[Organise It] 4 ways to banish e-clutter for good

4 ways to banish e-clutter for good
By Marcia Francois

You know how when the seasons change, the shops start stocking gorgeous, new clothes?


I get very excited; don't you?


Dion and I have a house rule - we have to get rid of some things BEFORE we bring new stuff into the house. Or if we really couldn't resist, then as we pack the new clothes away, we have to
unpack some other items to give away.


That is my number ONE decluttering tip - one in, one out.

Because of the August Decluttering Challenge on my Organising Queen blog, I've decluttered things every single day of the month. I do the happy dance when I can give things away - seriously!


The thing is, I use the exact same principles to keep my inbox, digital photos, PDF and other
documents under control.

Here are some other tips to eliminate electronic clutter:

1. Make time daily to delete emails. I've told you before that my goal is to delete 100 emails daily
so I go through my inbox, sent items, folders, etc. every couple of days.

2. When you download photos from your digital camera, choose the best ones there and then and delete the rest. I don't know about you but I usually take about 3 or 4 pictures if I can (if the subject is not moving) so that I can choose the absolute best pictures.


**Bloggers, once you've published your post, delete the photos from your hard drive.

3. If you download checklists, forms, recipes and e-books regularly (like from my site), set aside
some time to regularly go through your folders (!) to delete the ones you no longer find useful.


When I read e-books, I make a note of the ideas to implement and then delete the PDF file unless it's really something WOW or I've paid for it :)


This tip applies to PDF files, Word and Excel documents. The only things I don't delete with such ruthless abandon are the tools, checklists and e-books that I've created ;)

4.Make a date with yourself for 15 minutes every week (starting this week) to eliminate your
electronic clutter.

Your challenge this week is to spend at least 30 minutes decluttering electronically.

Are you up for it?

Want to use this article in your ezine or on your blog? You may, as long as you include this complete blurb.

Marcia Francois Marcia Francois is a time management and organising coach who empowers small business owners and other busy professionals who want to make the most of their time. You'll get simple, practical organising and time management secrets to help you work less and enjoy life more! Visit http://takechargesolutions.org for your free Organising Success Pack.

Make big leaps with a step a day

How to make BIG leaps with just a step a day

by Marcia Francois

Remember that HIGH importance, LOW urgency quadrant we spoke about before??

What if you took just ONE step closer to your goals every single day?

Just one.

It sounds harder than it is.

Honestly.

Let's say your goal is to write a book. Would it surprise you to know that the majority of people have this on their "things to do before I die" lists? That's why I know this resonates with a lot of you.

What is the absolute first step? Decide what to write about. This step looks simple but you need to see if people would read it, if publishing houses would buy it, if there’s a market so it will actually sell.

So maybe the first two weeks is spent checking all that out.

The rest of the month might be outlining the whole book - what do you need to cover, how many chapters? Etc, etc.

And then comes the writing. Now if I were coaching you, I'd make you write at least 5 minutes a day because writers WRITE.

To some, that seems like nothing much but 5 mins a day is 35 mins a week which is over 2 hours a month, at the very least.

And of course, some days just getting those 5 minutes done will be a miracle ;) but other days, you’d spend 30 minutes or more easily writing.

That's exactly what I mean when I say you can make big leaps with just a step a day.

People ask me how I get so many things done and it's because I do exactly this.

Now I will tell you I don't always feel like writing or working on marketing or _______ (fill in whatever it is you don't always feel like doing) but I do know that it will move me towards my goals.

I have a rule. EVERY WEEK, come hell or high water, I need to do AT LEAST one thing to move me towards my goals. This helps me focus on outcomes even when I'm really busy.

Think about one of your goals. Let's say you want to go on a holiday to Ireland ;)

Let's break it down.

1. Decide exactly where in Ireland you want to visit.

2. Investigate prices of airfare, hotels, B&B's, tourism, food, etc.

3. Check your savings account to see what you have available.

4. Based on the shortfall, decide on the amount of money you need to save every month.

5. Decide length of holiday and itinerary while there.

6. Book flights and check if you need a visa.

7. Book accommodation.

8. Book car rental/ decide on method of transport.

9. Pack your bags

10. Go!

Grab a piece of paper and write the steps for your own goal.

Your challenge this week is to take at least ONE step towards your goal this week.

Want to use this article in your ezine or on your blog? You may, as long as you include this complete blurb.

Marcia Francois Marcia Francois is a time management and organising coach who empowers small business owners and other busy professionals who want to make the most of their time. You’ll get simple, practical organising and time management secrets to help you work less and enjoy life more! Visit http://takechargesolutions.org for your free Organising Success Pack.

Tuesday 9 September

Ask the Organising Coach Q&A call

Marcia answers all your business, time management and organising questions on a live coaching call

F-r-e-e- to all VIP Inner Circle members. Not a member? Join now

12PM - 1PM Eastern Standard Time/ 6PM - 7PM South African Time

Tuesday 23 September

Everything you need to know about organising your computer

Coaching call with guest expert and computer whizz Janet Barclay

F-r-e-e- to all VIP Inner Circle members. Not a member? Join now

12PM - 1PM Eastern Standard Time/ 6PM - 7PM South African Time

[organise it] 5 steps to dealing with overwhelm

IN THIS ISSUE

1. A note from Marcia


2. Conquer your email


3. This week's article: 5 steps to dealing with overwhelm


4. Where in the world is Marcia?

Hi everybody

Happy April!

I'm usually very slow to wake up in the mornings because I'm a TOTAL night owl! But on Monday morning I woke up INSTANTLY when Dion announced, "a quarter of the year is gone; how are you doing on your goals?"

Well, that word GOALS got straight through the morning FOG that is my brain and I jumped straight out of bed - LOL ;)

Seriously though, I am hugely excited about the first 3 months of 2008!

I had an article published in a local magazine (check here for details), I've already launched new products, new coaching programmes and am now doing AUDIOS!

Here's what a client said about one of my latest audios, Increase your Self-Confidence in 10 easy steps:

"I've been listening to the self-confidence CD and am enjoying it very much. Better still, I'm excited that I can listen to it over and over again!"

Get your copy at http://tinyurl.com/2bncn2 before the self-development products DISAPPEAR from my store forever.


CONQUER YOUR EMAIL

Are you spending an hour or more a day processing email?

WHAT WOULD YOU RATHER BE DOING?

Mark your calendars for Tuesday, 15 April. Only 9 spots left for this LIVE TELESEMINAR with the Organising Queen herself ;)

Read more and see if this teleseminar could benefit you:
http://www.takechargesolutions.org/?page_id=33

Oh, and I'm giving you a $10 disc.ount for one week only!


HOW TO BE A PROFESSIONAL ORGANISER

Are you passionate about organising?

Join in on the group coaching programme. You get instant access to the MP3 downloads so you can catch up. This is the ONLY time this programme will be offered at this low pri.ce!

You can check out the details and reserve your place here:
http://www.takechargesolutions.org/?page_id=25

Remember the survey some of you took in January?

Well, I'm still busy answering all your GREAT questions so this week's article lists a number of different ways to DEAL WITH OVERWHELM.

Enjoy the article!

================================================
THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE
5 STEPS TO DEALING WITH OVERWHELM
================================================

So many of you write in with this question: Marcia, how do I deal with overwhelm?

A few weeks ago, I was dealing with my own overwhelm.

I had many meetings day after day after day (which means you get behind on the office stuff), my normal business activities plus I had to re-write a LOT of the copy for the website. All on deadline!

Add to that the stuff of life like cooking and cleaning and gym and you can see why I felt overwhelmed.

Doesn't it feel good to know you're not alone?!

We all have our own stories but the FEELINGS are exactly the same - a sense of being out of control and a to-do list a mile long!

So what did I do to cope?

1. MAKE A LIST
I printed out 10 of my master to-do lists (in your welcome pack when you signed up to this list) because it felt like I had hundreds of things to do.

I used one page for each project - website, clients, etc...

The amazing thing was my imagination was much worse than reality because in the end, I only needed 4 of those 10 pages ;) Honestly, it does help to see how bad it really is, or isn't.

Here's that master to-do list - http://takechargesolutions.org/Master%20list.pdf

2. ASK YOURSELF A KEY QUESTION
When you feel overwhelmed, it's important to realise that "this too shall pass" and to CONTINUALLY ask yourself this question:

What is the MOST important use of my time right now?

Remember, it's not about being busy, but about being effective!

3. CUT OUT ALL NON-ESSENTIALS
Once you have the answer to that question, it's easier to cut out the non-essentials.

Let go of the minor website changes and the email responses to your blog comments. Rather answer only client emails.

