to talk about Tools in the Productivity Tool Box in January. 

And I moved my meeting with my social media guru to tomorrow to focus on writing podcast content this morning.

In doing all of those things, realized, that since I am using Time Blocking to make things happen for myself today, I should write about it for all of us!

Time Blocking = Batch Work = Time Chunking

Time Blocking is looking at the time we have in our day and our week not as just a blank white canvas, but instead, as opportunity divvied up into bite size pieces.

It is assigning important work that needs done today and this week to the time we have, instead of hoping that we can cram it all in without a plan to make that happen. It lets our brain work on one topic or category at a time. Because, my friend, multi-tasking is a myth. 

All projects are comprised of a series of smaller projects.

I can realize some flow and economies of scale when I work on similar tasks at the same time.  When I work on my bookkeeping tasks, I open Quicken, my client hours spreadsheet and PayPal.com, and I can toggle between those three to get things done.

Another great thing about time blocking is that it dictates what we ARE NOT working on right now. I find this very important.  It would be soooo easy to get off track, react to an email, start on a personal or house project and disregard my time blocking and tasks lists!

Time blocking creates urgency within the block, a series of mini-deadlines throughout my day, which helps me to stay productive. For example, today, with it being a holiday week, it is a less structured day with fewer actual appointments, but time blocking helps me to make appointments with myself.

I didn’t realize that other people don’t work this way. I definitely credit my use of this strategy to being a business owner, and working my own professional and personal tasks in around client appointments.

For example, on a given Thursday,

  • One client appointment is in-person from 8:30 am – 11 am and is a 10 minute drive from my home.
  • Then I have a short break for my drive home and some lunch, then I have three virtual client coaching appointments from noon to 3.
  • Those are my paid working hours for that Thursday.  And the time I spend with my clients is focused solely on that client.  
  • In addition to my client hours, however, I also have MY work. 
  • I chose Thursday as an example, because on Thursday, I take care of bookkeeping tasks and Speaking Engagement tasks.

Realistically my schedule for that Thursday could look like this:

  • 6 – 7 am Personal Block: Morning routine, prayer, exercise, shower and get ready
  • 7 – 7:20 am Maintenance Block: make my bed, wipe down the bathroom, start laundry, tidy kitchen while taking my vitamins, making coffee and my lunch
  • 7:20 – 8 am Admin Block: checking email, texts and my social media accounts before I leave
  • 8 – 8:30 am Load up my self and driving to my client
  • 8:30 -11 am Work with client
  • 11 – Noon, drive home, eat lunch, check in on texts and emails, take a brain break
  • Noon-3, 3 hours of coaching calls. This is my paid time, services delivered, billable hours
  • 3 – 3:15 pm Take a break break, grab a snack. Then I start MY WORK:
  • 3:15- 4 pm MONEY / Bookkeeping: Look at work log, send out invoices, update quicken for deposits and spending, create invoices for upcoming speaking gigs and send those out via email
  • 4 – 4:30 pm  Speaking:  Send out emails to site coordinators to confirm upcoming events, share upcoming events on my social media accounts
  • 4:30 – 6 pm Speaking: work on new presentation content, power point presentation and handouts.

There will probably be a little more work later, too, but that may be personal in nature at my laptop, like reading articles of interest, meal planning.

What I just did there was time blocking, or time chunking. I pair up the high priority tasks that I need to accomplish today with the available time I have to complete them.

The first step of Time Blocking is more than just the first step of Time Blocking. And I say that with a smile.  Time Blocking is a great tool to get things done, AND it requires some ground work that we have already covered in my articles, podcasts and newsletters

The ground work for time blocking is:

  • to review our calendar for the day and the week;
  • planning, and also flexibility in planning;
  • to prioritize our important work; and
  • to know our focus areas and what is important to us.
  • Time blocking requires, but also helps us create realistic time estimates – knowing how long our tasks actually take.
  • If I am struggling with overwhelm or with prioritizing, I may go so far as to assign 5 minute increments to the tasks on my to-do list, to determine if I can feasibly tackle the tasks in the block that I have assigned them to. Time blocking requires but also fosters the understanding that all projects are comprised of a series of smaller projects.

To Review, Time Blocking helps us get more done. More importantly, it helps us get our high priority work done. We start with looking at our day and week and at our high priority tasks. We group those high priority tasks into batches with similar themes, we assign those tasks to the time you have available this week. And if you’re currently saying – I have NO TIME to work on my high priority tasks this week, then it is time to be flexible!

Give Time Blocking a try!

Truth? Some Things Don’t Get Done, And That’s OK.

Hello, friends. It’s mid-December. 

I ran into a friend at Costco. If you live anywhere near me, you recognize that as a loaded statement. My Costco is a solid 32 minute drive from my house, so one does not embark on this adventure lightly.

Second, it was a Sunday in December, midday. I know. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but I was doubting my sanity as soon as I pulled into the parking lot. Of course it was packed.  So, crowded yes, but everyone was actually very pleasant.

My friend and I were both parked on the outskirts of the parking lot. As we walked to the entrance, we discussed an upcoming event we are both volunteering for, for our school district (her much more than me!). And she was kind enough to say, she just doesn’t know how I get it all done, considering all the things I’m involved in. And I marvel at her and her productivity in the same way.

I appreciate her, though, for seeing me in a good light.  As in, ‘look at all the different things you’re involved in and the different ways you serve our community, and that you get things done’. Because I got to tell you, friends, I do not always feel like I’ve got it all together.

