Buttoned Up » time management

25 ways to feel more buttoned up when life gets crazy

Sarah — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:10:45 +0000

If you’re hunched over a desk reading emails or white knuckling it through a stressful period, you’re probably holding your breath more than you realize. Researchers have nicknamed this email apnea and it’s got the negative side effect of triggering your body’s fight or flight system. That in turn makes it more difficult to focus because your reptilian brain shanghai’s your executive function. Re-calibrate & put your prefrontal cortex back in the driver’s seat by doing some simple breathing exercises: in 4 seconds, hold 7 seconds, out 8 seconds. Repeat at least 4 times.

Make a List

If your brain is feeling like a monkey swinging from idea vine to idea vine, grab a sheet of paper and do a brain dump. It’ll reduce your stress related to fear of forgetting and give you an objective way to look at what you have on your plate.

Make Your Bed

The simple act of making your bed is what’s known as a keystone habit – a simple process that, when done consistently, makes you more productive in other areas of life. Take 2 minutes to make yours right when you wake up and enjoy the benefits all day long.

Archive All Emails Older Than 1 Week

It takes about 2 minutes to do and brings you darn close to inbox zero (and frees up precious hard drive space). Chances are you’ll never need to touch those archived emails ever again – but if you do – you’ll know where to find them.

Clean Off Your Desk or Kitchen Counter

The messier your environment, the more difficult it is to focus. Set the timer on your phone for 15 minutes and go to town.

Create Something

When I’m feeling stuck or like a “failure” in one domain (e.g. work) or otherwise out of control, I head into the kitchen and bake – bread, cookies, crackers – you name it. It forces me to concentrate on the task at hand, is related to nourishing my family, a sentiment that bring me joy, saves me from buying packaged goods, and in fairly short order reminds me I can finish things. It also gives me the mental space to reflect on the thoughts racing around my head and synthesize them. Any small creative project will yield similar benefits.

Map Out Your Week

Take your long, laundry list, identify the top 3 priority tasks for each day and figure out what day you are going to do them. If you use a scheduling program, put them in your calendar as appointments.

Go To Bed Earlier

Lack of sleep has serious effects on our brain’s ability to function. When you’re sleep deprived, the part of the brain that controls language, memory, planning and sense of time is seriously impaired. In fact, a BBC article on the importance of sleep notes that folks who are awake for 17 hours in a row without sleeping perform as though they’ve had two glasses of wine & a blood alcohol level of 0.05%.

Work Out

You know you’ll feel better if you work out. Why is that? Well, adults in a 2007 study among noted that a three-month aerobic exercise program seemed to improve their concentration and overall brain functioning.
Researchers looking inside their brains could actually see that the regimen led to the formation of new neurons and more diverse, denser interconnections between them. Read more about the connection between exercise & your brain at the Daily Beast

Focus on One Task at a Time Using the Pomodoro Technique

Our brains work sequentially. Instead of doing two tasks at once, the brain actually toggles between whatever tasks are under way. Switching between tasks impairs our ability to learn and even impairs our IQ more than smoking marijuana. Bottom line: multi-tasking is a giant waste of time. Pick one task to focus on for 20-30 minutes. Allow yourself to do ONLY that task. Set a timer and get to work. When the bell rings, take a break for 2 or 3 minutes and then get to work on the next task.

Choose, Don’t React

You don’t have to do everything. You are in charge of what you do, not your to-do list. Make a simple mental shift and decide which tasks you choose to do or focus on right now. That simple act puts you back in control.

Smile

Not Just a Little, Either. Paste an Ear-to-Ear Grin on Your Face! New research published last year in the Journal of Psychological Science shows that smiling — and especially genuine smiling (where your eyes and mouth muscles are engaged) — may play a part in lowering heart rate after you’ve done something stressful.

Buy a Notebook to Capture Thoughts

Having one place to put your notes, thoughts, tasks makes you more organized. I would argue that a physical notebook is better than a virtual one because it is always accessible – but if you go virtual, that can work too. The key lies in the utter simplicity.