When the busy period is over, re-look at those non-essentials and REALLY question whether you even need to add them back into your life.

4. FOCUS AND EAT YOUR FROG
Now that you know what is MOST important, switch off cell phones, email, etc. and get it done.

If you have to do a proposal for a company, do nothing else til it's done. That's so that even when your day is done and the to-do list is still half a mile long, at least you have a sense of ACCOMPLISHMENT in having completed that task.

Read more about Eat the Frog here
http://tinyurl.com/27tuz9

5. CATEGORISE AND BATCH
Once you've eaten your frog, and you still have energy, then categorise whatever's left and tackle those items in batches.

Take your to-do list and use letters in the margin, like P for phone, E for email, etc. Then pick up the phone and make all your phone calls in one go. You save energy because you prepare once instead of 5 different times in the day.

And THAT is how I dealt with my overwhelm.

Has this been useful for you? I'd love to hear what you think so I'm leaving the comments open on this blog post.

Have a wonderful week!

Love and (organising) success
Marcia Francois

P.S. Don't forget to check out the Conquer Your Email teleseminar at http://www.takechargesolutions.org/?page_id=33

P.P.S. Don't forget to check out the store at http://tinyurl.com/2bncn2

================================================

MARCIA'S CLEA.RANCE S-A-L-E

===============================================

All the SELF-DEVELOPMENT products will be removed from the store soon.

So please go have a look at http://tinyurl.com/2bncn2 and get what you've been wanting now.

AND...if you buy any 3 products (downloadable and/ or audio), I'll give you the f-r-e-e ECOURSE of your choice.

What's available?

• Dream Life Kit
• Self-confidence MP3 and workbook
• Awesome relationships MP3 and workbook
• 8 secrets to success
• Who am I? A guide to discovering yourself
• And much, much more

==========================================

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS MARCIA?


THURS 20 MARCH - 24 APRIL
How to become a professional organiser - Group coaching programme
http://www.takechargesolutions.org/?page_id=25


TUES 15 APRIL
Teleseminar - Conquer your email
http://www.takechargesolutions.org/?page_id=33

SAT 19 APRIL
Business Organising Intensive - spend the morning with the Organising Queen herself ;)
Read more here
http://www.takechargesolutions.org/?page_id=34

==========================================

[Organise it] Getting motivated to organise your home and office

Hi everybody

Good thing the beautiful weather is holding up, because I'm on a mission to get my fitness levels up.

There will be LOTS of walking on our upcoming holiday to the UK and I'm starting NOW. It's amazing what happens mentally once I strap on that pedometer – I go into COMPETITIVE mode ;)


========================
NEW WEBSITE
========================

I am SO PLEASED with my new website. Already, many of you (the Skypers) have emailed me.

Please go have a look at http://takechargesolutions.org and let me know what you think.

You'll notice that I'm a lot more focussed in my offerings and because of that, I'm having a … clear.ance sale (see below).


============================================
7 THINGS YOU MUST DO TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS
============================================

If you haven't signed up yet for the f-r-e-e audio course, go here to sign up: http://tinyurl.com/2etlkp. These are short snippets of about 3 – 4 minutes each and will be delivered to you every second day.


=====================================
IT'S NOT TOO LATE TO BE A PROFESSIONAL ORGANISER
=====================================

Are you passionate about organising?

Do you want to turn your uber-organising skills into a business?

The PO group coaching programme started last week but you can still join in and get the MP3 downloads to catch up. This is the ONLY time this programme will be offered at this pri.ce - you have my word on it!

You can check out the details and reserve your place here:
http://tinyurl.com/2gzulg


========================
CONQUER YOUR EMAIL
========================

Mark your calendars for Tuesday, 15 April. I'm doing a teleseminar called CONQUER YOUR EMAIL.

Bookings are open NOW because I will be restricting the call to only 10 participants so that everyone gets all their questions answered. The MP3 will be available within a few hours if you can't make the actual call time of 7PM South Africa time/ 1PM Eastern Standard Time (New York). Book your place now at http://tinyurl.com/2bncn2


This week's article lists a number of different ways to GET MOTIVATED and tackle areas we all commonly procrastinate on.


Enjoy the article!


================================================
THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE
GETTING MOTIVATED TO ORGANISE YOUR HOME AND OFFICE
================================================


This week, let's tackle some of those tasks around the home and office that we don't get around to doing.

I'm specifically choosing Quick and Easy ™ tasks so that you can build up some momentum and feel good about getting things done.


WHAT GETS YOU MOTIVATED?

Is it MUSIC? Then put on some 80's tunes to get yourself energised.

Is it COMPETITION? Then challenge yourself and see how many of the tasks you can accomplish in an hour.

Is it being ACCOUNTABLE? Then post a comment telling me what you're going to do and come back to tell me when it's done!

Is it SOCIAL INTERACTION? Then make a coffee date with a friend, but ONLY once you've done an hour's organising.

Is it reaching a GOAL? Then reward yourself once you've done all the tasks.


Right! So now that we know what motivates you, let's get to it!



IN THE HOME

1. Declutter and sort through all the old magazines. Tear out the articles and toss the rest.
2. Organise your launch pad – that place in your home where you DUMP things when you walk in the door.
3. Collect all the clothes you need to dry-clean, declutter or get mended.
4. Clear off the front of your fridge. Toss the magnets and recipes you're never going to use.
5. Throw away any old food in your fridge and freezer, and give the surfaces a good wipe down.

And now for some…


OFFICE ORGANISING

1. Do your filing.
2. Collect all the bills and invoices from around the home and schedule the payment dates in your planner.
3. Shred any junk mail with your name on it.
4. Organise your desk.
5. Delete 100 emails from your Inbox and Sent Items ;)


Whatever you manage to do, give yourself a pat on the back!

Have a wonderful week!


Love and (organising) success
Marcia Francois


P.S. Calling all professional organisers. Check out http://tinyurl.com/2gzulg

P.P.S. Don't forget to check out the store at http://tinyurl.com/2bncn2


============================
MARCIA'S CLEA.RANCE S-A-L-E
===========================

All the SELF-DEVELOPMENT products will be removed from the store within about 10 days.

So please go have a look at http://tinyurl.com/2bncn2 and get what you've been wanting now. Basically, anything NOT on the MAIN website will be removed.

AND…if you buy any 3 products (downloadable and/ or audio), I'll give you a f-r-e-e ECOURSE.

What's available?

- Dream Life Kit
- Self-confidence MP3 and workbook
- Awesome relationships MP3 and workbook
- 8 secrets to success
- Who am I? A guide to discovering yourself
- And much, much more



==========================================

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS MARCIA?

THURS 20 MARCH – 24 APRIL
How to become a professional organiser – Group coaching programme

SAT 29 MARCH
Christian Family Church – 7 things you must do to achieve your goals

SAT 12 APRIL
Business Organising Intensive – spend the morning with the Organising Queen herself ;)
Read more here http://tinyurl.com/2bncn2

TUES 15 APRIL
Teleseminar – Conquer your email

==========================================

[Organise It] Clear out your closet!

Hi everybody

Brrrrrr - we're enjoying unseasonably cold and rainy weather here in Johannesburg. The electric blanket is back on the bed and I'm enjoying hot chocolate again.

Our readers in Cape Town, however, are enjoying beautiful warm weather with temperatures up to 32 degrees Celsius.

============================================
7 THINGS YOU MUST DO TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS
============================================

Well, that Skypecast last week was crazy!

It started off well and then as the participants increased all the way up to 91 (!), it got so noisy that I had to stop the call and get people to skype me individually, which they did. Fortunately, it was right when I was doing the last of the 7 THINGS YOU MUST DO TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS ;)

So I'm going to do one more call - this one will be a hidden call so you'll have to register. Let me work on some dates and I'll get back to you.

In the meanwhile, I've put together a f-r-e-e audio series, one for each of the 7 tips. These are short snippets of about 3 – 4 minutes each and will be delivered to you every second day if you go here to sign up: http://tinyurl.com/2etlkp

=====================================
LAST CHANCE! HOW TO BE A PROFESSIONAL ORGANISER
=====================================

Are you passionate about organising?

Do you want to turn your uber-organising skills into a business?

The PO group coaching programme is just for you and starts on 20 March. This is the ONLY time this programme will be offered at this pri.ce - you have my word on it!

You can check it the details and reserve your place here:http://tinyurl.com/2gzulg

========================
CONQUER YOUR EMAIL
========================
In the meantime, mark your calendar for Tuesday, 15 April. I want to give all of you a heads-up on a teleseminar I'm doing called CONQUER YOUR EMAIL.

