Archive for the 'Organization' Category

Back when I was an automotive technician I used to tune and service many cars. Most of the work that I would do would be under the hood… unseen by my customers. But there was one final important step in the service process that made all the difference. Something that only took a minute but made all the difference in my customers attitude when they picked up their car.

I cleaned their windows.

This one simple task let the customers know that something positive was done to their car. They could see clearly again. The change was sometimes subtle, but the effect was always positive.

Is there something that you have been looking at for a long time that needs to be changed? So long in fact that you may not even notice it anymore? Here are five simple things that you can do today that may improve your attitude and bring a smile to your face. Most only take a few minutes but will reap a huge mental award. Why not choose one and do it today?

1. Clean off your desk. You’ve been staring at that mess for months. Why not take a few minutes today and completely clean it off, dust it, polish it and sit back and smile. You can do it!

2. Wash your car. It’s so dirty from the summer grime that you can barely see out. Take a few minutes today and clean it up. If you don’t have much time… take it to the car wash. A shiny car will bring a shiny new smile to your face.

3. Clean your sink. The dishes have piled up and the food stains abound. Why not wash the dishes and clean your sink. Make that sink shine. Don’t leave one spot. Get some elbow grease and do an amazing job. Stand back and admire your work. You know you can do this!

4. Clean out a closet. You can barely shut the door. The old clothes are piling up and you know it will be a disaster if someone else should open it up. Why not grab a a large plastic trash bag and spend a few minutes sorting through those old clothes and taking them to a needy charity. You’ll make life better for someone else and lessen your stress now that you can actually open the closet door.

5. Clean out your refrigerator. Start with the old milk cartons and work backwards. Get those plastic containers of who knows what and dump them down the garbage disposal. Bring over your trash can and start throwing out the old stuff. Then take everything else out and give it a good cleaning. Add a new box of baking soda, sort your items and stand back and smile. You now have a healthy and happy place in your kitchen.

Why not pick one item from the list and change your attitude today!

Technorati Tags: attitude, productivity

The Mercedes spit and sputtered as I pulled it into the stall. I lifted the hood and put it on the scope. The engine was misfiring and a large spike showed on the oscilloscope screen. I shut it down and started the tune up. I removed and replaced the spark plugs, changed the air and fuel filters, and changed the oil and checked the air pressure in the tires.

Once I had replaced the parts and fluids I started the car back up and started the tuning process. I adjusted the engine timing, set the fuel mixture, and adjusted for a smooth idle. I then checked the engine on the dyno as I increased the engine speed. With a few more adjustments the car was running as smooth as a kitten. The dyno readout showed increased horsepower and better fuel efficiency.

What came in as a sputtering and polluting mess left the shop that day as a smooth, powerful and efficient machine just as the maker had designed it. Years ago, when I was a Mercedes and Volvo Technician, this was a daily occurrence. I always loved tuning cars as I could make so much difference with just a few parts and and a few fine adjustments.

We can use the same tuning process with our lives and see some amazing results. Over the next few weeks we’ll explore some ways we can tune our lives to feel better, have more energy, and become much more efficient. Consider some of the following life tuning scenarios.

Nutrition Tune Up: We’ll talk about some handy customizable foods that will allow you to fine tune your fiber, carbohydrate, and protein intake throughout the day. Using custom Muffins and Shakes we’ll be able to find the best nutritional mix to keep you feeling your best all day.

Caffeine Tuning: Caffeine can perk you up, help you be more creative, and perk up your attitude. But if you get too much you can lose focus, become jittery and inattentive. We’ll look at ways to tune your intake to help you get the benefits without the side effects. We’ll also look at alternatives to coffee and also discuss ways to get off caffeine altogether.

Change Your Fluids: Instead of high calorie sodas, lattes, or chemical laden diet drinks, we’ll look at some easy to create low calorie drinks that taste great, provide variety and are good for you. With these beverages you’ll find it much easier to get those recommended 8-10 glasses of water per day.

Adjust Your Timing: Add some easy to implement time management solutions to your life and see increased productivity and efficiency. Handy downloadable tools will make these changes a snap.