Find a Mentor & Follow Her Path

There are people who have done what you are trying to do in the past. Why reinvent the wheel? It’s totally unnecessary. Look around for someone who teach you what worked for them and then take their shortcuts.

Find One Task to Delegate or Cross Off Your List

I’ll bet you don’t ask yourself the question what aren’t I going to do very often. Anytime you are feeling overwhelmed is a good time to start.

Highlight the Critical Path to Your Destination

Sometimes you get so focused on your list that you lose the plot. Do you really need to do everything on your list to accomplish your objectives? What are the critical tasks that are likely to get you most of the way there? Create a new list with just those and see how fast your stress levels go down.

Eat Clean (No Sugary Snacks)

What you eat definitely impacts your brain. A sugary drink or food that spikes your blood sugar levels also triggers your pancreas to secrete insulin. Insulin’s job is to pull excess glucose from the bloodstream, effectively storing it for later. Before long, your brain, which requires quite a bit of glucose to run properly, doesn’t have enough glucose & experiences a crisis of sorts. The net result – you feel loopy, spaced out and maybe even nervous. We lay people call this a “sugar crash” – and doctors call an episode like this hypoglycemia. Regardless of the name, it’s not good to consume lots of sugar if you need to be buttoned up.

Remind Yourself WHY

If you can reconnect with the reason you are doing something, it’s like rocket fuel. If you can’t, maybe it’s a sign you don’t really need to do it.

Make Sure You’re Not Confusing a To-Do with a Project

If you’ve got something large that’s been lingering on your list & it’s making you feel guilty, take two minutes and break it down into a series of smaller steps.

Write Something Down You’ve Already Done & Cross It Off

You see? You are making progress! Sometimes all you need is a reminder.

Stop Saying “Can’t” / Watch Your Language

If you believe you can crack through what is important, you can. If you don’t, you won’t. Rather than asking yourself

Help Someone Else with Something/Give Some of Your Time Away

Researchers have shown that when you give your time away, you actually become more productive.

Stand Up & Do Something In-Between Tasks

Give yourself a mental break and cleanse your palate in-between tasks.

Lock Yourself Out of Distracting Programs & Websites

Use the programs GetConcentrating.com or Freedom to keep yourself from wasting time. They are worth their weight in gold when you really need to focus.

Take a Moment to Reflect on What You Have Accomplished in the Past Few Months

Grab a sheet of paper and list the things that you have accomplished in the past.

Q&A Wednesday: Help! I can’t crack through my to-do’s

Sarah — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 22:22:31 +0000

On our Facebook Q&A Wednesday, fan Diane lamented about her ability to stay focused on her to-do’s and follow through on tasks and asked us for advice.

I can’t seem to get a handle on keeping track of all my to-do’s and I jump from thing to thing without finishing and doing only one thing from start until finish eludes me…any suggestions?

To-do’s are a lot like vines.

Each one like a little tendril, looping around and around your brain in the hopes of gaining traction. And then when it does get a foothold, it quickly sprouts new to-do leaves and project offshoots, which sprout new to-do leaves and offshoots, and, and, and.

If you don’t have a mechanism for directing them, this is what happens:

{image via: Illinois}

They choke up the works. The distinction that you need to make sense of life, to discern between various projects, life spheres (work, home, kids, etc) all blurs into one, giant “noisy” mess. It’s impossible to focus.

And, man, is that stressful. It’s like having distracting static blaring that you can’t turn off: chchchhchchchchhchchchchchchchchch.

But when you have a mechanism for organizing your to-do’s, all of a sudden things go
from this:

to this:

{image via: Southern Living}

The to-do’s aren’t an overpowering “thing” anymore. YOU are in control.

The number one way to make this happen: hold a weekly (or daily) strategy session with yourself.

This approach is at the core of our Kickstart Boot Camp program because it’s that powerful. Here are the basics:

Step 1: Get the noise out of your head, and on to paper. Take all of the possible to-do’s running around your head and get them on paper to stop the noise.

Step 2: Objectively go through and select the to-do’s that matter to you…that will move your life forward n the way you want it to go.

