How to deal with the stress caused high number of daily tasks?

We are moving. This generates a lot of little tasks - not only packing the whole flat for 5 person. Moving tasks are priority first tasks. But life has to go: I am a freelancer - I cannot stip to work (ok, I can take back a little...), and housework has to be done.

Step 1: Collect your to do-s

I started to list my must do-s into my daily layout. The place wasn't enough (see on the right column).

Step 2: Thematize and prioritise your to do-s

I started to getting desperate, then I took 3 sticky notes, labeled with: work, moving, housework.
I wrote to the top the absolut must do today tasks, and at the bottom, those I should do - very recommended...

Step 3: Organize to do-s

Then I took the slim flag markers, and marked with yellow all tasks need only couple of minutes to accomplish. With pink calls - calls need also only couple of minutes. And what I can see? What is left, is not too much.

Step 4: Make a schedule

Then I scheduled these groups into my day (see on the first picture in the left column). 9-10am: quick work tasks. 10-11am: calls, 11-12: something from work. 12-1pm: lunch break. 1-2pm: something from moving list. 2-3pm: housework. Then I will see, what is left and make a plan for the rest of the day. Now it seems not so scary!

Step 5: Start working

(And not writing blog - it's work hour!)

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"Touch things once" - one of the organization's principle - I'm not agreed!

When you touch something only once, than you don't leave open loops, I understand that. But it can use lot more energy to do this! Let's see some examples.

Image credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/100087993@N03/12473675813

Example 1: Making order

I'm trying to make order in a room. I touch a thing what belongs to the kitchen - I go to the kitchen. I take something to bath, then an other to the living room, than this to the bathroom??? Silly. Isn't easier collect everything not belongs to the room (touched first) finish with the room, and after than touch it again and bring to the other room?

Example 2: Sorting laundry

When I sort laundry I touch things more than once. I have 5-10 categories (I don't know exactly), and when I start to sort, I don't make so much pile. I decide, "I do first light color clothes". I have here "misc" and "T-shirt" categories. That means I do 3 piles: these two, and everything else. I have decide only between these 3, and not 10 (or how much I have :D) Than I load the washing machine, and go an other round with pile 3, and I might take out "dark misc" and "dark T-shirts". And leave all others unsorted. (Rep. from beginning :))

Example 3: Mails

Touch once means: I come home, take out the mails, I toss advertisement in garbage - this is ok. O, here is a bill to pay -let's turn on computer, log in to my bank account, and pay??? No, this is silly. Mostly all of our bills has to be payed in 30 days. That means we can pay once a month, and every bill will be payed before the deadline. We have a drawer for bills, I toss all of them here, and I have a recurring task reminder in my calendar (scheduled for the weekend) - on that day I go through the bills.

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Using stickers for planning, not for decorating

I love to spend lot of time with my planner, but what is too much, is too much. I'm always searching for solutions to automate things, or making it simpler.

Where and for what do I use stickers in my planner?

1. Monthly spread - recurring events
I have lot of thing what don't need to write, but it is good to remind me. I know, that I bring my smallest daughter to Hungarian School every Wednesday. I know, when to leave, when it is. But I have the sticker here, because when I make an appointment with someone, I might forget it.

2. Monthly spread - events, color coded, with icons
I just started to make my own stickers with my new Silhouette Portrait. I've chosen for all family member a color.

This way the sticker tells me without writing: who and where, and I have to write only the when. It spares me a lot of time and space.

3. Monthly spread - events, without icons
I don't have icon for any possible events, so I made a lot circle stickers too.

4. Recurring tasks not to forget
Like give pocket money to kids every first day of the month's.

5. Daily schedule - event sticker without icons
I love how the circle sticker pops out! More and more than only writing in, even if it is written with color.

6. Daily schedule - color coded with icons
There are events, what not influence my schedule, but I have to know, like one of my bigger daughter has an appointment. I place the sticker reminders on the right side of my schedule. Didn't found now one quick, but you can see above, how I placed such an event on my schedule.

