I posted this series in December of 07 … for the most part I’m still practicing my own advice. What a novel concept! 🙂
I get TONS of requests on info on how I do everything, so … I’m sharing a few Time Management tips for balancing family, hubby, life, job, friends, house, etc. Basically this is how I keep my sanity!
I’ll be sharing advice from my friends and a few things I’ve done that have WORKED…like this:
Life
1. I shop BIG and make sure I have full cupboard to choose from when I cook. Some weeks I plan a menu … but most of the time I try to think a few days ahead. I schedule in to start making dinner at 5:00 p.m.
2. I daily sort mail and clean off my desk. I weekly try to catch up on emails. I bi-weekly pay bills.
3. I don’t usually answer the phone during the day. I’ll let people leave messages, and then I’ll return them later.
4. I don’t get sucked into email. I schedule that like everything else.
5. I often answer email when we’re hanging out and watch family movies. My family is amazed I’m able to follow the story and go through messages. (Of course, if it’s a movie I’m really interested in, the computer gets put away.)
6. I schedule in “learning time” which is reading a writing book or even doing an on-line class. This month I did one with Margie Lawson called Deep Editing that I’d highly recommend.
7. As if you couldn’t tell, I’m extremely time-conscious. Wasting time is a pet peeve of mine. I continually think of saving time throughout the day. For example, if I need to heat up my coffee and put water in the dog dish, I’ll think, “I can put the coffee in the microwave and then give the dog water while it heats.” I’m that anal about it!
8. I give my full attention to the thing I’m working on. We have guests over once a week or. When I’m entertaining, I’m there. When I’m writing, I’m there. When I’m talking with one of my kids, I’m there. No guilt. No worries. No regrets.
I automatically pay all my bills online electronically. Then I don’t have to worry about them and it gives me more time to study and write. I cook in batches and freeze in serving sizes. I use a crockpot, automatic steamer and rice cooker. While they cook dinner, I write.
Thank you for the list. I constantly battle with prioritizing my time. I have two young children that are still at home during the daytime, so I have to be careful to not neglect them while I try to work and build my blog and business. This can be a hard battle to win, but I think you hit it on the nail when you mentioned scheduling.