Step 3: Schedule your priority to-do’s for the week ahead. Assign a day, and if it helps you – a time, to do them.

Step 4: Make it a weekly ritual.

This is what habit researchers would call a keystone habit — a process that, done consistently over time, transforms everything.

Important Implementation Note

It takes time for your brain to get used to this approach. Don’t expect yourself to go from a to-do jungle to ordered garden in one week. Take a gradual test-and-learn approach. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t crack through every to-do on your weekly plan the first time. Focus on what you learned from the process and ask yourself how you could improve in the coming week. Understand what got in your way. Where were you distracted and why? Get curious instead of defeated.

And before you know it, you’ll be in control again.

How do you decide what’s on your to-do list? Do you decide? If not, how might your daily life feel if you DID?

Tackle big projects one bite at a time

Sarah — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 09:47:11 +0000

Chances are, if you’ve got a to-do that’s been lingering far too long on your lists, it’s a project, not a to-do. When I do the one-on-one coaching calls with folks going through the Buttoned Up Boot Camp, I never cease to be amazed at just how universal the confusion between to-do’s and projects is.

Definitions

Project:
A project is a temporary undertaking, with a clear beginning and end in order to accomplish something specific. A project can be something you create from scratch or a major change to an existing system…or just digging out from under a huge mess. It requires effort in terms of definition, planning & delivery. A good rule of thumb is – a project is anything you’re committed to finish in a year that requires more than one action to complete.

Task:
A task is a small activity that will contribute to a project’s completion — or simply a routine step.

A task can be done relatively quickly (30min). A project has a longer time horizon.

Here are some great examples of projects that frequently masquerade as to-do’s on busy people’s lists:
- Clean out the spare room
- Organize my papers (especially if there are boxes & piles of them)
- Organize my finances
- Organize the garage
- Clean out my office (especially if you can’t see the floor)

Why Understanding the Distinction is Crucial

When a to-do item lingers on…and on…and on, a few things happen, none of them good.
- You start to feel stressed that your list is never ending and, worse…
- …that you’re not accomplishing anything, or at least not as much as you should.
- You carry a low-level anxiety with you that something is falling through the cracks
- You undermine your own self trust each time you fail to get to something you’ve told yourself you would get to

All of these things put dents in your organizational identity. What’s your organizational identity, you ask? Well, it’s a fancy way of saying that it makes you more likely to believe you’re a failure (I can’t ever get to the bottom of the paper pile on my desk…I can’t get that guest room cleared out, etc.). And as Henry Ford said so well, “whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.”

Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit demonstrates the point academically in his book, explaining why our beliefs about ourselves are so critical. He points out that Henry Ford’s truism is right because those beliefs shape our eventual actions, which in turn yield results. Negative beliefs lock you in a vicious cycle.

I like to call it a doom loop.

The bottom line: when you believe you are a failure at anything, you’re less likely to take the steps you need to get better in that area, which in turn will yield poor results, which reinforce your belief that you’re a failure.

A Doom Loop Looks Like This:

I say: avoid a doom loop just by understanding the distinction between a project and a task!

Once you recognize something on your list is a project, it’s time to do a little planning.

Step 1: Define Your Project
This is an often-skipped step, and yet it’s crucial. The point of this step is to get very clear on what your desired outcome is. Do you really just want to detox a room, or do you also want to put some systems in place so that it doesn’t keep piling up with crap?

Step 2: Map It Out
This, too, is a crucial, but frequently skipped step. In this step, you do the mental heavy lifting (which is why so many of us skip it). First – think about how this big project can break down into smaller chunks, or milestones. For example, if you have an office that you can’t see the bottom of: break the big picture (the office) into zones. Then for each zone, identify the tasks you need to do to get the zone cleared up. Then, assign deadlines and make appointments in your calendar to complete the tasks. If it’s not scheduled, it won’t get done. This is also where you sit down, think about what problems might crop up, and create a game plan on what you’ll do if those problems arise.

Step 3: Execute
Or…in the immortal words of Tow Mater (& Larry the Cable Guy): Get ‘er Done!

