Organize your family with a $5 tool.
We have a rule in our house…if it is not on the calendar, it doesn’t happen 
It’s the only way we can keep track of who is doing what when. If someone needs a rides somewhere…it needs to be listed on the calendar.
And you need a calender that is large enough to fit it all! Staples has simple desk blotter calender that is about 15″ x 24″ and each square is 3×3 plenty of room for my family to write it all in.
It’s displayed on the wall in the office. Where everyone can see it.
Teach your family to put their events on this master calender and to check it. Anyone in my family can see at a glance who is doing what when.
Since I work from home and my schedule changes every week depending on what else is scheduled, each Sunday night, I take my marker and write in when I will be working.
The Key points to success with this is
1 – Buy a calender big enough to fit all the stuff we do
2 – Put it where everyone can see it and write on it
3 – Teach everyone to USE it
It’s a simple thing, but can make a huge difference in your life…
Oh…I just checked my calendar…tonight I’m going to a personal development training seminar with a bunch of girlfriends! We are going to meet up for dinner before hand. It’s on the calendar so my family already knows, my husband will put the kids to bed and I’ll enjoy a well deserved night of training with friends.
Til next time
The 20 minute timer
Focus for 20 minutes
Today I came home from the grocery store, unloaded the car and must have started at the groceries willing them to fly into the fridge and cupboards by themselves. I went and got the mail, put a load of wash into the dryer and checked my phone messages.
Guess what…the groceries were still there!
I have a bad habit of starting a task and getting sidetracked very easily. But one thing I have learned over the years is when I start to think this way, I set my timer for 20 minutes and FOCUS on the task at hand.
So my daughter and I started unpacking the groceries, putting them away where they belonged. We even opened the family pack of meats and divided it into smaller meal sizes. I unwrapped the 2.5 pound block of American cheese and put it into the cheese container in the fridge. I unhooked the Gatorade bottles from the plastic holders and put them in the cupboard so the kids can just grab them in the morning for their lunch box. I even opened the bag of fig newtons and pretzels and put them in snack size bags so we can grab them on the run.
Total time – 17.5 minutes
And it’s done. Now I can focus on the next task…which happens to be coloring with my daughter. I’m setting the timer again for 20 minutes and she will have my undivided attention and I’ll get some very much needed mommy/daughter time.
I love my timer…it really helps me stay on track and keep the focus.
I wonder if I can convince my husband to use it and give me a 20 minute back rub
Dream Big, Dream Often and Surround yourself by others who belive in you