Bookings are open NOW because I will be restricting the call to only 10 participants so that everyone gets all their questions answered. The MP3 will be available within a few hours if you can't make the actual call time of 7PM South Africa time/ 1PM Eastern Standard Time (New York).

Book your place now at http://tinyurl.com/2bncn2

========================
FEATURED PRODUCT
========================
HELP! I NEED MORE TIME
(a step-by-step guide for busy people who want to FINALLY take control of their lives)

Check it out here: http://helpineedmoretime.blogspot.com/

This e-book is only available for a limited time so get your copy now.

This is Clear Out Your Closet Week so this week's article talks about decluttering your clothes.

Enjoy the article!

================================================
THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE
DECLUTTERING YOUR CLOTHES - easy as 1 2 3
================================================
Wherever you are in the world, the seasons have changed and it's either warming up or cooling down. Whatever your situation, it's time to sort out your wardrobe.

Pareto's Principle states that 20% of your efforts result in 80% of your results.

Did you know that this principle also applies to your wardrobe? That's right - you only wear 20% of your clothes 80% of the time.

The aim of your wardrobe is to have clothes you love, that look good on you and that flatter your body shape.

Here's some tips:

• If you wore the fashion the first time around, you shouldn't be wearing it this time ;)
• Even if it still fits you, the styles and colours will have changed.
• Pleated and tapered pants are out for all body shapes. Aren't you glad?!

Now let's get busy purging and organising your clothes.

1. Put on some upbeat music and call a friend or professional organiser to help you.
2. Set aside an afternoon and remove everything from your wardrobe.
3. Make 3 piles:
== Clothes you don't love, don't suit your lifestyle or don't look good on you
== Clothes you love and that fit you properly
== Clothes that you're not sure about, for whatever reason
4. Action the piles
== Donate or throw out
== Organise in your wardrobe or on your shelves according to your personal preferences - by colour, style (smart, casual), etc.
== Move to another place in the house or to a storage container. Diarise a to look at again date (I think of this as a pending file for your clothes).

When you look at this pile again, fit everything on. You will then be able to look at the clothes unemotionally and decide whether they deserve to take up space in your wardrobe (you want to keep them) or whether they need to be donated.

I have my own pile from earlier this year, some of which I've already donated simply because I've already reached that unemotional state. The rest will be donated if they still don't look great on me.

Rather have half the amount of clothes and be able to wear everything than a full-to-overflowing wardrobe where you can only wear some items.

Happy Organising and have a wonderful Easter weekend!

Love and (organising) success
Marcia Francois

P.S Calling all professional organisers. Check out http://tinyurl.com/2gzulg
P.P.S. Don't forget to check out "Help! I need more time" at http://helpineedmoretime.blogspot.com/

==========================================
WHERE IN THE WORLD IS MARCIA?
==========================================

WED 19 MARCH
Christian Family Church – Do this one thing and stand out from the crowd

THURS 20 MARCH – 24 APRIL
How to become a professional organiser – Group coaching programme

SAT 29 MARCH
Christian Family Church – 7 things you must do to achieve your goals

SAT 12 APRIL
Business Organising Intensive – spend the morning with the Organising Queen herself ;)
Read more here http://tinyurl.com/2bncn2

TUES 15 APRIL
Teleseminar – Conquer your email

==========================================

[Organise it] Organise your home office today

Hi everybody


I’ve had a FABULOUS week since I last wrote to you – new clients, lots of book sales ;) and a GREAT coaching call with my own coach.

I hope you’re also keeping track of YOUR business and personal successes. If not, here are the forms for download (I use these same ones every week):
http://takechargesolutions.org/bus.pdf
http://takechargesolutions.org/pers.pdf

One of my goals for the year is “3 speaking engagements every month” and after tomorrow night, I can cross another one off my to-do list ;)


SKYPECAST
Are you joining me tomorrow to hear the 7 THINGS YOU MUST DO TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS?

I'd love you to be on the call. All you need is an internet connection and if you want to talk and ask questions, a microphone too ;)


*****IMPORTANT*****
I am bringing the call time in South Africa forward by ONE HOUR because of daylight savings time!!!
That’s 7PM South Africa time/ 1PM New York time (Eastern Standard Time)

Please check out the time on YOUR side of the world – this is the link to the World Clock site
http://tinyurl.com/35tk9l

You can read more and get your handout here, and I’ll “see” you on the call tomorrow!
http://tinyurl.com/yrmjd5


GIVE YOURSELVES A HAND ;)

I want to applaud you for stepping up and taking back your time. That really is awesome since we all know that successful people TAKE ACTION ;)


HELP! I Need More Time
(a step-by-step guide for busy people who want to FINALLY take control of their lives)

Check it out here: http://helpineedmoretime.blogspot.com


HOW TO BE A PROFESSIONAL ORGANISER - group coaching programme

Are you passionate about organising?
Do you want to turn your uber-organising skills into a business?

The PO group coaching programme is just for you and starts on 20 March. This is the ONLY time this programme will be offered at this pri.ce – you have my word on it!

You can check it the details and reserve your place here:
http://tinyurl.com/2gzulg


I found out that yesterday was Organise your Home Office Day. Isn’t that fun?!

This week’s article is dedicated to organising YOUR home office. If you don’t have a home office, then apply the tips to your desk, okay?

Enjoy the article!



THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE
3 QUICK WAYS TO ORGANISE YOUR HOME OFFICE


It’s hard to be productive when your space is not only a mess, but also disorganised.

60% of people are visual (I am too!) so clutter and “stuff” strewn all over the place will just drive you up the wall!

Before we start, let’s get ready:

(a) put on some upbeat music (not slow love songs – fast music!)
(b) make sure you have a BIG wastepaper basket
(c) get another plastic basket for items that belong in another room


SO WHAT DO YOU NEED TO DO?


1. BACK UP YOUR FILES

Do NOT open your email programme before you start or you’ll get sidetracked!

DO put a recurring reminder in Outlook to do this on a monthly basis, or sooner.

Remember last year when I lost EVERYTHING on my flash drive? It only translated to about 2 hours’ work because I’d backed up my computer a few weeks before that.

Now, while your computer is backing up…


2. CLEAN OFF YOUR DESK

You can do this in 30 seconds (that’s why you have the upbeat music). Yes, really. Play a game with yourself and say, “by the end of this song, my desk is going to be clean”. Works for me ;)

Put all items belonging in another room in the plastic basket. Don’t go to the actual room to put away – you’ll get sidetracked!

Throw any cooldrink cans, sweet papers, etc. in the wastepaper basket. Put all the little notes inside your desk notebook (you do have ONE desk notebook, don’t you?) and set to one side.

If you don’t use the item on a DAILY basis, it shouldn’t be on your desk. By the same token, if you use something every day, make a place for it within arm’s reach.

E.g. My headset for Skype calls is on a hook on the wall above my desk – near enough that I can just reach for it, but not taking up valuable real estate on the desk.

See? 30 seconds and you’re done!

I *do* know this is the Quick & Easy – if you want ALL the detail, check out 7 easy steps to organise your office at http://takechargesolutions.org/oyo.html


3. SORT OUT THE PAPER

Take out the desk notebook. I use a spiral-bound notebook with a lovely, bright yellow and lime-green cover because it makes me happy to write my notes in a beautiful notebook ;)

Write down all those bits and pieces – your internet provider’s helpline, website addresses, people to look up on Facebook, etc.

Throw away all the junk mail and paper you don’t need (and take it to your recycling bag later).

Put all the filing in ONE pile – you can do this in front of the TV later!


Now doesn’t that feel better? A nice, neat and organised office!

Did you know you can spend a half day with me in my own office on a Business Organising Intensive? I show you exactly how I set up my own business systems and we go through all the computer and email tricks you could possibly imagine. *email me if you're keen*

Be sure to set aside 5 minutes a day to keep your home office organised.

Have a productive week!

Love and (organising) success
Marcia Francois


P.S. Don't forget to check out "Help! I need more time" at http://helpineedmoretime.blogspot.com/

P.P.S Calling all wannabe professional organisers. Check out http://tinyurl.com/2gzulg

P.P.P.S See you tomorrow on the Skypecast. Read more and get your handout at
http://tinyurl.com/yrmjd5

[Organise it] The 5 minutes that will change your life

Hi everybody


I love the start of a new month – it’s like a lovely, fresh, blank piece of paper just waiting to be written on.