7. Index page - type of the event

I try to write every important stuff, what I might have to remember later, when that happened. Here I have a different logic with the color coding. I have for all family members a separate sheet, and color codes mean different segment of life (like green is health, yellow is fun, etc.) This way is quick to find: when was my daughter last time by dentist? I don't need to read for that, only search the teeth icon.

This post is part of the planner experience link up party:

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The "Next Week" flyleaf

I have this flyleaf already for months ago in planner. It helps me in weekly planning. This is a laminated piece of paper, where I wrote with pen - Frixion users, attention: never write on a piece of paper you want laminate!!! I didn't wanted to spend too much time to designing an insert for this.

What all function the next week flyleaf has?

1. Keeping the weekly review checklist
Everything I have to do on my weekly review is listed here. I can use whiteboard marker to check the points off.

2. A list about our weekly routine

I didn't wrote this on the paper, because it can be change. It's on a post it note. As you can see some stuff is already added to it. Having the family routine by hand by weekly planning is very useful, I don't have think too much, what everything we have, only write them in. The are also recurring appointments and also tasks I have to do on a specific day on the week. 

3. Place for next week's tasks

Sometimes come something into my mind, and I don't want to add to my actual weekly tasks, because I have enough. I also don't want to write to my next week planning page, because I might use a different format (as before I tried so much options, or I just don't want to make it disorganized. I just jot it done here, and I can add to week, when I make the weekly planning. Sometimes works this post it as a master to do list, when I don't write next week something to my tasks, I just leave it here for later. While I have a page marker on the top, I can reach this place very quickly.

4. Pending items

On the back I keep waiting on stuff on post it's. I review them weekly, if it's finished, or have I something to do with that thing. I have also a don't forget post it here just in case :)

What do you think about this useful tool? Would you use something similar? If yes, what elements would you take?

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask in comment! Share your experiments in our Facebook group, and get more help!  

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What to do, if you didn't planned correctly and your plan is crashed?

Nothing serious: no accident, no new stuff, only not enough thinking, that happened with me yesterday. Very carefully written plan, which was wrong. Why? I planned a task for next Monday. But this task was a precondition for a task I planned for yesterday, what have a deadline for tomorrow. How silly. And? What can I do? Reschedule! Put off everything else and make the task planned for Monday, and what a task? A big one, of course.

This is how my yesterday turned out, a lot of tasks unfinished.

This was my original plan for today:

I took two post it notes to write a new list with the tasks I thought this morning I want to finish today. I don't care about the other things written originally here. If I'm done with the post its, I can move on to this.

I have no idea, what I will finish today, so I didn't wanted to schedule the unfinished tasks from yesterday (but I wanted to clean up that page), so I wrote everything only on an other post it. When I make my daily review tomorrow morning, I will decide, what I want to do. I will move that post it until I have on that any task.

Let's go back to my list on the two little post its! :)

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What I learned/found this week? Week 22

You don't want something to do? The hardest part to start and the task is not so hard as you thought before. - http://timemanagementninja.com/2015/05/4-tips-on-doing-what-you-dont-want-to-do/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TimeManagementNinja+%28Time+Management+Ninja%29

Create storage for your Filofax from Project Life pockets! - http://happie-scrappie.blogspot.ch/2015/05/planners-from-project-life-pockets-to.html

What you have to know about planner fanatics - http://www.justhappy.me/?p=406

Break the rules! - http://homemakersdaily.com/planner-use-its-okay-to-break-the-rules/

If you decided to start a new habit, write the action in your planner as an appointment! http://zenhabits.net/determined/

The organizer blogger are unorganized! http://www.giftieetcetera.com/2015/05/how-to-become-organizing-blogger.html
O, how real! I think if you write stuff in the blog, it helps to make it clear in your mind, and simpler to make and not break (of course you will break, but not so much as you wouldn't blog...)

