Peace of Mind Organizing

Oldies but goodies

31 March 2008

I like sharing new websites and shortcuts for making life a little easier. But there are some older sites that you may not know about that I’d like to share. These are sites I use regularly to make my life easier and more enjoyable. I hope you will too.

• Tiny URL. If you a giant web address you want to email to someone, it can be problematic. A URL that spans more than one line sometimes isn’t clickable. That’s where tinyURL saves the day. It converts any URL want to a small one (with, say, a total of 25 characters).

• Bug Me Not. Sometimes I want to read an article on a newspaper’s website, but they require me to register and give them all sorts of personal information. No thanks. If you’re like me and you resist registering, you can go to Bug Me Not and enter the website you’re trying to gain access to (say, www.washingtonpost.com). They’ll give you a username and password that’s been donated by another user. And you’re in.

• Retail Me Not. From our friends at Bug Me Not comes a website with instant discounts on shopping websites. Enter, for example, anntaylor.com and you’ll get a list of coupon codes for Ann Taylor, supplied by other users. Even better, you can sign up for email alerts from Retail Me Not for your favorite stores. Never miss a discount.

• Google Maps. In my opinion, Google Maps blows Mapquest right out of the water. Not only do its maps look great, you can get satellite views and, in some cities, street-level views. In my experience, the directions are very good. Here in St. Louis, we had a major highway closure (for an extended period of time) and Google Maps was right on it. From the first day, its routes bypassed the closed highway.

• Pandora. Pandora is a place to listen to music, free of charge. It’s like having a radio station whose fabulous DJ cares only about you and the music you like. You start by entering the name of a song that you love. It then makes suggestions for other songs you might love. You get to listen to those songs, give each a thumbs-up or thumbs-down and create your very own radio station of music you love. Pandora rocks.

• Ravelry. If you’re not knitter or a crocheter, skip this entry. But if you are, and if you’re not yet a member of Ravelry, go there. Now. Register for the waiting list and respond immediately when you get your invitation (it’s currently in beta testing mode). Trust me on this. I think of Ravelry as a social-networking site for knitters. But it’s more than that. It’s also an organizing tool for all things knitting. It’s a place to find inspiration and assistance and community and it’s just wonderful.

If any of these sites are new to you, I urge you to give them a try. You won’t be sorry!

Things Flylady has taught me

28 March 2008

Chances are you’re familiar with Flylady. Her real name is Marla Cilley, and she has a wildly popular website that helps readers dig out from clutter, establish routines, and stay organized. She does this via the use of copious emails she’ll send out on a daily basis (many times a day) reminding you to do the stuff her program would have you do. For some people, the frequency and number of emails are annoying.

Years I ago, I received those emails. And they were helpful. This was back when I was a freelance writer, so I was at my computer all day, at home. I haven’t actually looked at website in years, but to this day, I employ but some of her basic principles every day.

Here are my top few Flylady principles. If they make some sense to you, I urge you to go check her website (again, that’s flylady.com).

• You can do anything for 15 minutes. Flylady is big on the use of the timer. She suggests if you’re having trouble starting a project, just set a timer for 15 minutes and work on it until the timer goes off. You might keep going, you might not. But at the very least, you’ve made progress. I do this all the time, and I urge my clients to do it.

• Routines are everything. Thanks to Flylady I have a fabulous morning routine of things I do before I’m even awake enough to think about it. I’m completely on autopilot when I get up, brush my teeth, floss my teeth, wipe down the bathroom fixtures (see below), do my morning weight-lifting routing (don’t be impressed…they’re seven-pound dumbbells and it takes me about 2 minutes), and empty the dishwasher, which is always run before bed. Then I make my coffee and that’s when the day really starts.

• Make your bathroom fixtures sparkle. By wiping my bathroom sink and toilet with a Lysol or Clorox wipe every day, my bathroom is always ready to receive guests. Believe me, this didn’t used to be the case. I timed it—it takes me 40 seconds. Thank you, Flylady!

• When decluttering, don’t take out more than you can put away in an hour. If you empty a closet or a cupboard to declutter it, you make a huge mess. If you take out more than you have time to put away, your efforts to clean up actually have the opposite effect. When you’re emptying a space for decluttering, think about how much time you have available and don’t overreach.

• Every now and then, walk through your house like you’re a realtor. If you look at your home with the eyes of a realtor (or a professional organizer, for that matter), imperfections that were invisible jump out at you. Much of the time, those are easy fixes. Give it a try.

Even if you don’t want to receive Flylady’s bazillion emails a day, reading her website, or her book, Sink Reflections, can give you some great ideas to use on your road to an orderly and peaceful life.

Beware Jott playing cupid!

27 March 2008

As I’ve written here before, I’m a big fan of Jott.com. It’s a service that allows you to send emails from your telephone while you’re on the go. You register on the Jott site, give them your cell-phone number, input a list of people you’d want to email via Jott (including yourself). Then you program Jott’s phone number into your cell-phone autodial.

So when you want to Jott, you call Jott’s number (in my phone, I just say, “Call Jott”), Jott recognizes you from your phone number and asks who you want to Jott. You tell them someone from your list, then you say your message. Voice-recognition software transcribes your message and emails it to your recipient (and sends you a copy of the email). All this is free of charge, by the way.

I use the service to send myself reminders of things that come up in my mind when I’m driving. (If only I could do this in the shower, where my best ideas happen, I’d be golden.) Another way I use it is to Jott my husband when I’m on the way home. He’s often on the phone at his home office, sitting at his computer. So if I get his voicemail when I call, I’ll send him a Jott, knowing it will appear as an email in front of him while he’s on the phone.