And this is coming from a professional organizer and organizational coach!

So here’s the deal. I say yes to a lot of things. I successfully manage many responsibilities. I do. And that is a source of pride and it makes me happy to do these things. I absolutely love all the different organizations and activities and ministries that I’m involved in. And even when I don’t, it’s not that I don’t love the things, it’s that too many tasks are coming due at the same time period.

Yeah, that is definitely the truth.

So, I was writing a much different article for today about prioritization and focus areas, about triaging the to do list and starting the January list. And all of that is still true.

But I want to answer my friend’s question honestly, when she asks “How do you get it all done?”

First, the short answer is, sometimes I don’t.

More fully, the answer is, I ruthlessly prioritize, because saying yes to many things means I can’t also say yes to other things. And I know that. So there are opportunities that might come my way that I have to say no to, because I do not have the time or energy to dedicate to that task or responsibility to do it well.

I’m not saying I don’t have time and energy. I have boundless energy most days and the same amount of time that each of us has. But because I have multiple responsibilities, I can’t always say yes to new things.

And that’s frustrating for me, I know. But the other part of that, especially this time of year, is the ruthless prioritization. I’ve already said yes to many things, and so now I need to figure out how to make it all happen. And that is where prioritization comes in.

If you and your December are anything like me and mine, the to-do list might be looking a little long right now.

It is likely time to triage that to-do list.  This week, let’s clear the clutter from our to-do lists and brains!

Easier said than done,  I know. But to make sure we are getting things done that need to get done, it’s time to ruthlessly prioritize what must be done this month, and also start the list for January and 2024!

That was a long introduction to this week’s topic, how to ruthlessly prioritize the To-Do List!

This morning, I was applying the Eisenhower box to my to-do list – remember that tool?  The podcast episode was early on, go back and check it out if you need a refresher! Eisenhower filtered tasks through the Important vs. Non-Important and Urgent vs Non-Urgent lenses.

And we’re going to do this in reverse:

Delete:

Instead of starting with important and urgent, let’s look at the list and get rid of anything that can be deleted immediately. Things like events you don’t have the time or inclination to attend this month (A “No, Thank You” is a full sentence!), a moratorium on facebook or instagram scrolling for a few days, etc.

Delegate:

After deleting the clutter, let’s look to Delegate.  In the Eisenhower box, there are tasks that are deemed urgent but not important, as in it’s not important that I be the one to complete them. Consider what someone else could do for you.  And let them do it.

We’re hosting Christmas for my family in Michigan on December 23.  And I will be outsourcing many menu items.  Unlike Thanksgiving for 20, I am not attached to making every menu item from scratch, etc. 

If you have house specific tasks, can you hire a service?  barter for time?  rent a teenager or college student?

Perhaps it is work specific, and I am terrible at this one, but I’m working in it!  Is there anyone else on the team with less on their plate that could pick up tasks? And for me, Delegation also looks like NOT saying yes to more tasks, and letting others step up instead.

Decide / Defer:

Next up is the Defer step.  Tasks that are deemed important but not urgent are on the Defer list.

A few weeks back in an episode, I mentioned a January list. There are likely items on your task list that are important but they are not yet time specific.  So, in the interest of getting  the things that MUST be done, done lets look at what we can put off for a bit.

Routine doctor appointments, house projects not related to Christmas, non -holiday related errands – yep, those can all be turfed to January at this point.

As I think about this, I have “find a landscaper” on my to-do list.  And guess what?  That does not need to happen until at least February!  To be honest, I always have a running house project list, and I have to say – if there is a task on there that is not about the holidays, then we can move it to the January to-do list.

Some of my clients will defer organizing until January. Starting early in November, I typically have clients who ask for me to check in with them in January to book our next coaching or organizing session because they know their December is Full.

Medical appointments can also be booked January or into 2024.  Booking regular maintenance appointments is important, as in the fact that they are booked, but perhaps they don’t occur for a few months.  Just getting them on the calendar and then off your to-do list is the point!

Maybe events with friends or family, and now the December schedule is just packed – January could work!  And it would give us something to look forward to in the colder post-holiday glow months!

AND now – Do!  Important AND Urgent!

Now I know that the tasks on my list are things only I can do and that are time specific and therefore urgent. That also means that there are other things that won’t get done today, and I have to accept that. I can give myself grace, cut myself some slack, and assign those tasks to other times this week so they actually get done on time. That’s the way this works.

Ask yourself, “What are things that only I can do?” If we’re feeling strapped, we can start with doing the things that only we can do. As you’re looking at that To-Do list and it’s time to clear some clutter, I also want you to ask the question of  “What Can Only I do?”

I taught my Organize Your Holidays presentation this past week to a lovely group of parents, and we talked about doing all the things… unless they didn’t really feel the need.  For example, do we have to freak ourselves out and spend many hours super-cleaning our home to host guests, or can we relax a little and just host the guests in a clean-enough home?

I really love to bake cookies, but maybe you don’t.  And that’s ok. Sending out Christmas cards is a choice, and maybe you don’t choose to. And that’s ok, too.

There are many tasks I loaded onto this coming weekend after not getting them accomplished this past weekend, because we did so many other wonderful things this past weekend. There are many tasks that I’ve already turfed to January.

WE can delegate tasks that can be done by others.  We can skip the un-important “shoulds” we feel from others and focus on our own traditions. 

We can get things done, AND we can be OK with not getting things done, too. Let’s look at ourselves through kinder eyes, like the eyes and perception of my friend. Be a friend to yourself this week!