Keep things moving

August 22, 2017December 9, 2019 organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Building your personal brand, Business tips, Changing habits, Decision making, Organizational Exercises, Productivity tips for work, Staying focused, Tips for organizing your house, Tips on decluttering, Tips on using a planner Changing habits, Decision making, decluttering your life, getting organized, getting things done, Getting work done, how to get organized, How to stay focused, Organizational Exercises, organizational tips, tips to be more productive

My favorite advice from the list of 100 declutter ideas in the book One Thing at a Time by Cindy Glovinsky was to keep things moving. This can be applied to your house, to your work space, and to how you live your life. Continue reading →

Taking time to ponder

August 20, 2017December 9, 2019 organizationalhabits Building your personal brand, Changing habits, Decision making, Meditation, Organizational Exercises, Productivity tips for work, Staying focused, Working with your guides Changing habits, forming a new habit, getting things done, Getting work done, organizational tips, State of "flow", tips to be more productive, Working with your guides

Do you wake up to an alarm? If you do, you may be missing some of your best thinking time. When an alarm goes off, your mind is jarred and any thoughts are generally lost. If you can get to bed early enough to get a solid night’s sleep without waking up to alarm, it’s fun to let your mind wander before you jump out of bed.

“Theta time” is when you’re kind of groggy but awake. If you can push yourself to stay in bed and float for 10, 20, or even 30 minutes, you might be surprised what you come up with. Continue reading →

Giving in to organization

August 17, 2017December 9, 2019 organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Building your personal brand, Business tips, Changing habits, Organizational Exercises, Setting organizational priorities, Staying focused Changing habits, Decision making, Defining who you are, getting organized, getting things done, Getting work done, Organizational Exercises, organizational tips, Prioritizing tasks, tips to be more productive

If you resist getting organized, feeling like organization might box you in or make you less creative, consider this: Continue reading →

Get out of the briar patch

August 7, 2017December 9, 2019 organizationalhabits Big project ideas, Building your personal brand, Business tips, Changing habits, Decision making, Finding your "why", Organizational Exercises, Planning impacts on your health, Staying focused, Working with your guides Big project ideas, Changing habits, Decision making, Defining who you are, figuring out my life work, getting things done, Getting work done, How to stay focused, organizational tips, Prioritizing tasks, Working with your guides

It’s so important in life to do what you say you’re going to do and to be fully committed. But if you feel your energy drain when you’re in your briar patch or even think about your briar patch, it might be time to get out.

The weird thing about briar patches is they’re not all that easy to get into – whether your briar patch is a job, a house, a relationship. You worked hard to get where you are! And we all like forward motion so the tendency is to keep moving, hoping that things will magically get better. Continue reading →

Tiny bites

August 3, 2017December 9, 2019 organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Big project ideas, Business tips, Changing habits, Decision making, Organizational Exercises, Productivity tips for work, Staying focused Big project ideas, Changing habits, Decision making, decluttering your life, forming a new habit, getting things done, Getting work done, How to stay focused, Organizational Exercises, organizational tips, Tips on decluttering, tips to be more productive, working on big projects

If you get overwhelmed thinking, “I’ve got to declutter this house.” Or “I need to get my life organized.” Or “I need to change a life-long habit.” It’s not a surprise. Taking giant leaps forward is daring and ambitious, but it can also make a project or change seem daunting. And it makes it hard to get started.

Here are two suggestions to help make change happen at a slower pace.

#1 – Break big projects into smaller parts – even tiny parts
One of my nieces has a son who is a really picky eater. Her son decided last week that he was finally going to try rice for dinner. “Yay!” my niece thought, then agonized as her son ate his rice one piece at a time. But there’s a beauty there that maybe kids know better than adults do. He wanted to try rice but he didn’t attempt to eat a whole bowl. He tried one piece. And then another. And then another. Continue reading →

Getting grounded

July 26, 2017December 9, 2019 organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Building your personal brand, Business tips, Changing habits, Organizational Exercises, Productivity tips for work, Staying focused Changing habits, Decision making, decluttering your life, forming a new habit, getting things done, Getting work done, How to stay focused, Organizational Exercises, organizational tips, tips to be more productive

Our forefathers and foremothers – even one generation back – didn’t have nearly as much digital ease as we have. But what they had was a simpler life. When I work at one thing around the house – laundry, weeding, painting – I’m reminded that simpler is sometimes what you need to help clear your mind.

If you want to test the power of a “single focus,” try picturing a column of letters A-E. Now picture a column of numbers 1-5. And finally, picture a column of letters, E-A. No problem, right? Continue reading →

Building a strong core

July 6, 2017December 9, 2019 organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Big project ideas, Building your personal brand, Business tips, Decision making, Organizational Exercises, Productivity tips for work, Setting organizational priorities, Staying focused, Working with your guides Changing habits, Decision making, Defining who you are, getting things done, Getting work done, How to stay focused, Organizational Exercises, organizational tips, Prioritizing tasks, tips to be more productive, Working with your guides

When you’re centered with who you are and how you express yourself, your work and mind are steady. And on the occasions you’re pushed out into a wide arc, having a strong, central core will help keep you from toppling.

What are five elements that are so vital to how you think and act and know yourself, that if any one was missing, you’d be out of sorts and easy to topple? What’s at your core? Continue reading →

Thoughts for grads

June 28, 2017December 9, 2019 organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Big project ideas, Building your personal brand, Business tips, Changing habits, Decision making, Productivity tips for work, Staying focused Big project ideas, Changing habits, Decision making, Getting work done, How to stay focused, organizational tips, tips to be more productive

I gave a talk on Organizational Zen tonight to a college class. The talk got me thinking about things I wish I had known before I entered the business world. Our focus tonight stayed on organizational issues so I’ll share my ideas here about “If I had only known…” Continue reading →

Finding your tribe

June 26, 2017 organizationalhabits Baby steps to start getting organized, Big project ideas, Building your personal brand, Changing habits, Finding your "why", Productivity tips for work, Working with your guides Big project ideas, Changing habits, Decision making, figuring out my life work, forming a new habit, getting things done, Getting work done, How to stay focused, organizational tips, Prioritizing tasks, tips to be more productive, working on big projects, Working with your guides

Yesterday, I drove 4-1/2 hours to Presque Isle, Maine for a one-hour class. Then I drove home again.

Why? Because John Cariani, a Broadway actor and author of the #1 most rented show in 2016, Almost Maine, was teaching a Master Class in writing. I knew I wouldn’t learn a lot in an hour of teaching, but I wanted to make the connection because John is part of the tribe I like to hang with.

One of the best pieces of advice I’ve gotten as an entrepreneur is to find other people who do what you do and figure out a way to hang out with them. If you like someone’s blog, read it, comment on it, and engage with the author at a conversational level. If you want to act, find other actors and figure out a way to hang out with them. If you want to write, join an association of writers or find people in your area who write and ask if they want to get together to talk. Continue reading →