I exceeded many of my goals for February which always makes me happy ;) and I’m eager to do the same (or better) in March. One of my main goals is to get all the planning out of the way for our upcoming trip to the UK in May. Suzanne and I keep emailing each other our progress - we are going to have such fun!

So many people write to me saying, “I wish you lived here in ______ because I’d love you to come talk to my women’s group/ church group/ business group" and so ………

I have good – no, GREAT – news for you!

SKYPECASTS!!!

No matter where in the world you are, you can attend one of my talks. In fact, I’m hosting a Skypecast next Thursday 13th and I’d love you to be there. All you need is an internet connection! If you want to talk and ask questions, you’ll need a microphone too.

And best of all, you can sit in your pyjamas and paint your nails while you listen in ;)

Go here to read more and to get your handout
http://tinyurl.com/yrmjd5


HELP! I NEED MORE TIME
(a step-by-step guide for busy people who want to FINALLY take control of their lives)

Check it out here: http://helpineedmoretime.blogspot.com/

If you get "Help! I need more time", I'll throw in ANOTHER book, "How to set and achieve your goals", for f-r-e-e. But only until this Friday, 7 March.

Many of you have already taken me up on my offer so well done for taking action towards your goals!

By the way, you won't see this offer mentioned on the link above because it's only available to YOU, and not to the general public! Don't miss out.


HOW TO BE A PROFESSIONAL ORGANISER - group coaching programme

Are you passionate about organising?
Do you want to turn your uber-organising skills into a business?

The PO group coaching programme is just for you and starts on 20 March.

You can check it the details and reserve your place here:
http://tinyurl.com/2gzulg


Finally, enjoy this week's article on the 5 minutes that will change your life.



THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE
THE 5 MINUTES THAT WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE – REALLY!


How would you like to start every day off on the right foot?

Wouldn’t you like to feel a sense of excitement as you start your day?

You CAN if you do something for just 5 minutes a day.

This is not some crazy statement – it really is true. I promise ;)

If you spend 5 minutes every evening (or at the end of every day) planning the next day, your life will dramatically change.


SO WHAT DO YOU NEED TO DO?


1. GRAB A NOTEBOOK OR MY EAT THE FROG FORM (http://takechargesolutions.org/downloads.html)

The point is to have something to capture your thoughts.


2. ASK YOURSELF ONE OF THESE IMPORTANT QUESTIONS

* Which 3 – 5 things, when accomplished, will move me towards my goals?
* What is the best use of my time tomorrow?

I expand much more on this subject in Help! I need more time at http://helpineedmoretime.blogspot.com/


3. THINK EFFECTIVE, NOT BUSY

Busy means you’re doing lots of things. Effective means you’re doing the RIGHT things.

E.g. Yesterday, after I downloaded email, I had two choices – keep BUSY by reading newsletters and replying to all my blog comments & personal emails, or be EFFECTIVE by responding to a journalist who wants to interview me, and write this newsletter.

Guess which I chose to do? ;)


4. NOW WRITE DOWN NO MORE THAN 6 TASKS

Mary Kay, one of the world’s most successful businesswomen, said that the secret of her success was to only tackle 6 tasks a day. If it’s good enough for her, it’s good enough for me ;)

I actually showed a client my own planner a few weeks ago. When I think I’m Superwoman and put down more than 6 tasks, I never get them all done. But when I put 5 or 6 tasks on my list, I get them all done.

Did you know you can spend a half day with me in my own office on an Organising Intensive? I show you exactly how I set up my own business systems and we go through all the computer and email tricks you could possibly imagine. *email me if you’re keen*


5. NUMBER THEM IN ORDER OF PRIORITY

Only now (in step 5) do you number them. Don’t try and number them before you get them down – you might get stuck in analysis paralysis ;)

You’ll hit the ground running the next day when you start on number 1 and move through your list until you complete number 6.

Now you can relax and enjoy your evening.

Have a productive week!


Love and (organising) success
Marcia Francois


P.S. Don't forget to check out "Help! I need more time" at http://helpineedmoretime.blogspot.com/

P.P.S. If you know someone who would enjoy this article, please invite them to subscribe so that they don't miss out on future articles ;) thanks so much :)

P.P.P.S Will I “see” you on the Skypecast?

energisers and energy drains

Energisers and energy drains
By Marcia Francois
First published in June 2003

I was on a course this week and all of us were asked to think about a situation that brought us immense joy and happiness. When analysing the accompanying feelings, I realised that when thinking about this situation, I also had a huge amount of energy and I felt free! It wasn’t a bind or a burden to do this. In fact, I felt like I wanted to clear my life so that I had more time to do this.

For me, this was speaking in front of big groups of people, motivating and inspiring them to take action in their lives.

If I had to ask you to put yourself in that situation, a couple of you would feel as I did. The majority of you would cringe, get tense and experience all sorts of negative characteristics. Why is that?

Probably because people get energised by different things. (Okay, I do know that the number 1 fear most people have is public speaking. More people fear public speaking than death!)

Think about a situation that does energise you.

Are you alone? Are you at home or at work? Who are you with? I want you to feel what it’s like to be energized so that you’re clearer about what drains you.

I’m sure you’ve noticed how sometimes just thinking about certain things can absolutely drain you of energy. Maybe these are unfinished tasks you have to do around the house or phone calls/ emails you’ve been delaying. You can also experience this same energy drain by being with certain people or by doing certain things you hate doing. Surely the idea of life is to have fun and to be energised?

Now think of an example from your own life that drains you of energy and answer the following questions.

1. Do I have to, or really want to do it? Yes or no?

If your answer is no, then why are you doing it? Is it because you feel pressure from family or friends to do it? Or even worse, in my opinion, is it because of self-imposed pressure? This is a biggie for me. Just asking yourself this one question immediately roots out things that you shouldn’t even be thinking of doing. Instead, tell yourself that you’re not going to do anything you don’t want to. It is okay to do this – don’t feel guilty J

If your answer is yes, then go on to the next question.

2. Why is this so draining for me?

Maybe you’ve allowed too little time to do something and the thought of having to rush is stressing you out! Do you fear confronting people? What’s the worse thing that could happen if you tell people that you don’t want to do something? Most people won’t have a problem and if they do, so what? Maybe they shouldn’t really be in your life if they don’t like you being honest with them…

3. What can you do to eliminate this drain from your life?

This is definitely the easiest part as it simply involves taking action. You can eliminate energy drains by thinking up some action plans to get it over and done with, or you can decide once and for all that you don’t want to do it anymore.

All this involves is communicating it to relevant people and that’s it! It is not a sin for your priorities to change. Maybe something that you thought was important to you three months ago is no longer important. For example, maybe you decided that you weren’t giving enough time to your friends and that you needed to spend four evenings a month with them. If it’s starting to be a drain, communicate! Remember that other people can’t read your mind. And decide on something that works for you.

When I was looking at my diary for the last month, it seems as if a lot didn’t get done. It started being a huge energy drain for me. When I started asking myself these questions however, I realised that a lot of my “to do items” were just habits but actually were no longer important to me.

This month I will let go! Repeat after me – I will let go, I will let go, I will let go.

Download the energy drains worksheet and get cracking :-)

Until next month…

Enjoy love and success

(C) Marcia Francois
Marcia Francois is a personal life coach and professional organiser who teaches busy people how to have more time, less stress and a more organised and fulfilled life. Visit http://takechargesolutions.org/ for your free Organise your Home e-book and other helpful tips.

8 steps to conquer your paper

8 steps to conquer your paper
By Marcia Francois, 2007

Remember a few years ago when we all got excited about a paperless society? Well, I don’t know about you but I seem to have more paper now than ever before.

But where does it all come from? Mail, magazines, newspapers, printed emails (I don’t do this but I know there are lots of you who do), birthday cards, takeaway menus, brochures, notes from school teachers, e-books, and the list goes on and on.

If you don’t have a system, you are going to get overwhelmed. And you know what happens when you become overwhelmed? You don’t do anything and things get worse.

Here are my steps to organise your paper:

1. Start by throwing away as much as possible
Paper should earn the right to be in your life. Don’t just hoard everything. Before you hit PRINT, ask yourself if you really need to print it.

Tip – if you’re in the habit of just printing everything, then put a post-it note on your computer to remind you to STOP AND THINK BEFORE PRINTING.

2. Decide what needs to be stored near and what can be stored further away
Items that you use on a daily basis should be stored near you while those you use less often should be kept further away.

My Household Organising File is literally at my fingertips while my old tax returns are filed at the back of my filing cabinet. See?

