Paper Trap

After yesterday's kind of dim post, I'm back to house stuff!  Whatever....  Originally this was supposed to be yesterday's post - but just wasn't feeling it - so you got my "voice" stuff instead!!

Handling Paper.   Sometimes you feel like you are drowning in it.   There's stacks of it but you can't find the one thing you need at that moment.  Handling Paper.

The key is the first word:  Handling.  Most of us don't "handle"; we shift.   We review and think "Hmmm, yes, maybe I need to do this.....but later!" and it ends up in a stack with other things from that day, the day before, the next day.   And then you just make another stack, until the day you NEED that paper.  Sound Familiar?   Yes, I used to be like this.    But I kicked the paper trap a while ago.  I don't remember when or where, but I was at a management seminar and distinctly remember hearing the words "only touch paper ONCE".   In other words, deal with it right away!   I don't really have a method that I use but I came across one in my research that sounded very good so I will share.

TipNut.com has a tip on the "household inbox".   It is:  One Central InBox (or basket) where you keep all mail, correspondence, paper that does not need to be handled immediately.   The concept is that most items that come in DON'T need immediate attention and could wait one week.   So here's how it is supposed to work:

• As you review mail or kids school correspondence, decide what is "junk" or can be thrown away and THROW IT AWAY.    I read somewhere else that you need to sort through your mail standing over (or by!) a trash can.  That way the junk or no-keep items can be thrown away right away, and you never touch that paper again.
• Things that need to be handled immedidately should be done right away - then you don't have to worry about forgetting.   
• The inbox would hold such items as bills, receipts, school memos, coupons, etc.   Once in the box you forget about it and don't do anything with it until....
• Your designated, scheduled PAPER TIME which happens once a week but must be on the same day each week.  (By having on the same day, you won't miss a bill or appointment deadline).
• At that time you deal with each and every piece of paper:  paying bills, making appointments, updating your calendar.    If something can't be completed, then it goes back to the inbox as long as you won't miss the due date.    
• It is also suggested you use this time to update your checkbook balance (since you are paying bills seems to make sense) and your calendar for all upcoming appointments.    

I definitely do the "throw away" part - I am very good at that!  (It is absolutely insane how much junk mail we get!!)   I don't use an inbox or scheduled time; we tend to just deal with the paper right then - receipts get filed, bills get paid, etc.    BUT I can definitely see the value in a scheduled time in that it probably saves time overall.   So trying to end the week positively and offer some suggestion for making your life simpler!   Happy Holiday Weekend.

Not really about running

Image by Frerieke via Flickr

Quote of the Week: 

"It's very hard in the beginning to understand that the whole idea is not to beat the other runners. Eventually you learn that the competition is against the little voice inside you that wants you to quit." -- George Sheehan

So, I get this.   I do think about peoples' times in the 5k and wondering, hoping that I might be able to get there, and then be disappointed in where I am at.   Separately, I hear that voice that says I'm tired and hurting and why am I doing this and  "just quit".  (Mine isn't a little voice when I'm running, however; its kind of whiny and loud!)  I just hadn't made the connection that the voice is really what I'm competing against.  I'm going to have to work on that.

But not just in running.

BECAUSE there's a little voice running around my head these days telling me just to give up, go get a job, quit blogging, forget about creating something, forget about purpose.  (Its quieter than my running "voice" - but it seems to be there more and more.)   The voice continues....over and over.   It wants me to quit.  Says I can't do it and/or why should I.   And then i see someone who asks if I'm working yet, and it seems to kind of give the voice more power.

BUT I don't want to.   I do not want to go back to how I was.  SO, is that voice my competition?  Not to be discouraged that I haven't figured it out yet, that I am still trying to see what the real purpose is behind this?   That's my biggest fear; that this all means nothing.

I'm not going to quit today - and I'll keep running, too - and we'll have to see whether I "beat" the voices or they beat me.

Calendars, Contacts & Correspondence and more!

To continue on the Home Journal - 

Calendar Section:   

•              I printed an 18month calendar, and then monthly calendars (one page each).  The 18-month is a nice reference, you know, "What day is Thanksgiving on?"  (LOL - bad example since its ALWAYS Thursday! But I think you know what I mean!)   

