SolveYourProblem Article Series: Time Management
How Can I Manage My Time Better?

Time Management Tips
For Your Household & Family
   

Remember when your mom always told you to stay organized and you would have more time? Of course you do. How often have you misplaced something and thought if you don’t find it you would fall apart? If you find yourself still losing items it’s time to stop!

Stop putting yourself through useless hours of frustration and emotional outburst. Get organized and stay that way. Look how much easier life can be if you do. Your household will run so much smoother, and everyone from husband to the smallest tike in the house will not be waiting for misplaced items to be found.

Look at some of these useful household tips to help your life run much smoother and more efficiently.

Remember what mother said, and use your common sense. Schedule more time for things that you’re going to do around the house. It doesn’t matter if it’s vacuuming; block more time out to do it. If you hear yourself saying it shouldn’t take any more time than a certain amount of time to do something then re-think that statement. You know in your heart it often does, so learn to deal with blocking time.

Once you’ve decided to do something, keep doing it until you’re done. That doesn’t mean running your self into exhaustion. Taking a break is permissible, but don’t get off on another tangent until you complete what you’re doing. Complete it!

Use time by applying it to your advantage and use it proficiently. For example, when you’re unexpectedly interrupted by a noisy chatty neighbor, or a well meaning but lonely friend, it’s okay to tell them you’re busy. Go ahead and continue to do little things that take up the minutes of the day such as pick up toys, clothes or whatever else you were doing when interrupted. If they love you and care they understand.

Use the house cleaning one-week principal. Give your home a deep cleaning at least once a week. Getting the grime out every week or two weeks will keep the kitchen sink from building up with grime around the edges until you would have to sand blast it to get it clean. This wastes time. It’s not healthy either.

Keep lots of lists. Don’t depend on remembering everything, you can’t. By keeping you’re to-do list everyday, you won’t have your phone cut off right in the middle of a very important business call or more importantly an emergency. Keep your paper work up daily; even if that means just straightening it back into its organized pile.

If possible use the principle of lets get it done in one stop idea. Instead of wasting time and going here or there everyday, it is best to plan all outings to do at one time. For instance, go to pay a bill, pay as many as possible, then stop by the oil changing place, then before you go home, get groceries. On average, and depending on if you live around a larger traffic area, you’ll spend 15 minutes each way driving somewhere, that’s a lot of time to be wasting everyday. It’s not fuel efficient either.

Get rid of junky clutter in your house and garage. Have you heard people say that everyone has a junk drawer or a junk area in their house or apartment? Do you have one? That’s doesn’t need to be. If you’ve got junk, get rid of it. Let go of the painting that hasn’t hung on the wall for twenty years, unless of course it’s a family heirloom. If it doesn’t fit, get rid of it. If it’s beyond repair take it to the garbage heap.

Take the time to buy or make your own proper storage containers. If you’re still cramped after cleaning out, consider saving for a storage building, either rented or for your own yard.

Enlist the help of others and encourage them to help you rid of the clutter. You might have to do some real cajoling for the younger members of the family, that still want to keep a broken toy. Be persistent, but gentle with them. Ask them to donate used but well kept toys and clothing.

Prioritizing every day is what really needs to be done. If the clutter bothers you excessively or is not healthy then get rid of it.

Click here for 501 tips and ideas for finding MORE TIME to do the things you love. It's a handy little time management guide and my SolveYourProblem recommendation.

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by SolveYourProblem.com : 2006

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