3. Determine your organising style
If you’re a visual person, you might need your accounts visible until you’ve paid them but if you like the minimalist look AND you will remember to pay it, you could file it away. If you work with your style instead of against it, you will be much happier and you’re more likely to keep up with the system.

I write the due date in my planner and file the account in a temporary place until paid, and then permanently file it. Until decluttering time, that is!

Tip – Go to http://www.letstalkorganizing.com/ebooks.html for a great resource on organizing your home office. I've read it and it is fabulous!

4. Decide on a home for each type of paper so you’ll know exactly where to find it later
You should have a system so that everybody in your family knows how to find any documents.

Magazines go in the lounge until the next one arrives, newspapers (once read) go in the recycling bag, children’s artwork goes in their scrapbook, all financial documents go in the study, etc.

5. Sort into categories – first broad and then narrow
File so that YOU can find it. It’s no use filing by name if you think by category.

For example, I remember by category, like coaching, organising, writing, etc. So I don’t have folders that say Jenny, Susan, Lisa. If I’m coaching Jenny, her emails go under coaching. Susan is a personal friend so her emails go under personal. Lisa and I are working on a joint venture so her emails go under… joint venture. That’s it :-)

6. Then do the actual filing
This can be fun if you play to your personality.

I like bright colours and nice, clear dividers and pretty files. It does help to have cute files so you're more likely to keep up your system. Let’s face it – would you rather file documents in boring, grey files that are falling apart or in lovely, colour-coded files? Of course you’d rather have the beautiful files.

Make sure you label clearly and keep your system simple. If you decide to change the categories, you don’t want to have to buy whole sets of stationery.

7. Maintain
This is the most important part of any organising project.

You have to set aside some time every week to get the paper under control.

Schedule 15 – 30 minutes every week for filing and throwing away newspapers, magazines and notes from school. If you run a business from home, I’d suggest that you schedule 15 minutes a day.

Remember the old saying, a stitch in time saves nine. This is so true for paper. Ignore the paper for a month and see how it takes you hours to sort out.

8. Control the clutter
If you are serious about getting a handle on the paper in your life, put some personal rules into place. For example, each child gets a clean pizza box for all their art every year. When that box is too full, they have to go through it and decide which to keep and which to toss.

I have a memory box for all love letters, birthday cards, anniversary cards, notes and so on. When it starts getting too full, I go through it and see what I can declutter. It’s amazing how each time you look though it (every couple of years), it is easier to decide on what’s most important to you at that point in your life.


As with everything else in life, it is always more work setting something up than maintaining it. It will probably take you a couple of hours to do steps 1 to 6, and then 15 minutes a week for steps 7 and 8.

You will save time by not looking for things and money on interest charges from missing invoices and by not buying duplicate items.

(C) Marcia Francois
Marcia Francois is a personal life coach and professional organiser who teaches busy people how to have more time, less stress and a more organised and fulfilled life. Visit http://takechargesolutions.org/ for your free Organise your Home e-book and other helpful tips.

take time for your self

Take time for self-care
By Marcia Francois, 2003-2007
First published 2003

I've been battling quite a bit with time management since the middle of February and have only just come to grips with my time a bit better. It seems like I'm not the only one though!

Many people have recently said to me that they're feeling quite tired and burnt out, very busy but not accomplishing much. I call it "doing the hamster thing". You know what it is that they do - they run around on those little wheels in their cages, going nowhere fast. And that’s not a very pleasant feeling. Trust me – I know!

I really believe that in order to manage your time better, you need to decide what's important to you and what's not. If you don't decide, you can be sure that other people will decide for you.

If something is important to you, you will make time for it. I used to say things like, "I don't have enough time for exercise because I get home from work too late." One day I realised that that's absolute nonsense. Obviously I was making work a higher priority than having a fit and healthy body. It's as simple as that. Hmmm…

So this month I want you to take time to focus on yourself. I can just hear all the busy mothers out there saying things like, "but my children need me." Listen, it's not a selfish thing to do - instead, it only makes you a better person. I'm also very driven and have hundreds of things on the go so I do know what it's like. But you can’t give what you don’t have.

There are seven areas to everyone's life - spiritual, work, financial, family, friends, health/physical and personal. We constantly give and give and because we all lead such busy lives, it's very easy for that last section to slip. Hopefully that will be changing soon.

This year I decided that because my personal development is extremely important to me, I need to start scheduling time just for me. What I've been doing is scheduling two nights every month to focus on me. If I find interesting worksheets, quizzes or e-books on the internet, I print them and do or read them in this self-time too. I don't know about you but sometimes I read a book and at the time I'm too lazy to fetch some paper and do the exercises. Now I note them down and do all these exercises during my self-care time.

my favourite type of self-care!

You can enjoy your time pampering yourself with a lovely bubble bath, paint your toenails or read a favourite book. Or buy a favourite magazine and read it over some coffee and cake at a quiet coffee shop. Or book yourself on a workshop. I do regular talks and workshops and while I love it, I do enjoy receiving now and again. So every year, I attend at least two workshops.

For all the unstructured people out there, you're probably thinking, "where's the spontaneity?" I'll do a Dr Phil and ask you this, "how's the spontaneity been working for you?" I also tried the spontaneity thing and I never seemed to get around to things that were important to me!

I've really found this time of self-care very useful and I know that you will too. You'll be able to really think about what's working for you and what's not. I suggest that you buy a pretty notebook, and write it all down. There's something very special about committing things to paper instead of having it all milling around in your head.

My sister calls her personal time "Shelley time". Repeat three times: It's not a sin to have (insert own name here) _____________ time. Very good!

Download the worksheet but more importantly, take some action. You are so very worth it!

(c) Marcia Francois
Marcia Francois is a personal life coach and professional organiser who teaches busy people how to have more time, less stress and a more organised and fulfilled life. Visit http://takechargesolutions.org/ for your free Organise your Home e-book and other helpful tips.

The power of habits

the power of habits - by Marcia Francois
first published in Feb 2003

I’m going to start off with a really powerful quote by Mike Murdock, which goes, “the secret of your success is hidden in your daily routine”. I saw another good one too the other day that said, “successful people do what unsuccessful people are not prepared to do”. And that’s exactly my point; there are hundreds of little things we either are doing or not doing that affect the degree of success that we’ve achieved.

A habit is an action done so many times that we don’t even have to think consciously about doing it anymore.

Most people agree that it takes 21 days to form a habit and only 3 days to break it. For example, when we were very small, we were all trained to brush our teeth every morning. The toothbrush with toothpaste was given to us and we dutifully brushed our teeth every day. Now, I don’t know anyone at my age (!) who has to really think about brushing his or her teeth. I know that I stumble to the bathroom, half-asleep, and brush my teeth automatically. Why? It’s a habit.

If you take time to think about your daily routine, you’ll notice lots of good habits like driving within the speed limit, drinking 2L of water daily, etc. A few years ago, I decided that I needed to start drinking more water. So on 1 January 1998, I started forcing myself to drink 2L of water every day. This habit took hold in only 14 days because after the first two weeks, it was easy and it’s been that way ever since.

Now, in the same way that good habits are formed, bad habits are also created just as easily. I know of people who start saving, say R100 every month, and everything goes well for three or four months. Then they decide to go on holiday and stop saving for one month. The snag is that it doesn’t end up being just one month, because the habit they were creating has been broken. The next month it’s easier to spend that R100 on clothes, and after the third month, they’re back to square one!

So this month, I want to encourage you to think about some good habits you want to start implementing and some bad habits that you need to replace with good ones.

If you currently have a bad habit at work of shuffling paper around and not dealing with it, start this month by being disciplined and either filing it, working on it or throwing it away. When you’re tempted to just throw it back into your in-tray or start making a pile on your desk, STOP!

Remember that you have the power to break that bad habit and start creating some good ones. And the same goes for driving – if you’re like me and let other drivers on the road irritate you, stop and tell yourself that you’re going to replace all that negative behaviour with something positive. Maybe you need to start saying things like, “I am perfectly calm and stress-free in traffic.”

Action challenge
1. Print out the habits worksheet.
2. If you work outside the home, copy it so that you have one at home and one at work.
3. Read through your list every day to remind yourself of the habits.
4. Start implementing it. Make like Nike and “just do it”


By the way, this ties in really nicely with a blog post I wrote recently, my daily steps to success. If you haven’t already read it, go on over and see what I wrote.

© Marcia Francois 2003-2007
Marcia Francois is a personal life coach and professional organiser who teaches people how to have more time, less stress and a more fulfilling life. Visit http://www.takechargesolutions.org/ for your free Organise your Home e-book and other helpful tips.