Schedule time in your day to deal with your "mosquitos". http://quovadisblog.com/2015/05/time-management-monday-dealing-with-mosquitoes/

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Inbox - in the planner???

What is an inbox?

The idea comes from the GTD system, in there you have to collect all the stuff you need to deal with - no matter it it trash, task, todo, or info material. Inbox (for me) is a place, where thing that has to be handle lands before I find it's place. What I mean about this "things"?

• receipts
• letters from school, maybe with events, or only with infos
• notes written by me (someone else)
• tickets
• emails printed out
• shopping list on a post it
• etc

Where is the inbox, and how it looks like?

My inbox was for the first time only a pocket after the dashboard in my main planner. The pocket is very useful, because not every piece of paper can be punched. If you have no time/opportunity to punch the paper, or you don't want now to deal with it, place into the pocket.

After that I read in a blog (sorry, I don't remember any more) that she has some notepaper at the beginning of the planner to write notes quick down. And this is also an inbox. You write here your ideas, a todo list, or shopping list. And you will remove this note paper later, where it belongs in your planner!

More than one inbox? Oh, yes, I have more. As I decided to remove my calendar from my main planner to be simpler to carry on, when I'm out of home, I might write something in that smaller planner. That's why, that planner is an inbox too.

The inbox extensions

We have a chalkboard in the kitchen, there can all family members write what we have to thinking on. Mostly what to buy. If I'm cooking, I don't want to take my Filofax, I write on the board quick. When the board is full, I write everything to my planner on the right place.

My phone: if I'm driving I can make audio notes with a voice recorder in my phone (I have to remember - how hard it is!!!)

Why should you have an inbox?

Simplifies your life, minimize the distraction. If you have an inbox, that gives you the opportunity stay in your task on you are working, and leave you to decide later, what to do with that info. In my daily routine I have a task, called "clean up inbox". Every morning I'm looking through, what I have here, and I put away. Do your tasks, when you have time for it! Imagine a situation (happens with me often): I'm working on my computer. My daughter comes home, and gives me a letter from the school with lot of events for the whole quarter. Yes, I could punch it at the moment, and starting write the appointments into your calendar, but it makes no sense, remember: I'm working on something! It can also happen, that you don't know yet, where you should place that piece of paper, take your time to find the best for it. Or you are away from home, get a receipt. It is going to the inbox. At home you can put away, where you have your receipts.

Good luck! Later I will come back with a tutorial, how to create your own inbox pocket, because I don't like mine, I will do a new one :)

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Where do I find my inspirations for planning?

Flylady

Flylady is a home care program, you can subscribe it, and get starting to build out your system. What I learned from that: 

• having routines
• plan for cleaning
• you can do any not-liked-activities for 15 minutes - use your clock
• you made your chaos over a long period, you can't remove that in a day, take your time
• hot spot - work on them every day

GTD

Or Getting Things Done by David Allen. It is a book what I didn't read (yet), a system for completing your tasks. I read about it on the internet. Main things (it can be inexact):

• get all todos in one place, called inbox
• than sort out where they belongs (something I remember: by computer, calls, maybe/later)
• you have to write micro actions what can be done (like call xy instead of organize a meeting) - they are doable steps, which help to accomplish the tasks. Called next action. (that would be for me not working, I have for one day maybe 50 things, what I'm doing, that would be a chaos)
• review your progress monthly, weekly, daily basis

What I use from that:

• inbox
• reviews

43folders

Find the homepage here. But better google it, what it is exactly. It is builded to working on GTD. Core of the system:

• you have 43 folders
• 12 for each month
• 31 for days
• actual month is on the front, with actual day
• when you clean up your inbox, you place the thing you have to working on to the day, when it is actual - if it is in the current month, or to the month if it is the upcoming.
• at the morning you take out the folder of the day, and working on the things, they are in. the folder of the day at the evening goes to the next month folder. 
• at the end of the month the month folder goes to the end.