Navigational GPS For Your Life: Just like a GPS in your car, we’ll come up with some simple daily directions to help you get to your life destination step-by-step. Easy to use Goal setting techniques will have you on track in no time.

Stay with us over the next few weeks as we start our life tune up.

First up… Nutritional Tuning…

Technorati Tags: diet, fitness, organization

Over the past month we have talked a lot about goal setting on this blog. We have taken an idea and painted it in our minds. We have taken the outline of the goal and written it down. Now it’s time to fill in the pieces. Goal success comes down to daily actions completed over and over.

Over the years I have tried many things to help me with my daily activities and that never ending to-do list. I’ve worked with Outlook, tried many paper based planners, and even worked with a Treo Smart phone. What I always come back to is a piece of paper on my desk. It may be a legal pad, a small notebook or just a post-it note.

I make notes on the paper, write down phone messages, and list e-mails that I need to send. The paper sometimes becomes a mess of scribbles and notes. The general concept works well for me but things sometimes get lost in the shuffle.

A few weeks ago I decided to organize my sheet of paper into boxes that will hold my common activities. This little organization hack has worked wonders for me. I now have a common letter size sheet of paper broken up into useful areas. There is a place for phone calls that I need to make, e-mails that I need to send, and a create box for accounts that I need to setup.

The sheet is setup in a blog style format, with a large center column for to-do activities and appointments and a right sidebar for the smaller boxes. I’ve experimented with different box sizes and ended up making everything as uniform as possible. I added a success quotation to the bottom of each sheet to remind me of my priorities.

This simple sheet of paper has really helped me organize my daily activities. Now when my users call and need me to set them up an account, I can list it in the create box and it will get done. The telephone list is always visible which allows me to group callbacks, along with the e-mail box that groups e-mail responses so I don’t forget them.

I also created a weekly sheet which helps me plan out my week. I keep this on my desk under the daily sheet for reference. When I have something that I need to schedule later in the week, this sheet works wonders. Even though I still use Outlook for my calendar, a quick note here reminds me of the appointment.

Since this simple system works so well for me I decided to make a couple of standard versions that may work for you. I designed these in Microsoft Publisher for the greatest flexibility. Publisher allows you to move boxes with ease and align elements with precision. I realize that many people may not have Publisher installed on their machines so I have also included a non-editable PDF version.

There are three templates to choose from.

1. Daily Goal Sheet with To-Do List

2. Daily Goal Sheet with GTD Next Actions

3. Weekly Goal Sheet with Five Side Boxes

Each template includes a Microsoft Publisher file and a non-editable PDF (Acrobat) file. These are designed for standard U.S. Letter size paper. Just download and unzip the file. Open the file in Publisher and modify as necessary. Print out on standard weight white paper. If you don’t have Publisher use the included PDF file instead.

When you are done with your daily sheet at the end of the day, just three hole punch it and store it in a notebook for future reference. If you use a weekly sheet, store your daily sheets behind it. This will quickly build a daily journal that you can reference in the future.

It’s simple and it works.

Other Goal Setting Tools:

Goal Setting Toolkit

Five Minute Organizer

Resources for Daily Goal Setting:

Eat That Frog
 
7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Daily Planners

It has been almost a year since I posted our first business card based pocket organizer. Called the “Walleteer” because of its compact size, this little assortment of organizer cards has spawned a lot of additional card sets. This paper based concept came from the idea of the index card Hipster-PDA from 43 folders.  There are sets designed for outlining, flowcharting, and storyboarding. There is even a complete set for setting up a garage sale.

Since there are so many sets, its easy to mix and match cards depending on the need. I thought it would be cool to setup some custom covers that might match the occasion. The Walleteer is almost always a conversation piece and with the addition of a colorful cover, people say… “Hey…What’s that?”

We created a 10 card assortment that you can print out on most any color printer. The high resolution graphics on these cards are done in Photoshop and print cleanly on most Avery Card stock. They look especially good on the glossy cards. There are covers for data and business people, political junkies, and even one that I designed for Gina Trapani over at Lifehacker. For a more elegant look in her purse, my wife likes the Walleteer Deluxe card.