Make your life easy with effective systems

make your life easy with effective systems
by Marcia Francois


Life is such a whirlwind, isn’t it? If you’re anything like me, it often seems like the weeks go by in a blur of activity…and then it’s weekend again. Or the weekends go by so quickly and when Monday comes around, you feel like you’ve just started to relax and the week is upon you once again.

The problem with this is that we never have a sense of peace, calm and control. A feeling that we are directing the course of our own lives.

I go through patches of hectic too so I thought I’d share some of the systems I’ve set up to make our lives easier:

Household calendar
We have one household calendar in our kitchen where we mark off any commitments like church, other ministry commitments, meetings, gym, socials, and so on. We use a sticker system with a different colour for each area of life. The nice thing about this system is that when there are too many stickers, we know we’re too busy. I also mark off the recycling pick-up days, when the meter reader is due and of course, things like birthdays.

I couple this with diary planning for the week ahead. I look at my diary on a Sunday and put in my appointments for the week. I also add any tasks that I need or want to work on, like writing articles, e-courses, newsletters and so on.

Meal planning
I love meal planning because it saves me time. When I say this to people, they think I’m crazy because “how can all that planning save you time?” It’s quite simple – a twenty-minute planning session on the weekend saves me time from Monday to Friday, when I need it most. No more standing in front of the open fridge wondering what to make for supper.

And you can still be spontaneous within the plan. I plan meals for the working week but if I don’t feel like a particular meal that day, I change it around and cook another day’s meal. Like if it’s very hot and I planned to have baked potatoes with a topping, I’ll postpone that to another day and make a pasta salad instead.

Regular decluttering and organising
I tackle an area in our home every weekend. Let’s face it – if we are constantly buying things and bringing them into our homes and lives, clutter is constantly building up unless we get rid of some of it.

It doesn’t have to be a huge exercise. While you’re busy cooking or baking, you can sort out a cupboard or two. I don’t trust my oven timer (it is erratic) so I stay in the kitchen whenever I bake to make sure my muffins don’t burn! I then use the time constructively to sort out the cupboards, plan my menus, write out my shopping list, etc. You can see the fruits of my labour on the organising blog at http://organisingtips.blogspot.com/

When you factor in just 15 minutes’ decluttering and organising every weekend, you can easily maintain your home if it is already organised. Of course, if your house is nowhere near where you’d like it, I would suggest 15 mintues every day. Sign up for Beth’s declutter calendar at http://encouragingcoach.com/ and start the process now.

Launch pad
Do you know the place in your house where you dump your bags as you enter? Flylady calls this a launch pad. I like that term because it reminds me of action. We have an interesting, little corner in our entrance hall that I use for my launch pad and my husband uses another section near the kitchen.

Mornings are one of the worst times in most families – you can’t find your keys, wallet, bag, etc. Frantic running around and screaming happens and that is just not fun.

The point is that we use our launch pads to ready ourselves for mornings. Every evening I pack my handbag, work bag and keys, and they are all left here. In the mornings all I do is grab and go. Literally once I leave the bedroom, I walk to the fridge to get my cooler bag with my lunch, set the alarm, grab my bags from my launch pad and I’m out of there. And that’s two minutes tops!

Now, over to you. Which systems can you implement to make your life easier?


© Marcia Francois 2007
Marcia Francois is a personal life coach and professional organiser who teaches people how to have more time, less stress and increased productivity. Visit http://www.takechargesolutions.org/ for your free Organise your Home e-book and other helpful tips.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

how I can help you
Virtual organising session
I can help you with an objective opinion and lots of good ideas via a virtual organising session.

Hands-on organising session
I will come to your house for a 2 or 3-hour hands-on session. We will do a needs analysis and then get stuck in - decluttering, organising and setting up systems to help you with your time and space.

I also offer wardrobe organising sessions. You will fit on everything (either when I'm there or beforehand) to decide what you love wearing and what must go. We will then declutter and organise your clothes, shoes, accessories and so forth.

Email me for available times.

Eat that frog!

this month's article

Eat your frog!
By Marcia Francois


Eat your frog? By now you’re wondering if I’ve gone stark raving mad! No, I’m not mad.

I first learned of this principle from Brian Tracy.

Your frog is the most important task of the day. It is the one thing which, if done quickly and effectively, will ensure your greatest success.

You see, when most people get to work, they already have some idea of what they have to do for the day. Let me give you a specific example.

Okay, imagine that these are the 5 tasks that await you on a particular day:

1. Read and respond to emails.
2. Phone somebody to resolve a query.
3. Set up a meeting.
4. Compile monthly report.
5. Draft a process email and send out.

Most people would probably do the tasks in this order – 1, 3, 2, 5 and 4.

Why?

Because that’s the easiest way to get through the list. After all, by 10:00 nearly all the items can already be ticked off the list.

But then a “typical day” happens – client phone calls, queries left, right and centre, you’re called into a couple of meetings and before you know it, 4:30 has rolled around and you still haven’t done that monthly report.

Sound familiar?

That’s because you haven’t eaten your frog. Your most important task is still undone.

So let’s change it all around.

What if you walked into the office and did nothing else until your report was done? You’ve eaten your frog. And it’s only 9:00.

You then catch up on emails, and draft the process email to send out. The “typical day” still happens but because the most important tasks are done, you can squeeze setting up the meeting and phoning the other person into the tiny five-minute slots you do find during the course of the day.

You see, it’s what I’ve been teaching my time management clients for years when I tell them to ask themselves, “what’s the most important use of my time right now?”

If you get used to eating the frog first, the rest of your day can only get better. Your most horrible task is over and done with and you can almost…but not quite…relax!

And if you have TWO frogs, then you eat the ugliest one first!

My challenge to you is this – just try it for a week and see how your productivity soars. You know I’m the go-to gal if you want to increase your productivity so I made a worksheet to help you get into the habit. Download it now. Page 1 has Mon - Sun and page 2 only has Mon - Friday.

I can’t wait to hear how it works out for you.

By the way, I thought I ought to practise what I preach. So this month, I did exactly that. I wrote this article a week earlier than I usually do so that it’s done. And I feel great!

© 2007 Marcia Francois

Marcia Francois is a personal life coach who teaches people how to have more time, less stress and increased productivity. Visit http://www.takechargesolutions.org/ for your FREE success pack, articles and helpful tips.

2006 - My year in review

*******************************
THIS MONTH'S ARTICLE
2006 - my year in review

*******************************

Spiritual
This year was probably not the best year I've ever had spiritually but I've realised in my Christian walk that this is a marathon, not a sprint and there are ups and downs. As with everything else in life, you have to keep your eyes on things above and just keep moving.

Business
Looking through my goals for the year, I did a lot better than expected in most areas but not as good as I wanted to in other areas.

I got a bit techno-savvy and set up my website and domain name in March. Continuing the techno streak, I set up three business blogs - take charge of your life, organising tips and the newsletter archives.

I ran 9 workshops - 4 Awesome Relationships, Goal-setting 101, Discover more of yourself, Simplify your life, Health and wellness day, and Spring into Organising.

I also interacted on a one-on-one basis with many clients through coaching and organising.

I also developed an e-course, and several e-books which are now for sale on my site.

And I was featured on Kaya FM as a clutter control expert!

I also learnt lots about marketing this year - I now know that marketing's not a swear word :)

I had two sets of business cards printed - I had the reprint done to direct people to the website to get their free success pack, and also to link to the blog.

Financial
This year, I invested a lot of money in myself.....because I'm worth it. Seriously though, I bought lots of e-courses, e-books, CD's and print books to develop myself and improve my business.

Despite all that, I managed to reach my savings goals with almost no trouble at all. Why is it that this seems to be the easiest goal of all for me to accomplish every year?! I don't think I've become extremely self-disciplined over the years so it might just be that I'm addicted to seeing that savings account grow :)

Health
I lost 4kg on Weigh-Less!!! (this year, my goal is to lose another 3 and get to my goal weight). I changed my gym routine to incorporate some dance classes - originally 3 but then I got bored with belly dancing and now only do hip-hop and salsa. I also went to an Introduction to Nia dance workshop.

I have never eaten this healthily in my life, thanks to Weigh-Less, and am faithfully eating lots of vegetables and fruit on a daily basis.

In 2006, one of my main goals was to create more balance in my life and that, I'm proud to say, I really did. Of course, it's a battle when things get busy. But I have learnt to relax my expectations somewhat (for instance, sometimes I chose to spend a couple of hours reading instead of cleaning, or going to gym instead of working late, etc.).

Marriage
Dion and I had lots of date nights this year and of course, we also participated in the first Relationship Boot Camp I ran, to set off our relationship on the right foot.