I simplified this to my 17 dividers system, working with month end weeks.

Internet

I also browse a lot on the internet and read about time management, work efficacy, etc.

Videos on Youtube.

Blogs, what you should have to follow:

http://www.giftieetcetera.com/

http://homemakersdaily.com/

http://philofaxy.blogspot.ch/

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New daily planner insert and free post it template download

I didn't found the perfect time management system for myself, I'm always working on it. On my goals list is one goal: more balance between family and work, now I'm trying to thinking in time blocks. Working from home is not simple, if you (and your family) cannot separate the two things. So I created a new insert for myself, where I can better blocking the different activities.

This is for today:

How it works:

 As you can see it is not perfect yet, I have 7 tasks for top 5, I have to correct it. And I got the idea too, that I will add glasses but not horizontally as usual but near to the hours.

Free printable: post it template

I share with you the post it template, what I'm using now on my daily page.

Click on the picture to download it. Please write me, if you have problem with download, this is my very first Dropbox upload!

And please share me, how do you use it! I'm also happy for sharing your pictures here in the blog (send me to: zsuzsa@softrainbow.ch).

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The important informations find you

I'm wondering how weird is the life. I suffered the last time from the chaos of my life. No wonder, that I started this blog! I'm learning about planning, time management, work efficacy since little more than one year and I practise to use planner. It is more better, but I'm not satisfied with my life.

I started to thinking

What is not good in my life?
What I'm realized:

• It is too much stuff in our flat.
• Our place is extremely unorganized.
• I have a lot of not finished tasks.
• I'm stressed.
• I have problems with my back, and I have often headache.
• I have no patience for my family.
• I have to change my life now. 

What should I do? I decided to start a "declutter" project and bringing more balance into my life.

• My work is more a hobby as a financial source, so I will pay less attention for it until I didn't brought my life back to normal shape. I will concentrate to make my life healthier. I will work too, if I have time and will for it.
• Make a list about what is important in my life. 
• Set up a goal list for this year.
• Step by step sort out everything in our flat.
• Make a todo list for home and work with every unfinished projects.
• I'm trying not to start new projects. 
• Learn more about decluttering, time management.
• More exercises: swimming, walking, yoga, pilates, every day.

The life pulls back

I started the life-changing project, but it is going very hard, because I fell into a situation, when I have to make a big project very quick. So little steps and very few planning, not like I wanted. But I see the end already! I have to knit a lot for this project, and I came to the idea: I could learn from audio books in this time!

And the funny thing: you find what you need

I started to check my Amazon book wish list, what is available also as an audiobook? At the same time someone mentioned in the Giftie Etcetera Facebook group the book "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying: A simple, effective way to banish clutter forever". I started to read it. It is about how to declutter your home. Exactly what I wanted to do.
Than as I browsed on the Audible, I found the "Happiness project", what I can read with my ears... It is about that the writer is not unhappy, but even she is not happy but want to be, so she starts this happiness project. Some elements are the same, what I plan: make your life clutter free, and get better relationship with your family. I'm in chapter 4 maybe and I sometimes no mood to hearing it, it gives me too much to thinking about.
So yesterday I went back to my "Watch later" Youtube list, full with planner videos. I love to look them, even if they are sometimes boring, because I heard the same things 1000 times before, but I always learn something new or get a new idea. And on a list was a video about the 7 minutes life daily planner. It looked very interesting, a little bit other as usual, so I searched what it is? I found the homepage and started to read about the system. Downloaded every free material, read it through, and I'm watching the related videos on Youtube. (I'm created a list with them.) This is a time management system. What is all about? Find out what is important in your life. Create goals (for 90 days). Make doable actions from them. Plan it, do it.
3 so different things. Tidying. Happiness. Time management. But for me, now is this the same thing. Take a look on my list, what I planned for the rest of the year. And take a look what the books are saying I have find. I knew the solutions before! These books strengthen me only on that, that I'm on the right way.