Step 4: Celebrate (& set yourself up so it STAYS done)
Before you break your arm patting yourself on the back, take a moment to establish thresholds or routines to ensure your project stays done for the long haul. The problem with organizational projects is, life is always moving – and if you’re not careful the clutter can creep back in. A threshold is a parameter that serves as a trigger for you to do an immediate, small cleanup. For example, I have a threshold established that a piece of clothing cannot remain on the floor of my closet for more than 1 day. If it does, I compel myself to clean it up. A routine is a series of steps that you take on a regular basis to keep the chaos at bay. For example, every Friday afternoon at 4:45, I stop what I’m doing and clean up my desk at work for 15 minutes.

That’s a quick, plain-English overview of the distinction between to-do’s and projects.

Do you have any projects masquerading as to-do’s on your list? What are they? I’m dying to know…

A simple kitchen calendar serves a big-picture purpose

Sarah — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 01:05:40 +0000

If a fancy magazine ever came calling to photograph my kitchen, which is the hub of our house, I’m sure I’d have to “hide” (i.e. take down) my most cherished organizational tool: our calendar whiteboard.

It’s not “high design” – that’s it in the snapshot above. I’ve affixed it to our magnet-hating fridge with 3M Command Strips. I’m sure interior designers and decorators would shudder at the sight and beg me to relegate it to a less conspicuous spot.

Now, don’t get me wrong – I love digital calendars. My primary calendar is digital; Google calendar to be precise. I’ve got it synced to my phone and my computer — I love the alerts.

But, as much as I have tried to make my Google cal the be-all-end-all, it wasn’t living up to the promise in reality. So, about two years ago, I put up this whiteboard. Each and every month I marvel at how this simple, low-tech tool helps our household run more smoothly.

4 Reasons We Keep an Analog Calendar in Our Kitchen

1. It ensures everyone is on the same big-picture page.

This little white board is the central clearinghouse for all important dates. If an important meeting, event or date is not on there, my husband and babysitter have learned the hard way, it will be missed. This simple whiteboard has a way of forcing conversation about events well in advance of the last minute in a way that emailed calendar invitations simply cannot.

2. It gives me a way to speak with the boys about scheduling and their week.

Each of my boys are learning to look to the board to see their own schedules for the day and the week. My oldest (6 YO) knows that, instead of asking me when he has gym, to look at the whiteboard and dress himself accordingly. Ditto for play dates, soccer matches and hockey games. As both boys get older, I will reinforce lessons about planning by asking them to write in their key activities.

3. It contains “holding pen” papers.

The thin strip of cork board at the bottom of the whiteboard is just the spot for those notices from school that you have to hold on to for a week or more. They’re great for tacking up our weekly menu, holding paper invitations and even to showcase a piece of artwork or an awesome spelling test. Each Friday evening after dinner, I take two minutes to remove items that are no longer valid or that are time to take out of rotation.

4. It reinforces my command of the family schedule

The last week of every month, I erase everything on the board and map out key events for the coming month. It takes about 10 minutes to do. I grab the school calendars, the calendar on my phone, and my computer (for extracurricular timetables), lay them all out on the counter in front of me and scribble like a madwoman. And I enjoy every, single, minute of it. The simple act of having to write out the dates, by hand cements things in my brain in a way that typing it once in cyber space never will. I get a beat to think about things like date nights and haircuts. I get to see which weeks are going to require extra effort – and where we have smooth sailing. It’s big picture and yet very much tied to our every day.

So, regardless of style, our calendar will be on the fridge, in whiteboard form, for many years to come.

How about you. Do you have a kitchen command central calendar? Or have you given up on analog and gone 100% digital?

Today is a once-in-a-lifetime day

Sarah — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 21:01:31 +0000

Technically, every day is a once-in-a-lifetime day. But it is always fun when the numbers align like they do today to make it feel extra unique.

This morning, because my facebook and email were lighting up with 12-12-12 notices and celebrations, and because quite a few of them gave a head nod to the impending end-of-the-world predicted by the Mayans, I took a moment to reflect on the miracle of this day.