We also travelled quite a bit this year. We went to Port Elizabeth for our 11-year anniversary at the end of April, then had our big holiday in Thailand and Malaysia in October/ November, and we ended off the year with another long weekend in Grahamstown and Port Elizabeth early in December. Dion and I met in Grahamstown 14 years ago at Rhodes University so it was really special to go back there.

Ministry
Even though this was a really quiet year, I helped around 15 people discover their passion. I also started a new passion-driven ministry called Success Principles, based on Jack Canfield's book. The new ministry had only a few members but each meeting was so inspiring as individual members shared and encouraged one another.

Social/ friends
We always start off the year very well with socials but then as the year progresses and it gets busy, we somehow don't get to see all our friends as often as we'd like. And the travelling didn't help this year either!

I made lots of lunch dates with my friends - isn't it nice to meet up and just be with your girlfriends? (If you haven't spent time with your friends lately, bring them along to the From Drab to Fab workshop. You will have a wonderful time - I promise!)

However, we ended off the year very well and managed to meet up with 3 sets of friends just in December alone, which was just wonderful.

Personal
One of the major things that affected me this year was blogging. It amazes me to see how people's opinion of blogging differs. Some love it, some hate it, some don't understand it but still hate it :)

You might have noticed that I love blogging! I have made some amazing friends through blogging and the internet this year. I even got the opportunity to meet up with Ali and Ricardo on Christmas Eve.

I attended 4 workshops/ courses this year for my own pleasure/ personal development.
I read a total of 72 books this year (on average, 6 every month) - 52 fiction and 20 non-fiction.

And I also saw some really good movies like The Holiday.

Getting back to techno-savvy, we finally got ourselves a digital camera and MP4 players. AND! I'm typing this on my new laptop - yay! Back to the digital camera... oh my word, are those things nifty or what?! I love that camera and discovered another little addiction - taking pictures of food. I know it's weird but it could have been weirder, right???

So that's it - my year in review. (I'd love to hear more about yours in the comments)

Enjoying your holidays

Marcia's monthly motivational message - Enjoying your holidays
Remember to download your holiday survival guide

When we think about the Festive Season, some people look forward to it and some people don't.

Just in chatting to some friends the last couple of weeks, I get mixed reactions like this: I never go away during December because there's no traffic in Jhb, and then… I hate being in Jhb during December because the rest of the country's up here and there's no parking. Some people plan everything around family time, and some purposely want to be away from family. Different strokes for different folks? I suppose so.

The one thing in common is that people have definite ideas about what they want and don't want. This is great. However, you need to plan around that instead of just stressing about your expectations not being met.

So, the first action step is to decide, as a family, what is most important to you. Do you want to do cards and gifts, do lots of church activities, volunteer at a children's home or spend time with friends and family?

Choose a couple and then plan around your common goals. It might also be a good idea to write these on your refrigerator so you're constantly reminded of what's most important.

Here are some points to help you plan the holidays:

family
1. Who do you want to spend time with?
2. Are you buying gifts for everybody or will you each draw a name? I know somebody whose family only exchanges gifts with the people they're together with on Christmas Day.
3. Resolve not to get into an argument with your relatives about stupid things. Remember they know how to push your buttons!

food
1. When you cook, cook double and freeze the extra portion. On the days when you don't feel like cooking, you can just pull the meal out the freezer and defrost.
2. Make extra cookie dough and freeze. You can then easily defrost and bake when you get visitors.
3. Don't feel like you must do everything. You're not Superwoman. Say yes when people ask if they can bring something and tell them exactly what to bring.

fun
1. You don't have to attend every social event you're invited to. It's okay to say no.
2. Eat something small (sandwich) before you go out so that you don't overeat and make bad choices. This is especially true if you're on a weight loss journey like I am. Choose tomato-based sauces instead of the fattier, creamy options. Halve your portion immediately and ask for a doggie bag. Those of you in South Africa can spread some Christmas cheer and give your doggie bag to a homeless person or to the car guard.
3. If you're at a party and you're drinking, remember to drink lots of water.

figures (money)
1. Don't go overboard with the money. Buy now, pay later results in lots of stress in the New Year.
2. Decide on a budget for all gifts and stick to it. If you run out, get creative and make something (babysitting vouchers, a casserole, some baked goodies, home spa/ massage vouchers).
3. Put aside some money for the time leading up to your January salary. In SA, there is usually a six-week gap between the Dec and Jan salaries. We've done this in my family for the last seven or eight years so that we always have money in January. It takes a bit of discipline but is so worth it when there are 3 weeks before pay day and you have plenty of money in your bank account.

Well, I hope these points gave you something to think about.

Here's to a meaningful holiday season! Always remember that the reason for the season is our Saviour's birth.

Do you want to use this article? You may, as long as you include this complete bio with it:
Marcia Francois, the Take Charge coach and professional organiser, coaches people to reach their goals and maximise their potential. She publishes the popular “Take charge of your life” monthly ezine. If you're ready to finally live your dream life, get your FREE subscription now at http://www.takechargesolutions.org/

10 favourite organising tools

My favourite organising tools

There are some things I just can't do without. These 10 tools really help me to keep me and my household organised.

Notebook and pen
I have notebooks all over the house, one next to my bed, one on the entrance hall table, one in my handbag, one in the car, etc. It is easy to jot some notes down immediately without losing the thought than to have to try to remember it.

Flipfiles
Flipfiles are so useful –in the kitchen alone, I use two – one for favourite recipes and one for my household organising file. You can buy your own downloadable household organising file for only R75 (plus R5 admin charge)
We used a flipfile for a travel file to put all the stuff we printed off the internet of tours we wanted to take, checklists, etc.

Masking tape
I got this excellent tip from Confessions of an Organized Homemaker. I use masking tape for labels everywhere. The tape is really easy to write on with both a pen and a marker. Use in the kitchen to label your leftovers in the fridge and also your storage containers in the cupboards.

Permanent marker
Use a permanent marker to label virtually everything. This is one of the main tricks to keep your home organised. It is all well and good to have everything nicely sorted but if you can't remember what's in each container without having to look inside then it's a bit useless, isn't it? My house has one in the kitchen, one in my handbag and a couple in the study.

Post-it notes
I use post-it notes for labels. If you use the proper branded ones, they stick on everything and last forever. Don't waste your time with the cheap stuff. My fridge is labelled with post-its - the same ones have been in there for about 6 months now and are as good as new. There is no sign of non-stickiness. Use in the fridge, on shelves, boxes, trays, magazine holders, etc.

Clear square or rectangular plastic storage containers
Once you start using clear containers, you will never go back to the opaque stuff. You'll always know what's in there and find your food doesn't waste as often. You can pack more stuff into a space if you use square or rectangular containers than if you use round ones. Use in the kitchen for food and in the study for paperclips, staples, etc.

Ziploc bags
Use Ziploc bags for sandwiches, freezing food, holding vegetables, for toiletries when travelling, if you're going on a day trip and need to take some sunblock and mosquito repellent, etc.

Prestik
I use Prestik to stick up shopping and menu lists in the kitchen, a recipe on the cupboard when I'm baking (so it doesn't get dirty), Christmas cards on the side of the wall unit (so they don't take up space on a shelf) and to stick up a pen and my goals list in my wardrobe.

Elastic bands
Use to close bags of chips, sweets or vegetables. They are easier to use on freezer bags than those clips you get in the packets.

Perpetual calendar
Set it up once with all the birthdays, anniversaries and special events, and you use the same one year in and year out. Diarise to check it around the 27th of every month for upcoming birthdays and you are all prepared!


Do you want to use this article? You may, as long as you include this complete bio with it:
Marcia Francois, the Take Charge coach and professional organiser, coaches people to reach their goals and maximise their potential. She publishes the popular “Take charge of your life” monthly ezine. If you're ready to finally live your dream life, get your FREE subscription now at http://www.takechargesolutions.org/

Setting healthy boundaries

What is a boundary?

In a physical sense, it is easy to understand that a boundary marks off where your property starts and where the neighbour's ends. You are responsible for your property but not for anything that happens on your neighbour's.

While not as easy to mark off, our emotional boundaries also mark off where our responsibilities start and end. Too many people feel out of control of their lives because they don't know where their boundaries start and end.

Boundaries are like fences in that they keep bad things out and good things in. This means that you protect yourself from things or people that might hurt you and you nurture things or people that help you. Notice I said fences and not walls. A wall means that nothing gets through from either side; a fence allows flow.