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5 tips for using color coding in your planner

Why should you use color coding? You can tell me "don't make my life complicated, I don't want to have lot of color pens..."

It is difficult! 

I was looking for a daily page, where I used color coding for different tasks, but I didn't found any. It is, because, I use that page the whole day, in different places in my flat, and away from home also. I am a very unorganized person, and I'm tending to create lot of categories, and I'm happy, if I have only one pen with me, not all colors I should need! So, I write here with the pen, what I find. But today, I found the solution!

Tip 1: use color coding after listing!

As usual, write the tasks (or anything) only with that color, that you have by hand, and if you are on the right place at your desk, with all of your staff, make the color coding! I have done it with my Frixion colors markers. I am using purple for work, blue for myself, orange for family.

Tip 2: use marker dots!

As I don't want bring all my pens with me, when I left home, I have in my compact size on-the-go Filofax only one black pen, and marker dots (like these), I write in black, and add colored dots to different things. Because it is only calendar, I mark: who is involved, if it is home or not, and info is only an opportunity - if we should go somewhere. Red dot's means that someone, including me has to go away from home. I write the first letter of the person on the dot. Yellow is, if I have to know about kids things - they are going somewhere, but without me. It can be a school thing, when I have to check, what they have to bring with them, but I'm free at this time. Blue is info - tomorrow will be flea market in the city, what we love, I have all occasion in my planner. Green is, when something happens at home.

Tip 3: classic color coding with color pens

Calendar is filled out mostly by my desk, so I had no problem to use my colored pens, as you can see here. And not everyone is like me, and you should work always at your desk, and have any pens with you. Think about it, what categories make sense for you.

Tip 4: use colored markers for blocking out your time 

For me this is the most important, I'm a very visual person, if I schedule my day this way, it is very simple to see, how much time I have for different things. It can help also keep your life in balance too! My colors for here: green for away from home, scheduled also travelling time, pink and purple for work, blue for myself, orange for family and house work.

Tip 5: color coding for project categories

Lot of people has different sections for projects of different areas of their life, as family, house, kids, work, etc. I want see all my projects together, so I'm using flags in different colors to mark them.

and project planning with flags

Big part of my work designing knitting patterns. The whole process is always the same: knitting, writing, testing, releasing. The colors are designated for this steps. I write the name of the pattern on these four colors, and use them to schedule my work on this.

Good luck to find the best way for you (also it is not using any color coding :)). I would be appreciate any feedback, even better wit a picture, if you make some change inspired by this post!

Do not hesitate to ask, if you have a question for me, or a suggestion, what you want from me to write next time!

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7 ways to overcome the feeling of being overwhelmed

I have ADD (attention disorder). One symptomes of that, that I need always something new. Doing the things the same way is depressing. I have good days, and bad days, when I can't concentrating and focusing on my tasks. There are so many methods you can use to schedule and do your things. I have favorites of course, but sometimes they don't works!

The ideal planning method

To know, what you have to do, schedule and do it simple. For that I use Monthly-Weekly-Daily planner pages.

But if I'm feeling overwhelmed

I might not doing anything, because I can't choose. Or I choose wrong, and do not-so-important thing and forget to check my planner page and leave out really urgent and important tasks. What can I do in this case?

1. Marking tasks "MUST DO". Starting with this. I can use highlighter.
   
   

   

   I used here highlighter for the most important things

   Or I take a little post it, and copy this task on here.
   

   

   MUST DO-s on post it

   
   It's on my mood. If I'm done with them, I can decide to give up for today, and make something for me. Or it can happened, that I don't feel myself overwhelmed any more and I can continue with other tasks because the stress decreased by finishing the MUST DO-s.
   
2. I choose tasks can make in some minutes. I do them first. Maybe after turns out that my todo list is not so much as I thought.
   

