Improving Your Piles

I once got in trouble at work for having a desk that was too neat. My boss called me in and said that the "higher ups" were complaining that I wasn't getting enough done because my desk was too orderly. He assured them that I always met deadlines and produced tons of work product, but they didn't buy it. They insisted that I must not be working as hard as they were...or certainly my desk would be a disaster.

Let me say publicly that the "higher ups" at that particular job were easily the worst bosses that I ever had (and that includes both the boss recently arrested for solicitation of a lady of the night and the boss who would not let women get promoted as a general, articulated policy). (I should note that, in between those jobs, I was blessed with some of the best bosses that a person could possibly imagine.) 

In fact, I would argue that a neat desk meant that I was able to work harder than they did, as I could find things easily. But whatever. The "higher ups" were awful bosses and I quickly left that job. (Within a couple of years, all of them also resigned or were fired. They were simply ineffective.)

Once my boss talked to me, though, I made a point to be responsive and leave stacks of papers all over my desk. My OCD wouldn't let them be messy stacks, but if stacks are what they wanted, stacks were what they would get.

I learned, though, that there is a secret to stacking papers together. In fact, I used the secret today when substitute teaching.

The secret? Binder clips and a sticky note.

It's not very exciting, but it is such an easy way to organize projects, graded papers, papers to file, or anything that needs to be kept together. So, if you are a stacker by nature, get some binder clips and sticky notes and pile away.

By the way, I don't recommend paper clips, as they fall off too easily and don't come in enough sizes. Staples are generally too permanent and also don't accommodate all sizes of stacks. (Exception - staple a small stack of papers that is to be filed together.) 

Also, the sticky note is important. A random, unlabeled stack will reproduce when you are not looking and suddenly you'll have many, many unorganized stacks.

None of you want baby stacks, now do you?

Etcetera.

Focus Plans With Sticky Notes

I am not currently a huge user of sticky or post-it notes in my planner.

I keep post-it flags, of course, for marking my project and note pages.

I have small sticky notes in the back, in case I need extra space (but just a little) on my weekly pages. (Imagine my surprise when I used one of the cute bird ones from a Barnes and Noble Punctuate Planner, only to watch it fall to the ground because it's just notepaper and not at all sticky. D'uh.)

And I put some cute larger sizes for writing notes to teachers when I substitute or to my husband when I get annoyed and lose my sanity have to give him a reminder. (The note is for illustrative purposes only. My husband finally gave me the checks and is therefore no longer at risk from my crazy.)

But I am having a problem that I think only sticky notes can solve.

As my Loyal Readers know, I put context codes next to my tasks. In the case of things that can only be done at home, I put an H. (For example, I can only file old planner pages, print out something, or get new checks at home.)

Lately, I'm not getting to the home task list. When I am out and about, I obviously can't work on the home tasks. When I am home, I tend to put the home stuff off, since I can do it "anytime." (Sure, I can. But will I? No. Mrs. Lazy Etcetera.)

I think I'm going to start putting the home list on a sticky note, both to focus on it and so I get the pleasure of throwing it away. 

This method would also be nice anytime I have a few errands from different days to group together or tasks that need to be recopied in a particular order. I like context code grouping, but every now and then, things are just too overwhelming without a focus list in my planner.

Hopefully, this is the week when I overcome the lazies.

Etcetera.

When Being Organized Is Not Enough (Wherein I Rant And Rave)

I wanted to call this post "Giftie Smash," but that implied threat. 

And I am all about peace. Unfortunately, I was not at peace yesterday. A nasty little person (and a nasty little creature) made me angry!

(My Loyal Readers often comment on how "real" I am. They seem to appreciate my imperfections. Good. I am about to let the imperfect flag fly! :/ )

Let's start with the people and work our way down to the critters, okay?

Target (my very favorite store except for Office Depot) made me angry. You see, the week before Thanksgiving, I bought a backpack for my son. I am organized, so I kept the receipt (in my planner during the month, but then I keep it for a year in my receipts file). My son used the bag for two days, carrying one folder, a blankie, and a stuffed animal. Then the bag ripped. It didn't rip on anything. Instead, the seam just came apart. It was clearly a manufacturing defect.