Boundaries are limits or barriers that protect you, your time and your energy. When your boundaries are well-defined, they help to prevent conflict within your relationships. They are like your personal "rules".

"Setting limits is a way of defining who you are and what you're all about, what you will do and what you won't; what's acceptable to you and what's not" - Laura Stack

You can't control other people's behaviour but you can control the extent to which it affects you. In other words, control your exposure to people.

For example, I don't allow people to make racist remarks around me. Now I can't control what they will say but I can control whether I continue to listen. Another example is I don't allow anybody to speak to me in an abusive manner. Again, I can't control what they say but I will warn them before putting the phone down. It's their right to say what they want but it's also my right to not sit there and be a doormat.

Setting boundaries means owning and taking responsibility for your personal choices and the consequences thereof. You make the choice, you take responsibility and you can make a different choice if you don't like the consequence.

Here are some signs that your boundaries are weak:
· Knots in your stomach when you agree to do some things
· Anger and resentment
· Deep feeling of dread
· Feeling shocked or being appalled at something someone said

The first step to creating stronger boundaries is to learn to say no. Read last month's newsletter for more tips.

Remember if the reaction to your setting boundaries is not great (sulking, anger, etc), it's not about you - it's about them. That feeling is on their side of the "fence".

Write these 3 sentences on a piece of paper and write out as many statements underneath each as you can think of:

1. People may not…
2. I have a right to ask for…
3. To protect my time and energy…

As always, if you need help or want to send me some comments, I'd love to hear from you.

Here's to setting healthy boundaries!

Do you want to use this article? You may, as long as you include this complete bio with it:
Marcia Francois, the Take Charge coach and professional organiser, coaches people to reach their goals and maximise their potential. She publishes the popular “Take charge of your life” monthly ezine. If you're ready to finally live your dream life, get your FREE subscription now at http://www.takechargesolutions.org/

Saying no

Such a small word but so difficult to use sometimes.

We seem to use this word so easily with our spouse and children but have a hard time saying it to "other people".

So the trick is to figure out how and when to say no.

I'm not saying that you should be selfish and never help anybody out. However, most people are running around stressed because they're saying yes to everybody but themselves.

You should only be saying yes when you genuinely want to do something, you feel excitement at the thought of doing it or it ties in with your life goals or definition of success (you'll learn more about this on Discover Yourself).

You don't have to first have another appointment to say no
If you've planned to have an evening in (bubble bath, reading, TV, whatever…) and you get invited out, this does not automatically mean you have to accept. An appointment with yourself is just as important as one with other people. Value your time!

Realise that when you say yes to one thing, you ALWAYS say no to something else
When this happens, you usually say no to the more important parts of your life - God, family, yourself. For example, you're asked to help out on a committee at your child's school. You could end up so busy with committee work that you deprive your child of quality time. Another example is saying yes to everybody at work collecting money for birthdays, leaving presents, etc, and no to your own financial future.

Don't instinctively say yes. Buy time to think about it first.
Always check your diary first before committing to plans. Or just take a deep breath. Otherwise you end up saying yes to everything and at the end of a hectic period, you're virtually burnt out.

It becomes easier to say the more you practise
At first when you have to say no to something or someone, it feels terrible. But it is incredibly freeing when you realise that you made the correct decision in saying no. It is an acquired skill and the more you use your "no" muscle, the stronger it'll get.

When you say yes and you feel resentment, you should have said no
Learn to listen to your heart. The Bible says that we mustn't give grudgingly or under compulsion, and yet, so many of us do. We say yes, and harbour deep feelings of resentment and bitterness. Nothing good comes from a resentful attitude.

Saying no comes easier when you are confident in your own capabilities
When you say no firmly and without a grovelling apology, it affirms your self-worth and it's a way that you stand up for yourself. Men seem to do really well at this but women seem to want to explain everything and apologise while they're saying no.

You don't have to be rude or ugly about it - there are many ways to say no
No can be "I can't help you this time", "I can only do it next month", "that's not my strong suit" or simply "no, thanks".

Make a quality decision this month to look at your schedule and see where you're saying yes to things that don't support your goals. Then, work at saying no to it so that you can say yes to more important things.

Do you want to use this article? You may, as long as you include this complete bio with it:
Marcia Francois, the Take Charge coach and professional organiser, coaches people to reach their goals and maximise their potential. She publishes the popular “Take charge of your life” monthly ezine. If you're ready to finally live your dream life, get your FREE subscription now at http://www.takechargesolutions.org/

August - Saving time for what matters most

It seems like everywhere you go, you hear the same message. I don't have enough time, I need more time, I'd love to exercise more, play more, __________ more (fill in the missing word) but I just don't have the time.

Here are a few of my favourite time-savers. If you have any more to share with me (and your fellow readers), please post them in the comments section below.

1. Do your grocery shopping when the stores are empty
I've started doing our weekly shop on Friday nights at 6.30. My favourite Pick & Pay closes at 7pm so the store is not very full and all of us shoppers are in "accomplish" mode so not a lot of browsing and so on. We're armed with our lists and get on with the job. I've saved at least an hour from doing the weekly shop on Saturdays like I used to do.

2. Whenever you cook, cook double
I cook at least double of everything for the nights when I have coaching appointments or consultations in the evenings. It then takes just a few minutes to defrost in the microwave and saves me about 30 minutes (you guys know I don't believe in spending a lot of time in the kitchen anyway, unless it's to organise something : ). You can freeze individual portions of just about anything - soup, rice, casseroles, etc.

3. When you return home from the shops, cut all your vegetables immediately.
Yes, it will take a bit of time, but it saves you time during the week when you're busy. Remember, you can spend some time every night getting out all your chopping boards, knives, etc. AND cleaning it afterwards, or you can do it once a week. I vote for once a week. Do the same for your meat and chicken if you separate it out for different meals.

4. Set up a menu plan for the week
I mentioned this point last month with regard to saving money, but the best part of it for me is that it saves me time. You don't have the indecision every night of opening that fridge or cupboard and wondering what to cook. It's already decided. Try it and see - you won't look back. You can download a free menu planner off my website.

5. Choose your clothes in the evening
This is another underestimated time saver. When you choose your clothes in the evening, you can see if your shoes need to be cleaned, if all the buttons on your shirt are still intact, and so on. Then in the morning, and if you're like me, you need all the help you can get just to get out of bed, you're set to go.

6. Pack your lunch in the evening
Not only does this save time, but it also helps you to remember everything. I have a little cooler bag that I use to pack my lunch while supper is cooking (or defrosting). I pack my sandwich, cereal, yoghurt, my cup-a-soup and my two fruits.

7. Use TV time for other mindless tasks
I understand that TV is relaxation time but this works for me. I exercise with weights, wrap gifts, pack my bag, update my diary, sew buttons, go through my old magazines, etc, etc. all while watching TV. The list goes on and on. At least at the end of a show, I feel like I've accomplished something instead of just being a couch potato.

8. Tape TV programmes and watch them on video later
I'm a HUGE Dr. Phil fan and I tape the programme every day. If I had to sit and watch the programme live (well, first of all, it's right in the middle of the day) it would take an hour, or to be more precise, 58 minutes. Because I tape it and fast forward through all the ads, it takes only 43 minutes. The reality TV shows like Survivor, Amazing Race and The Apprentice are usually only about 37 minutes long. Just goes to show how they plug all the shows with ad breaks.

9. Batch routine tasks
Keep all your filing together so that you file 5 things at once. Make all your telephone calls at the same time. Write out all greeting cards for the month at one time. And wrap all the gifts at one time too - yes, in front of the TV!

10. Automate as much as you can
This is what I'm trying to do with the business more and more, like automating this newsletter, so I can focus more time on my core genius. For example, I use the AutoText function in Microsoft Word extensively for all emails I write a lot, like questions on my coaching and workshops, my e-signature, etc.

I'm actually also busy compiling these into a FAQ page which I'll upload to the website soon. I read a great tip in an online newsletter recently. Whenever you comment on a blog, make it meaningful and use the same wording as a post on your own blog. I did this with my spending fast post on the blog.

By the way, I'm going to discuss lots more of these types of productivity-type tips at the Spring into Organising workshop.

Bonus tip - say no to things you don't want to do.
That's all I'm going to say because this is the topic for next month's newsletter!

Do you want to use this article? You may, as long as you include this complete bio with it:

Marcia Francois, the Take Charge coach and professional organiser, coaches people to reach their goals and maximise their potential. She publishes the popular "Take charge of your life" monthly ezine. If you're ready to finally live your dream life, get your FREE subscription now at http://www.organiseyourbusiness.com/