Yesterday, I did this. In my message, I wanted to let him know where I was when I called, in case he wanted me to stop somewhere on the way home. So I said in my message, “I’m at Lindbergh and Ladue.” Jott translated it this way, “I’m on (_____). I love you.” Luckily, I do love him. But it made me realize that if I Jott people other than my husband, I’m going to have to speak clearly and use words I know Jott will understand. It could get very awkward if Jott played cupid with a note to a client!

A habit is born

26 March 2008

As I’ve endlessly documented in this blog, I vowed this year to form the habit of clearing my desk at the end of each work day. The idea was that I would start work each morning with a clear desk, a clear mind, and major productivity. It’s something that I’ve strived for for decades and never been able to achieve.

Today I can report that it’s officially become a habit. Last night, as I was finishing up a coaching call for the Level III NSGCD program I’m enrolled in, I was in a hurry to get upstairs to dinner. Without even thinking about it, I began putting everything away that was on my desktop. Four months ago, I’d have pushed my chair away from the desk and headed upstairs to the glass of wine and delicious dinner that was waiting for me without giving my desk a second thought. Last night, even though it was after 8 p.m., I took the time (less than five minutes) to put everything away with nary a thought—and this is important—no resentment about “having” to do it.

I attribute my success to Don’t Break the Chain. At the beginning the satisfaction of clicking that square and keeping the chain going really spurred me on. Now I click as as an afterthought, the next day or sometimes even several days later.

I wanted to show you a screenshot of my Don’t Break the Chain page for clearing my desk for the last four months. But I can’t seem to figure out the technological aspects of that. So I’ll just describe that each and every day, save one, between January 5 and March 25 are filled with red. On February 9 I was knitting at my desk while watching a DVD on my computer and neglected to clear up my knitting, so I got no click that day. But every other day is red. I’m so proud.

I’ve decided to use Don’t Break the Chain to help me form another habit I’m trying to develop: to write a blog entry every weekday. Once again, I’m finding it to be very motivating (and I’ve succeeded in a week’s worth of five-days-a-week blog entries).

Have you tried Hulu yet?

25 March 2008

The world of online entertainment took a giant step forward, in my opinion, when Hulu.com launched a couple of weeks ago.

The website, which is owned primarily by NBC Universal and Fox, offers up TV shows (full episodes and clips), as well as movies. They’re streamed on your computer and they’re free of charge. I’ll repeat that: They’re free of charge.

One great thing about Hulu is that since the content comes from the studios themselves, the quality is very high. You’re required to watch short commercials (not as many as if you were watching on television), but that’s a small price to pay, in my opinion.

In addition to some current shows (Saturday Night Live, The Office, New Amsterdam, Deal or No Deal, among others) the site offers lots of old shows, including Picket Fences, Fame, The Addams Family, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

So how is this related to organizing? Mostly, I just wanted to share a really good thing. But let’s see…I personally am planning to use this as a personal productivity tool. Hulu has the potential to be a huge time suck. Instead of allowing that to happen, I’ll use it, in conjunction with my timer, to reward myself for working (at my desk or in my office) for a given period of time. For a particularly odious task, l’d do 15 minutes of the task, followed by the reward of watching a Saturday Night Live sketch on Hulu. Repeat until task is finished. Or I might write for 45 minutes, then reward myself by watching a whole episode of WKRP in Cincinnati (or Nanny and the Professor!).

If you enjoy television as much as me (movies, too—The Big Lebowski is available!!), you’ll be glad you checked out Hulu.

Recharging the batteries

24 March 2008

I took the day off yesterday. Completely.

I hadn’t had a day off since March 6 and I was feeling the need to recharge my batteries. Yesterday was the first day I didn’t have a client appointment scheduled in a couple of weeks and I just wanted to hang out. So that’s what I did.

I watched a movie on cable (Sliding Doors). I watched two episodes of HBO’s excellent mini-series John Adams during the day, then the third when it aired last night. I took a nap. I did a tiny bit of genealogical research (probably sparked by hearing the name “Adams” over and over again during the mini-series…there’s no evidence I’m related to the first and sixth presidents). And while I was watching all that TV, I knitted. (I’m working on Knitty’s Tempting II.) Ah, the joy and relaxation.

There was much I could have done work-wise. At the very least I probably should have worked up my will-do list for the week. But I didn’t. There’s time for that today.

I feel relaxed and more focused than I have in about a week. I have a full client schedule this week, and I’m facing it with eager anticipation. About a week ago, I faced the new week feeling rather tired and overwhelmed.

Taking a day off at least once a week has always been a priority for me—I know taking two days off a week would be even better. But this month I let demands on my time take precedence.

Based on the great effects of yesterday’s R&R, I’m renewing my vow to take at least one day a week off: no clients, no working at my desk, no work-related web surfing. The beauty of owning my own business is that my schedule is my own. It’s time to reassert my personal priorities into my scheduling!

Stock up on Forever stamps!

21 March 2008

On May 12, the U.S. Postal Service will increase the price of a first-class stamp to 42 cents. In 2007, when they raised the rate from 39 to 41 cents, they introduced the “Forever stamp” which sells for 41 cents. This stamp, as its name implies, can be used even after a rate increase.

Why the postal service went this route, I don’t know. But I’m planning to take advantage of it.

According to this page on the Postal Service’s website, they’ve printed 5 billion Forever stamps to meet demand.

You can go online to the USPS website to order your stamps. There will be a $1 handling fee, but for me it’s worth it for the convenience. Start here to order your Forever stamps. I just ordered 200, figuring I can use them for my holiday cards and save a few bucks.

It’s a small thing, but a nice little example of how being organized (that is, organized enough to plan ahead) can save some money.