It was within 90 days (heck, it was the SAME week) and I had the receipt to prove it, so I brought it back. (We won't even talk about how his replacement bag from another store also ripped before he even used it.)

Understand, I spent $450 at Target yesterday and spend between $125 and $200 there weekly. The snotty customer service manager still claimed that it's their policy not to accept the "used item." 

I, being a lawyer, read their policy to them. Nowhere in the policy did it exclude used items. In fact, it said that if something was excluded from the 90-day warranty, it would be noted on the receipt. There was no note on the receipt. 

She explained that she was "in charge" of this decision and that she would not be granting a refund. I explained that I am an attorney, and that Louisiana law requires her to take back a clearly defective item unless they specifically state that they don't (say, by saying "sold as is").

She then offered me a gift card, preaching to me the entire time about how she should not be doing so. I spent $450 and she almost made me walk out over $18.

Funny how the words "I am a lawyer" get action, isn't it? It makes me so mad when people do that because, if the customer isn't a lawyer, does that mean the customer is simply treated poorly? 

I should mention that other than this incident, I have gotten exceptional customer service this holiday period. Having worked retail, I know how difficult and stressful it is, so I appreciate that. Of course, this happened at 8 a.m. and I was her first customer of the day.

I *might* have had low blood sugar at 8 a.m. yesterday. I always plan breakfast and snacks due to some medication that cause low blood sugar if I don't eat. My satsuma (a south Louisiana version of a tangerine, but tastier) was sour and I had to throw it out and not eat. Note to planner: "put almonds in purse for such emergencies."

Speaking of food, we have critters. A mouse was spotted in my laundry area on Thanksgiving morning and the trap has caught NOTHING. In addition, my chocolate is contaminated with little teeth marks. (Excuse me while I hurl.)

As a service to my Loyal Readers (and because mice creep me the heck out), I have researched how to deal with this issue (you know, in addition to traps and poisons, 'cause that creature is going to Mouse Heaven in time for Christmas).

1. Don't store candy or food in plastic bags on the floor.

D'uh. That said, despite a very organized pantry, we stored our Halloween candy in plastic bags on the floor. Any remaining candy in our house is now stored in hard plastic containers.

2. Put things in cardboard and paper containers into sturdy plastic instead.

This means all my cereal needs to go in containers. I am not happy about that. It's on my task list, but it is expensive and time-consuming.

3. Do chores regularly. 

Here's the deal. We did oodles of cleaning before Thanksgiving.

But since then, we've done virtually nothing. We've been trying to deal with a back load of homework, Christmas shopping, and dishes, but not daily sweeping, mopping, and wiping away of crumbs. I will be changing that, effective immediately.

Don't be me (unless you want a pet mouse). Sweep your floors, people!

4. Clear out clutter.

I am really organized. However, I have piles of Christmas gifts in every corner of my room and a cluttered laundry closet. I saw the mouse in the closet, but in my room would be EVEN WORSE. So decluttering is about to happen.

5. Close your trash with a lid and bring it out often.

We close ours, but we need to take it out more often. That is going on my planner, of course.

Bye bye, Mr. Mouse.

Etcetera.

Not Bound By Ring Bound

I use a ring-bound planner. I like the size (Franklin Covey compact with 1 inch rings), the flexibility, and the places to carry post-it notes, ink pens, and paperwork. But there is no reason that you HAVE to use a ring bound planner in order to work in many of my tips. 

You can use a spiral notebook, a spiral planner, or a Moleskine notebook to do most of what I do. (A lot of my tips even work for electronic planning.) If you are not using a ring-bound planner, I actually recommend a combination of a spiral planner with a small notebook or a spiral planner with lots of notes page.

Here are some examples of ways to use my tips with spiral planners.

*Have a blank dashboard for capturing information quickly.

When I was working full-time, I kept a simple legal pad next to my computer and phone. All day, I jotted down notes on it.

When I used a spiral planner, I kept a little notebook in my purse to capture information.