Instructions for Printing Walleteer Covers:

• Download the Walleteer Covers Template
• Open the template in Microsoft Word
• Print the cards on a Avery Business Card Stock
• Use a Color Inject or Color Laser for best results
• Break the cards apart
• Put them on top of your card stack
• Attach a mini clip at one end
• You now have a personalized Walleteer pocket data assistant
• Stores easily in pocket or purse

In the spirit of the creative Super Bowl ads, I had to ask the question… What’s in your Walleteer? I find that mine has an assortment of cards, from flow chart shapes to a diet tracker card. I keep an assortment of different cards in my desk drawer and take them along as needed.

If I’m going into a planning meeting I like to take some flowchart shapes as well as an outliner deck. When I’m working on a Powerpoint or other story based idea the pocket storyboarder is very helpful. I can take the cards where it is comfortable and the creative juices start to flow.

On my desk I like to have a motivator card or two along with a quotation card. It’s easy to swap them out depending on my mood or activity. Some of the dieteer reference cards are helpful to keep in the car when I’m out for lunch or dinner to track my calories. My wife uses hers to track weight watchers points.

Here are some of the card sets you can choose from. Click on the link to go to the individual download page.

Walleteer: Pocket Organizer

Flowchart: Desktop Flowchart

Dieteer: Diet Planner

Outliner: Desktop Outliner

Motivators: Motivational Cards

Pocket Storyboarder: Storyboard Cards

Productivity Game: Fun Card Based Motivational Game

Instant Garage Sale: Price Tags & Signs

10 Powerful Quotations: Quotations by Famous Authors

Gift Tags: Gift Tags for the Analytical Mind

Have fun with these cards and use your imagination. You can even create a “motivation station” on your desk that will keep you focused during the day. Using simple materials such as a clothes pin, mini clips, and a pencil, you’ll have a tower of power on your desk in no time.

Technorati Tags: Organization; productivity; flowchart

Holiday time can be a tough time for the analytical people in your life. The whole idea of gift giving may be foreign to them causing them inordinate amounts of grief. They may spend hours in a store analyzing items to buy for different people. The thought that they may buy the wrong gift haunts them at every turn.

Imagine then what happens when you give them a gift that is wrapped with just a from-to gift tag on it. The analysis starts as soon as the gift arrives. “What’s inside?,” they think to themselves. They shake the item, weigh it in their hand, and size it up in their mind. The cogs start turning…

• It’s too big to be a DVD…
• It’s too small to be an X-Box
• Hmmm… it might be socks like last year…

Pre-formed opinions start to form. If they happen to have a negative attitude, you are the bad guy after just a few minutes. They may conclude, inaccurately, that you are the scum of the earth and have bought them a loud necktie just like Uncle Harold would wear. They may get so irritated with this analysis that they never even open your gift.

To head off the grief that wrapped packages inherently cause, you need specially designed gift tags. Gift tags that state in no uncertain terms what is inside the package. You need gift tags for the analytical mind.

We have designed ten different tags that should cover most gifts that you will give out this year. We have them available in classic black or festive holiday colors. The tags are available in a simple download for Microsoft Word. Just download the file, open it up and print them out on Avery Business Card stock. Viola… you have the solution to your problem.

Since analytical people like straight forward, black and white answers, we have made the cards as simple as possible. The following is a description of each card and its intended use.

Box: This is the classic teaser. It lets them know that the contents are in a box, reducing the chances of receiving pajamas or the dreaded six-pack of socks. But it doesn’t completely give away your secret. Use this card only for mild analysts. Full bore analytical types may be driven nuts by this.

Gift: This card shows your intention. Many analyticals may not have any idea why you would want to give them something. This takes away any mis-communication and gets to the point. Even the most retentive individuals will get the idea. This card can be used in conjunction with other cards for greater clarification.

Fun: This card shows the intended use of the gift. This simple card may allay the fears of many younger analysts that think you are giving them something that is good for them. Once they know that the intended use will be fun, they will think more highly of you.

YOB: Stands for Your Own Bottle. This can be used on a bottle of any type. This card is especially useful for parties of all types. It lets the intended recipient know that the bottle is indeed for them. They don’t have to share it with others and they can drink it all down if they want.