And by this day, I mean in a global sense. For each one is a singular event.

I don’t know about you, but I find I lose sight of that in the all-out sprint that is most days for me.

Rather than start each day with the question, “How will I make the most of this once-in-a-lifetime day?” 99.999% of the time I start with the question, “What do I need to get done today?”

While many days and weeks I am confident that my to-do list is in sync with my big picture and how I want to use the time I have been allotted, I would be lying if if failed to admit that there are still many days where I feel the pinch of misalignment.

Deep down I know that doing or achieving specific things is not a magic recipe for making the most of my time. In fact, many of the most beautiful moments of my life thus far probably would appear pretty mundane to outside observers.

A bed time snuggle with my boys
A moment of jumping in puddles after running a 5k in the pouring rain with my mom one Mother’s Day
Pulling out four loaves of freshly baked bread from of the oven
Rolling up my sleeves and volunteering
Taking my first hot shower after Hurricane Sandy
Greeting my ailing step-dad with a kiss on the forehead and a hot cup of coffee when he needed some TLC
Catching up with a great friend over coffee
Eating a piece of toast slathered with raspberry jam
Responding to buttoned up challengers and boot campers as they check-in with me
Creating something new and useful for Buttoned Up – whether it’s a blog post or a boot camp or a new product
Wiggling my toes in the sand
Helping someone by just being a sounding board
Cracking a tough problem
Planning my week
Sharing an inside joke with my siblings
Sending Christmas cards
Holding hands with Gar on a road trip
Analyzing data (nerd alert!)
Getting a flash of insight about something business-related

I could go on and on. I have amassed millions of these big/little moments in my life. I feel lucky for each one. And I know that as long as I continue to cultivate my awareness of (and ability to enjoy) the present moment, I will make the most of my once-in-a-lifetime days.

The greatest thief of the present moment, in my experience, is disorganization.

That’s why I am so passionate about about the topic.

Let this day be the day you begin to review your life and take steps to getting organized. Make today an extra-special day in your life.

What are you doing today to mark this date?

The secret to a more productive week

Sarah — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 18:04:40 +0000

If you’re looking for a quick fix to your productivity woes, the answer may lie in something as simple as a pen and pad. Writing down a plan for the week ahead is an effective way to help you to turn down the “noise” and the stress that tends to accompany a full life.

Unfortunately, many people confuse writing down a plan for the week ahead with something that is far, far less effective: writing down a monster to-do list. If you frequently feel as though you are on a treadmill going slightly too fast…to nowhere in particular, it is highly likely you have fallen into that trap.

Whenever I encounter people in this situation, I always prescribe a weekly, thirty-minute personal strategy session. It may sound exotic at first blush, but in reality it is a very straightforward, three-part planning session designed to reduce your feelings of overwhelm and put you firmly back in control of your time in the coming week.

How to conduct a weekly strategy session of your own

A weekly strategy session comprises three, very straightforward steps. You will need to schedule about thirty minutes with yourself. We recommend Sunday evenings as it is a time when most people are in a relaxed and creative state, children (if you have them) are tucked in bed, dreaming of sugarplums, and you have adequate time to set aside and think about the week ahead.

This should be a work session that you look forward to doing. Therefore, before you begin, turn on your favorite tunes so they are playing softly in the background. If you want, pour yourself a small glass of wine, sparkling water with a slice of lemon, or a mug of herbal tea – whatever you enjoy most. Grab a notebook and a pen and turn off your computer and cell phones. You will want to be focused while you do this work.

Part One: Stop the Buzzing.

The first step in turning down the noise in your head is to evict the tasks buzzing around your brain and capture them in one long, laundry list. This list is absolutely, positively NOT to be used as your “to-do” list. Instead, consider it a holding pen for all of the tasks that have popped up on your radar in the past week or so. They are merely possibilities, not marching orders. The purpose of this step is to get those to-do’s out of your head and on to a piece of paper where they can be objectively evaluated. Star or otherwise highlight those tasks that you believe are truly critical.

Part Two: Reconnect with the Big Picture.