*Create a Project and a Notes notebook.

Just remember to set up an index and tabs (post-its work great) for each page, just like I do in my ring-bound planner.

*Make rules for yourself about how you'll use your monthly and weekly/daily pages - and follow them.

For example, decide on a space for listing menus or errands. Decide where timed events will be written. Decide if you will scratch out things that are completed.

*Use magnetic bookmarks to mark today's page.

*Buy a spiral planner with a pocket or use a binder clip for random papers that you need to keep with your planner.

*Do daily, monthly, and weekly reviews.

Really, almost any tip for organizing included in this blog can be adopted for any planner. The important things are that your planner works for you and that you work your planner.

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The Ability To Organize

The majority of my Loyal Readers are planner people. That said, tonight I was having dinner at a fondue restaurant (the chocolate had a naughty name and a naughtier flavor) and a friend mentioned that she reads my blog sometimes and thinks, "don't people already know this stuff?"

I think the answer to that is complicated.

True, most of what I write, to me at least, seems like common sense. Of course I will group errands together or have a regular home for my purse. Obviously, I'm going to write going to the doctor in my planner. Yes, it makes sense to put my medications in a weekly container or have a basket for my shoes in the area where I generally slip them off.

On the other hand, if humans don't stop and think about these things, only a small percentage of people will actually bother doing them. We all have some ability to organize, but we don't all make that ability work for us. And, like any ability, it varies in level from person to person.

(I think of it like a game of The Sims. Some Sims are naturally more organized than others. Sure, all Sims can cook dinner or clean the toilet, but not all Sims do it without outside motivation.)

I am very orderly with my schedule and my tasks. But I am awful at spatial relations. I can't make the Tupperware fit in the cabinet because I simply can't see how it would fit. The pictures of my house are never pretty like those of other bloggers since I am barely staying above water.

Frankly, I use my planner as my cheat sheet. Without it, I cannot pass the test of life.

So, yes, my friend, the things that I write are simple. If they weren't, we wouldn't bother with them. But they are also effective and great shortcuts for people who need some help along the way.

I am one of those people.

Etcetera.

Errands and Secrets

Secrets first. One secret, actually, that many of my Loyal Readers have asked about. What have I been hiding in my Project section pictures over the last couple of months?

Finally, I can reveal the truth. You ready for this? (It's not that exciting. I promise.)

I was planning a surprise party for a friend and he sometimes reads my blog.

See? I told you. Boring. :)-

Now for the exciting part of today's entry, how I handle my errands! (If you find my friend's surprise party better reading than my system for doing errands, you are either 1) my friend who got an awesome gift from me last night (Firefly vodka from Jayne Cobb and a strawberry from Shepard Book), 2) a fellow geek who understood what #1 meant, or 3) not really a Loyal Reader. ;) )

I don't keep a separate list for errands. Instead, I tend to group errands on days when I don't have much scheduled on the calendar, marked with an E. That way, I can put errands BEFORE the date that they need to be completed by.

(We shall now and forevermore ignore that "traffic ticket" entry in this week's planner spread. Got it?)

TIP - Number errands in order of timing on the day you are doing them, so that you know the driving order based on locations and times that places are open.

For things that I need for errands that fit in my planner, like a check that I need to deposit, I just keep the things in my front planner pocket.

For everything else, I toss it in my errand tote bag and leave it with my purse for when I leave the house.

Tomorrow, I have to drop donations at the church office (in errand tote), go to the bank (check in planner pocket), return TWO ripped-within-a-week-of-purchase backpacks (receipts in planner pocket and backpacks in errand tote), and start visiting vendors for the school auction (in errand tote). I will do the church first because it is right by carpool and the vendors last because many open later.

That's it. Five easy steps to close the errands' circle:

1. List errands in planner (either grouped together or with a code for easy group) and number them.
2. Plan a day for errands that is fairly empty of other obligations or when you will be on the road anyway.
3. Put necessary items in planner pocket or errand tote bag.
4. Do errands.
5. Mark off completed errands in your planner.

Don't forget to pick up an eggnog latte while you are out and about!

Etcetera.