Peace of Mind Organizing

Just fifteen minutes

3 June 2008

I’m constantly amazed at what can be accomplished in just 15 minutes. I often advise my clients (and I do this myself) to set a timer for 15 minutes and focus on one task: decluttering, filing, sorting, etc. As long as they keep going until that timer dings, they’ll get a good amount done. It’s astounding what can get done in such a small amount of time. (As an aside, that’s one of the ways I use my beloved Time Timer.)

The point was brought home to me this morning when I went to the salon. I had about a 15-minute gap between services and I brought along my planner and my file on business planning.

In 15 minutes, in the tranquility of the “relaxation room” of the salon and spa I frequent, I went through my business-planning file, scheduled tasks and even did some big-picture thinking.

Sometimes I try to schedule this type of planning, but when I see an item in my task list like “create quarterly business goals,” I find it daunting and I put it off. But when I have a free 15 minutes to actually brainstorm with myself, it’s not only productive but fun.

Later in the week I’ll blog about some techniques I learned from Mark Forster’s book Do It Tomorrow (link at right) to trick my mind into letting me get started on tasks and other techniques for keeping going.

But for now I’ll leave you with Flylady’s words of wisdom: “You can do anything for 15 minutes.” Set your timer and get going!

Tagged with: 15 minutes, big picture, focus, mark forster, productivity, time management, time timer

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