Effective time management is about accomplishing what you really want, not accomplishing more. Doing more for more’s sake is a recipe for burnout and an existential crisis. That is why it is absolutely essential to take a step back once a week to ensure your real priorities are front-and-center. Start with the roles you play, making sure to get beyond just your profession/job to include all the parts of your life that make you feel energized and whole. For example, my key roles are: mom, wife, count-on friend/sister, and chief dreamer of GetButtonedUp.com. Once you have listed your roles, ask yourself, “What is important for me to accomplish in this role this week?” The first time you do this, you might be surprised at how lopsided that original laundry list of to-do’s you jotted down was, especially if you work full-time. If you have time to spare, take a moment or two to look at some of the goals you said you wanted to accomplish at the outset of the year. How do they factor in? If you haven’t made any progress, consider adding them in as additional “roles.”

Part Three: Map Out Your Priorities & Set Them in Stone.

Now it’s time to fit the tasks into your schedule. Grab the starred items from your laundry list and the key tasks you identified for each of your roles and starting scheduling time on your calendar to complete them during the week ahead. If you find you don’t have enough hours in the week to do everything (and attend meetings, commute, etc), identify which tasks can be delegated and to whom they can be delegated. In addition, re-evaluate which items have the highest priority and re-organize your time as needed.

Once you are done, take a step back. Have you left enough wiggle room in your schedule for unforeseen emergencies and interruptions? If not, take one more pass at your schedule, eliminating the items that are not absolutely mission-critical. Use the free weekly strategy printable worksheet we’ve created to organize your thoughts.

4 surprising reasons you can’t concentrate (& what to do about it)

Sarah — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 11:33:32 +0000

As organizational experts, we hear it all the time, “I feel like I have A.D.D.”

People who can’t seem to focus on their projects casually dismiss their vulnerability to distraction as a likely chemical imbalance. But that’s not very likely, as statistics have shown that only around 4.4 percent of adults in the U.S. have some form of ADHD. In most cases the answer is a lot simpler than a neuro-biological disorder. Shockingly, the most common cause of an inability to concentrate is deceptively simple—an unhealthy lifestyle.

As it turns out, the advice physicians have giving us all our lives are the very same things that help us concentrate. As Dr. Jerome Schultz, a neuropsychologist on the faculty at Harvard Medical School and author of Nowhere to Hide: Why Kids with ADHD and LD Hate School and What We Can Do About It, stated simply, “The brain is a neurological organism that needs rest, food, water and exercise. to stay healthy and function well. If it doesn’t have one or more of these things, it just can’t work up to capacity.”

While some folks have a genetically, biologically based condition called ADHD, which may be improved by a combination of therapy and medication, everyone can improve their brain function and attention by eating healthier, going to bed early, drinking water, and moving our bodies —all things over which we have control.
The road to a healthy lifestyle is not easy, but there are a few things you can do to get started on your path to better focus and concentration.

5 Strategies for Improving Your Focus

1. Set an alarm that signals that it’s time to head to bed.

If I have an Achilles heel, it is going to bed far, far too late. As a working mom, I frequently “time-shift” my days so that I can be present with my family from 5-8pm. Often my work stretches from 8pm until at least midnight, often later. My husband has the same tendencies. So recently, we’ve been trying a new trick. Instead of setting internal reminders, we picked a reasonable time (10:30pm), set an alarm to that time, and once it goes off, we shut down our computers and hit the hay. {cool iPhone alarm dock via: Cool Material}

I can attest that the ringing of the alarm serves as a tangible, rather loud, reminder for you to drop what you are doing and head to sleep. Just make sure that you actually head to bed when the alarm rings, rather than hitting snooze and continuing to work or watch TV.

2. Plan-out a healthy menu a week at a time.

Rather than planning a meal on an empty stomach, do it a week in advance. Your meals will be healthier, and you can save yourself the headache of meal-planning during a busy weekday. Moreover, you are more likely to stick to your healthy diet plan when it is written down. I have personally made this shift, going from frozen-dinner queen to healthy weeknight chef, so I promise, it can be done. The key is planning.