•              I have monthly tabs and behind each is the applicable monthly calendar.   On the Monthly TABS - I have written Birthdays and Anniversary - things that don't change from year to year so I can re-use the tabs.   The Monthly Calendar then has all "events" that I know of now and I add to as I find out more.  

•               Behind the monthly calendar I have a plastic "pouch" where I can put an invitations, tickets, etc, that pertain to that month.  You could use a pencil holder - but I am re-purposing the packaging that comes with thank you notes.  It has a top that can fit into the rings and is resealable!    

•              As well I have a weekly calendar that I then put more detail on as I get into the week.

Contacts:   I've simply printed mine out of my computer and kept a copy for reference.  If you have an address book - keep it with the journal.

Correspondence:  I used another pencil case (3-hole punched) to keep thank you notes, blank notes and a couple of cards:  Birthday and Sympathy.    I don't know about you but if I wait to get to the store and pick out a card, I will sometimes delay too long.  I feel its more important to send it then worry about the card itself.  

Coupons:   I used some old trading card holders (clear plastic!) and put coupons in this.  I have one for "stores" (Macy's, etc.), food, cleaning & paper, and personal care.   Once I'm done with my shopping list I can easily see what coupons I can take AND I can go through once a week and clean out expireds.

Grocery List:  Since I make my grocery list on line - I use this section to capture the items I know I am out of before its time to make the list.   I use a dry erase marker and I have my list separated by Grocery Store and Costco.

Meals:  This was tricky for me.   My recipes are all over (imagine that!) - in books, some on cards, some photocopied on 81/2 x 11.      This is a project all on its own.   Ideally if all were on cards my system would work perfect - but I'm not there.   So here's what I've done and its working really well!

•              I've created a card listing ingredients for dinners we frequently have.  These are just handwritten - nothing fancy right now.  These cards are kept in another thank-you note package!  (Why did I have so many of these????)

•              Meal planning is done the day before I make the grocery list.  List is prepared the next day.

•              By using the pull-away plastic I put the cards on three pages in the order we are going to have them, and then after putting the plastic over them, I label "Monday", etc.  This way I know what's needed for each meal and I can easily check that I have what I need OR it goes on the list.

•              The great thing about this as well is that if we get off schedule, because I have all items on hand, I can "shift" dinners if I need to.

So this is my system to keep me on track!   So far its all working great!   I will be adding some other items into it but I seriously recommend you look at those websites (last Friday post) to see if there aren't some tips that would work for you

Lists and Schedules (Oh No!)

When I first started researching the household journals, one of the first recommended steps is to develop a schedule of your "ideal" week and lists of tasks to accomplish each day/week/month.  My initial reaction was "Oh No!",  as if the corporate world was reaching out to pull me back in.  The reason, however, was sound, and clearly applicable to my situation.   Working from home WITHOUT a schedule was a clear and direct path to chaos!   I've previously referred to my frustration of not knowing where the day went, which is a clear example.   So Step 1 was to design my ideal week, assigning time each day for household chores, me-time (including exercise and reflection), income producing time, and lots of fun time!  (Okay - I added the LOTS but seriously if there isn't more fun time than other time - what's the point of all this???)     At the bottom is my ideal week plan which include time for all activities - including time for me!  Hopefully my description below is not boring and is helpful to someone??

As I read about this ideal schedule, a theme emerged with respect to evening time:   the key to a smooth next morning was an efficient and non-cancellable 15-minutes of prep time the evening before - including but not limited to:  general straightening and kitchen "shined",  tomorrow's clothes and lunches ready, review of tomorrow's appointments/calendar.    It was also suggested that this time be extended for some self-care:  some pampering (face, hair, feet soak!) along with some reflection.   I labelled my time each evening as NightRight.   I can tell you it is quite nice to wake up to a clean and "shiny" kitchen every morning.  Kind of puts a sparkle on your day and sets you up in a good mood!  The morning time should include a quiet time for things like making coffee, watering plants, thorough review of day's calendar and thanksgiving.  I call this time MorningGlory.    For both these times I have established a set amount of time and specific tasks to be accomplished. 