Money: This one is becoming more popular all the time. Many people simply do not know what to get other people so they give them money. This may come in the form of a check or cash, usually inserted into an envelope. This simple card can reduce stress to the recipient since people may spend money in anticipation of a gift. This card is an assurance of a future payoff.

Video Game: This card is very self explanatory and lets the recipient know that a future adventure waits. This card may not work well with women, older clients, and people without game consoles. Putting the initials of the game console on the card may further enhance its calming effect.

Generic: Since many strong analytics may not know what a “White Elephant” is, this card may be used as a substitute. Adding the initials M or F may help intended recipients choose between different generic gifts to better match their intended use. For example, adding an F to a package with a cabbage patch doll would ease tension of male participants as they would know not to choose this gift.

Six Pack: This card is especially for programmers. Put this card on a six pack of Mountain Dew and they will know that all six cans are for them. No sharing! Smiles will erupt. This card can also be used for beer or soda with a similar but more subdued effect.

Gift Card: In 2006, gift cards abound. Everyone is issuing them. From Best Buy, to Target, and even Amazon.com, this is the gift of convenience. This card lets the intended beneficiary know that there is something besides a card in the brightly colored envelope.

Calories: This is the best of the bunch. Use this with candy, cookies, and your favorite Christmas fudge. This lets receivers know that there is a gift in the package and that it is edible. This card can be enhanced by putting the words “Not Fruitcake” on the bottom of the card.

Instructions for use:

• Download the Gift Tags Template for MS Word
• The Zip file includes B&W and color templates
• Open the desired template and modify as necessary
• Print out on Avery business card stock (10 Card)
• Break cards apart
• Fill in the From and To on the card.
• Attach to the gift package with tape.
• Deliver the gift and watch for a smile.

For Ultra Analytical People we also offer a special template with the table outline showing. This may allow for better word alignment and reduce stress.

If in your analysis you find these cards helpful you may be interested in some of our other helpful downloads including the…

Five Minute Organizer
Five Minute Flowchart
Five Minute Outliner
Five Minute Motivators
Instant Garage Sale

If you give a gift with one of these tags and the analytical person still doesn’t get it, send them over to Lifehacker.com or Lifehack.org. Maybe they can straighten them out.

If you are analytical and you still can’t decide what to get Uncle Harold, you can always get him an Amazon gift card and he can buy his own loud and obnoxious ties this year. Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: christmas, gifts, cards

I’ve been reading Sally McGhee’s book, “Take Back Your Life!” and I have found some of her organizational ideas to be fascinating. She has developed a productivity solution similar to David Allen’s “Getting Things Done.” Her track has taken a little different twist as she has added the concept of meaningful objectives to the mix.

You can think of meaningful objectives as important and measurable goals. Having goals at the top of the list is really important for focus. Sally Explains…

Meaningful Objectives are your North star, your guiding light, and your reference point for success or failure. Without meaning, objectives become dry and nothing more on a to-do list that you might (or might not) look at every now and then. You won’t be motivated to work on your objectives, but you’ll feel guilty if you don’t.

I took Sally’s idea of meaningful objectives and incorporated them into a simple work flow idea that seems to work well for me.

1. Start with a goal or meaningful objectives. These need to be measurable and actionable with a due date.

2. Divide the Goal into logical projects

3. Incorporate the idea of a focused 50 minute work period to accomplish project tasks

4. Divide the tasks into their most simplistic form… next actions

Let’s put this idea into practice with an example.

1. Our Meaningful Objective. Write a 150 page book on productivity solutions in 3 months

2. Our projects: Table of Contents, Forward, Acknowledgments, 15 chapters, Index

3. Sample Accomplishment: Take 50 minutes and write a chapter

4. Individual Actions: 1.Chapter Title. 2.Main body. 3.Wrap Up 4.Illustrations

While this example is over-simplistic, the idea of Goals, Projects, Accomplishments, and Individual Actions has worked very well for me. We’ll take a look at some paper based solutions later this week that will take this process and make it simple to implement.

Technorati Tags: GTD, Outlook, Productivity