To help you on your way, download a free weekly menu planning tool from our Free Tools & Downloads section.

3. Cut healthy snacks on Sunday evening.

Preparation is the key to success. When you cut healthy snacks in advance, you gear yourself up for eating those between meals, rather than grabbing the nearest greasy snack food available. Eating healthy snacks will also prevent you from getting too hungry, and overeating later. {image via: six in the northwest}

4. Take a 30-minute walk before or after dinner.

Walking, before a meal not only serves as great exercise, it compels you to eat less and eat healthier. The endorphins released during the walk may even make you happier. If you still need more convincing, this video explaining why 30 minutes of walking is a must-watch.

5. Keep a water bottle at your desk.

The importance of hydration can’t be stressed enough. The body is about 60 percent water and when dehydrated, you don’t have enough to function normally. Water removes toxins from vital organs and without it, you lose concentration, feel tired, and may end up with a painful headache.

If you are easily distracted, what do you think is the cause in your case?

Tool: Free Printable Weekly Strategy Worksheet

Sarah — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 12:35:44 +0000

For the past few years I have been having what I call a “weekly strategy session” with myself. The purpose is to ensure I have considered where big-picture goals and family priorities fit within the week ahead. I usually do them on Sunday evenings after my little ones are tucked in bed with my favorite tunes softly playing in the background.

I’ve typically sketch out my week in a notebook and translate key to-do’s to my Google Calendar. But lately, I’ve been hankering for a printable worksheet that I could start keeping in a binder so that I can track my progress over time. Inspired by a suggestion from a reader who was looking for the same thing, we whipped up this little beauty for you.

In addition to the integration of goals with a weekly planning calendar, it also includes daily tracking for things like exercise and healthy eating. And because the shopping is never done – we’ve included a little tear sheet for that on this form too.

Click Here to Download (PDF)

How to find time to volunteer even if you’re really busy

Sarah — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 13:10:48 +0000

Maybe we’d have fewer incidents like the bus driver abuse we saw last week if more families made volunteering a regular part of their week.

But we know: you’re busy.

And yet, we bet the 64.3 million Americans who rolled up their sleeves last year and volunteered their smarts, brawn, and/or empathy to benefit others in their local, regional or national communities were busy too. The total value of the time they gave: roughly $170 billion. Although that figure is big, and slightly higher than the previous year, it still means that 73.2% of Americans are sitting on the volunteer sidelines. The number one reason given for not volunteering: “I’m too busy.”

Consider this: the absolute busiest segment of the population (working moms) actually has the highest volunteer rate. In fact, statistics from the American Time Use Survey conducted by the US Bureau of Labor show that people with less leisure time actually do more volunteering on the whole. So if you’re already busy – that’s great news – it means you probably are an excellent candidate for volunteer work.

If you do want to volunteer but are struggling to find a way to fit it into your manic days, consider these five tips for organizing your time so that you can give back.

1. Create volunteering benchmarks for yourself.

Intentions without clear milestones usually don’t amount to much. Rather than continuing to live with a fuzzy desire to volunteer more, set clear number for yourself that you can measure and use to hold yourself accountable. For example, you might want to volunteer 1% of your working hours, which equates to roughly 4 days per year if you work full time. Once you decide on a goal, track your progress against it. If you do, we’ll bet you make the shift from want-to-be-volunteer to a card-carrying member of the volunteer tribe.

2. Make a list of volunteer activities that do not require a commitment.

When you find yourself with a free day, volunteer. If you have already researched organizations that can use your help without requiring long commitments or advanced notice, all you have to do is show up.

3. Pre-book volunteer days that correspond with “free” days, like Columbus Day and MLK Day.

You know you, and if you have school-aged children, your kids are going to have those days off. Plan now to volunteer locally on those days, whether it’s lining up a soup kitchen to help out in or

4. Consider micro-volunteering opportunities you can do online.

Sparked.com has created a platform that enables really busy people, like you, to volunteer in a way that fits into busy schedules. Large tasks are broken up into small parts, so you can complete the task in whatever time you have available, often right from your own laptop or smart phone. The tasks are typically small enough to fit into those random moments that are otherwise wasted, like when you’re waiting in line or watching your child’s soccer practice.