Household cleaning could be handled one of two ways:   Schedule it all in on one day or break it down by rooms or zones, with a space cleaned each day.   I have always cleaned my home all at the same time so I cannot comment on the latter method.  For me, its important to have that feeling of "all over clean" and I just can't imagine cleaning my kitchen but then going into my bedroom and not having it clean.  It would drive me crazy.  So, I have one morning each week dedicated to cleaning.   As well, I incorporated a tip I was given many years ago to deep clean one area in your home each week and in so doing, your home never needs "spring cleaning".   So I maintain a list by week of area to be deep cleaned.  (Note for anyone wanting to incorporate room or zone cleaning - there are great ideas and sample schedules at Flylady.net.)

 In order to keep the house picked up and clean,  I have established an additional time each morning to get the kitchen cleaned up after breakfast, straighten main living rooms if needed, and quick wipe down of bathrooms.   I have to say that this has helped me immensely!!!   There's a great satisfaction to settling down to work in a clean and fresh space.  As well, I tackle one other household chore - a different one each day.   Example:  Monday's I clean out the refrigerator, while on Friday I plan next weeks meals.    I used to dread Monday's grocery shopping and I think it was because I was planning the meals, making the list and shopping all on the same day.  Now its split into three days and it seems much more manageable.

Summary:  This section includes my plan for an ideal week (shown below) as well as the associated tasks behind MorningGlory, Daily (includes each days "special" chore and weekly housecleaning and lists), and NightRight.  There's also a list for Spring and Fall chores.   This is my plan for a structured way to make sure that household chores are accomplished efficiently and on time.   

The Household Journal - a beginning

Image via Wikipedia

Organizing is pretty easy IF we allow ourselves the time - its keeping it that way without spending more time that's the real challenge.   In my research for this magic solution, I came across the concept of the "Household Journal".    The idea is simple; a book that contains the information to "run" your home efficiently.  Historically, it was truly a journal.  A summary of the days events, recipes that were well received (or not!), visitors, etc.    Today it serves a future purpose, a planner of sorts.

The journal contains everything from event and school calendars, meal plans, shopping lists, home repair records, correspondence, bills and financial records, and more.    The books can be purchased or self-made.   Here are some websites that I used in my research and development:

Flylady.net

Tipnut.com

Donnayoung.org

Bizmomtips.com

I created my own book for two reasons.  First, I am keeping unnecessary expenses to a minimum.  Second, after reviewing available journals, I wasn't convinced they matched my needs.     Now after making my own and using it for a week,  I know I did the right thing as I can "tweak" my system as I go along.    I made it a goal to try and use only items I had on hand to build my journal which made it a little challenging.  (For any scrapbook queens, you probably have many resources already!)   Here's the supplies I used to build my journal:

1. Photo Album (3-ring) with "sticky" pages.   Heavy card stock pages (sticky surface) with plastic, peel-away covers.
2. Tabbed dividers, with write-on inserts
3. Index Cards
4. Two "pencil-pouches" - fit in 3-hole notebook
5. Trading Card plastic holders (9 pockets to a page)
6. Packaging used for Thank-you notes or invitations (clear plastic, resealable, punched at top)
7. Calendar and list templates from websites 

I love the photo album because the pages are slightly bigger than 81/2 x 11.  This means that I can have sections within a section by using the tabbed dividers.   As well the plastic covers means items can easily be added or removed AND you can write on the plastic with a dry erase marker!  The journal can be as simple as a notebook and paper.  In fact, if you've never used a planner before you might want to start this way so that can determine what works for you.  That way you focus on the function and won't spend too much time on the format.

The sections within my journal are:    Lists and Schedules; Calendars; Meals; Grocery Lists; Coupons; Contacts; Correspondence.   I currently do not have home repairs or decorating, or any financial information as we have other ways to track these.   I may incorporate these in but I wanted to see how what I've set up initially works for me.   I also took one of the "pencil pouches" and put in dry erase, pen, pencil, post-it notes, notepad, and scissors.  This is in the front of the book.    This week I will be going through the sections and provide you more detail behind each section.   I hope this may provide some insight to others who are looking for ways to save time and money!