   

   A weekly task list. I marked some with point

3. I decide to make me today free. I'm working on one thing I make with pleasure. 
4. I start on the top of my todo list and I don't care about how much I achieve.
5. Pick 3 method: I take a post it and I write 3 tasks on it. If I'm done with it, I give myself a reward: I can knit some rows, or something else. Than I pick 3 new tasks. 
6. I decide don't care about my todo list. I pick one big thing, and work the whole day only on that. I don't know how other people are with this, but for me doing a lot little tasks takes more-more energy as to working hard on only one thing. I will do the little things tomorrow, if I'm in better form.
7. I use my clock. I say myself: I will work on this important task for a half our. Than I can do what I would like for the next half hour. Of course you can choose other time limits too :) The thing is: working only a short time on something is not too painful as to know: I have to finish this huge and frightened thing.

Has you any other idea? Do not hesitate to write in comment!

Happy planning!

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Simplify! 4 tips for using flags in your planner

Flags are fun and useful tools in planning.
I have my flags from Sigel. Flags are very eye-catching, and most important: removable, thats why reusable. Why would you write things again and again? Why would you waste paper to re-plan something, if you need it? Use flags, if you have to do the same things more time, if you need something to outstand or if the schedule can change.

1. Things that I have to do often - I keep them on my dashboard. What I'm using often: laundry. My washing machine is in the basement, and I can so quickly forgot, that I started it... Flag comes to my daily page. It has a bright color, won't be hide between other to do-s!

2. Things I have to do again and again - Hair dyeing is every 4 weeks. If I done, I replace my flag for 4 weeks later.

3. To wait. I started a task, but I'm waiting someone else. Here: I wrote an e-mail, I wrote on the flag also, when. It is shifted all days, and if I don't get an answer in an appropriate time, I can ask after.

4. Planning. In an ideal life I would do things in that time as I planned for the first time. But the real life works other. Here you can see my planning for the year, for different topics, as knitting, pattern writing, etc. Flags give me the chance for re-plan.

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3 tips for how to make sure you complete "Important but not Urgent" tasks

Choosing the right task what you do now (or decide, when) is the most hard part of planning. Take a look on this diagram:

1. Important and urgent: it is very simple. You must do. Now. No question. There was an accident, someone got hurt: you has to bring in hospital. Not tomorrow, now. This is an urgency case. But other things can be falling in this category if you don't plan carefully. Making not important thing and procrastinating important things for the last minute can cause big stress. The goal should be to avoid this situation! How? To plan carefully the important, but not (yet?) urgent tasks.
2. Important but not urgent: this tasks tend to be always postponing. Why? Because that had maybe no deadline, or it is somewhen in the future. We can find other most interesting things to do and thinking, that we don't have to work on this task now.
3. Urgent but not important
4. Not important, nor urgent tasks

About this two category will I write in an other post.

3 tips to avoid the stress caused by not urgent but important tasks waiting to do

1. For little task, dedicate a project, named "procrastination list". Find a time frame for this project every week. Plan an hour or how much you would like to working on this list. Keep the list by hand, and write everything here what falls in your mind. If the times come, do not care about any other thing! Even not your urgent tasks. Pick any task from the list and start doing. If the time is over, stop. List goes to rest until the next week.
2. If the things are long term projects, you can schedule for each of them a day. Decide, how long you will be working on that project, and do this! Very important to make good notes and task list, not to forget what you started. To make more clear, on what I'm thinking, my "Task of the Day" are: working on my homepage, bookkeeping, dyeing yarn.
   
   
   
3. Use markers every time you reschedule a task. First one point, second two points (or what you like), if you reach 5: make a decision. Do it now. Or cancel. Or find someone who can do it. Of course it makes no sense to plan a task, if you are not able to do it on that day. 

I wish you more success to finishing every important tasks!

Happy planning!

Zsuzsa

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