5. Ask your company about their volunteer policy.

Many companies do give their employees time to volunteer during the workday. And that’s not just limited to large corporations. At Buttoned Up, even we encourage our team to donate at least one paid day of work per quarter to volunteer efforts. You will never know unless you ask.

How about you – are you a regular volunteer or is it something you wish you could find the time for? Do you find the time to give back even though you are busy? If so, what would you recommend others do?

How to find time to relax in the no-vacation nation

Sarah — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 14:07:18 +0000

The United States has gotten the unfortunate reputation for being the no vacation nation. In fact, according to a 2011 study by Expedia, Americans only get 14 vacation days compared to the international average of 24 days. Worse, we only use 12 of the days we do get, which means we’re one of the most vacation deprived countries, with only Japan and South Korea faring worse. For many the reason to skip vacation is financial, but for a whopping 43%, the reasons is driven more by a fear of how vacations might be perceived or an inability to plan for them.

Pretty depressing.

But it actually becomes alarming when you consider the fact that you are putting your health on the line by skipping them. Research has found that after just three days of vacation, subjects had less physical complaints, slept better and were in an overall better mood than before the vacation. These effects were still present up to five weeks later.

Recognizing that it may be too late to plan for a big vacation, I’ve gone on a search for simple things you can do to give yourself the benefits of taking a break without having to go anywhere or miss any days of work. The key is to organize yourself now so that you actually take these steps and reap real psychological and physical benefits.

1. Make the most of weekends.

View weekends as an opportunity to get in a mini-vacation each week. Before summer truly sets in, make plans to do new things, make small day trips to explore new spots, and otherwise take a mental break.

2. Take a yoga class midweek.

Sometimes just getting out of your regular routine is very therapeutic. It also is an excellent way to prove to yourself that you can make the time to take care of yourself. After all, we’ll bet that hour you took didn’t cut into your productivity at all – if anything, it enhanced it.

3. Unplug at 6pm.

Be honest, what percentage of work emails that you get at night really require an immediate response? By staying plugged in you are at higher risk for the burnout and constantly elevated stress levels that come with being always on. In a nod to the fact that mere mortals have a difficult time switching this off, some companies are even helping their employees take a real break each evening. Volkswagon is actually stopping the email server to its BlackBerry-using employees a half hour after their shift ends, and then turning it back on 30 minutes before work begins the next day, according to the New York Times. {image & fascinating blog post on what it was like to unplug after 6pm for two weeks via: 99% Behance Network}

4. Bookend a weekend when you can.

You don’t have to take ten consecutive days to get the stress-relieving benefits of a vacation. Research shows benefits after only three days off. Look at your schedule for the next ten to twelve weeks of summer and identify one Friday or Monday that you could take off without too much difficulty. Then notify your bosses that you’re going to take it off within the next week. {image via: French by Design}

5. Plan each week on Sunday evenings.

It’s amazing how getting into the habit of organizing yourself for the week ahead will help you find additional hours in the week. Use a form like our free to-do list capture printable to list all the things on your to-do list for the week ahead. Then take the extra step to actually schedule your priorities. When you actually block out the time in your calendar to do the things on your lists, you can plan ahead to minimize distractions like email so you can truly focus on the task at hand (which we estimate cost the average person three hours of productivity a day). Use the found time to relax (see point #2 above).

6. Go to bed 15-30 minutes earlier every weeknight.

Most humans need at least seven hours of sleep a night. Research shows that when you get less than that, it takes a significant toll on your reaction speed, short-term and long-term memory, ability to focus, decision-making capacity, math processing, cognitive speed, and spatial orientation all start to suffer. This summer, turn off the lights 15-30 minutes earlier than you would normally and reap the benefits. {image of cozy bed pillows via: Etsy}

Are you a chronic vacation-skipper? Do you take all of your days off? If not, why not? Do you agree that vacations impact productivity?