Organized for Life » Featured

Chicken Soup Weather

Martha — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:08:33 +0000

Now that cold weather is upon us, I want to share a family recipe for quick and easy “feel better” chicken soup.

My grandmother, E. Louise Miller, grew up in Pennsylvania Dutch country using homemade egg noodles. This recipe is a dryer, crumbly mix that you add to broth for the desired creamy thickness. [NOTE: Rivels will absorb and expand so start with less than you think you need.]

Rivel Soup

*1 beaten egg

*½ tsp salt

*1 cup flour

* 2 cans chicken broth with 1 tsp chicken bullion granules (or 2-4 cups chicken stock)

Optional: diced cooked chicken, sliced cooked carrots, parsley flakes, pepper

Combine egg, salt and flour until crumbly. Heat stock to boiling, add rivels slowly, stirring constantly.
Reduce heat and summer 15 minutes. Add cooked carrots, diced cooked chicken, parsley, and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

This is a yummy way to use leftover chicken in a homemade soup. Enjoy!

Product Review: Urban Eco Trash Can

Martha — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 15:16:56 +0000

I do not have a good poker face.

So, when I opened my Christmas present from my oldest daughter, I know my face showed exactly what I was thinking. “You’ve got to be kidding! My daughter just gave me a trash can for a present!”

Sarah was quick to say, “I know it’s a trash can, Mom, but I know you of all people will appreciate how it works.”

Once I saw how the molded plastic arms easily store and use plastic grocery bags for quick disposal, I was thrilled and want to share the website where you can get one (or more) for yourself.

This Urban Eco Trash Can comes in either black or lime green.

To store the bags, place handles over the side arms. Then pull up and hook the handles over the inner tab to form a new liner. I love both ease of use and the excellent way to reuse those grocery bags.

Sad to be excited about a trash can, isn’t it? I do love my present, Sarah!

Hope you had a joyous holiday!

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Bull’s-eye or just B.S.?

Martha — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 18:45:09 +0000

“Aim at a high mark and you will hit it. No, not the first time, nor the second, and maybe not the third. But keep on aiming and keep on shooting. Finally you’ll hit the bull’s-eye of success, for only practice will make you perfect.” Annie Oakley

What have you chosen for your target this year? What is the one thing you truly want to see change in your life, your relationships, your work, your service to others?

Sometimes what we say and what we do are two different things.

Instead of giving lip service to a bunch of New Year’s resolutions, why not choose one as your single intention? Fill in the blank: “I purpose to ________________________ as an intentional choice and act of my will.”

Notice a few things about an achievable intention:

Your target is realistic, i.e. it is doable.
There is a way to measure the results to see if you have met your goal.
You set a specific time period for completion.
Your effort will determine of the outcome. Since no one can (or should) control another person’s decisions, don’t count on convincing a friend, partner or child to buy into your intention.

Knowing these four qualifiers, expand your intention into a 2 sentence target complete with measurement and time limit.

These are a couple examples:

“I want to increase my savings so I have 3 months salary in the bank in case I lose my job. I will bank 10% of my weekly earnings for the next 36 weeks. As my reward for spending less, I will use anything I save over my target amount for a vacation next summer.”

“I want my family to eat supper together around the kitchen table again so we have quality time with each other on a regular basis. I will plan and prepare homemade meals for Weds and Sunday evenings for three months, then evaluate and revise my plan if necessary. ”

You can do it! Tell someone your goal so you are accountable. Take small steps consistently. Keep track of your results. Sometimes just writing down your progress (or lack of it) can help you get back on track.

Most importantly set a few intermediate mile stones – weekly or monthly checkpoints. Attach a reward to meeting those requirements. A reward that is too far away looks too small to be a motivator!

A resource I highly recommend for both planning and tracking purposes is a List PlanIt membership! No matter what your goal, you will find practical lists that help you think of details and possibilities you might not have considered. [For the examples above, lists are available for both meal planning and financial planning categories.]

List PlanIt memberships are available in either print or digital formats to suit your preference. Go to Giveaways and tell me the list category that would revolutionize your life for a chance to win a 2012 membership! The winner of this week’s contest will be announced on January 15th.

Good luck and be sure to let me know when your intended change comes to fruition!

Declare War on Time-Consuming Clutter with Action Zones

Martha — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 02:32:10 +0000

Does your struggle to be productive at work and at home feel like waging war with yourself and others?

Perhaps it makes sense to perceive that struggle as a battle ground. You are the commander. You are waging war on several fronts – special projects, ongoing skirmishes, and supply logistics. You have a map of the terrain (the floor plan) and know what your resources are: equipment, personnel, and supply lines.

To win the battle, you must match trained personnel with specialized equipment and ensure that needed supplies are available for immediate use. In other words, you want to have all the components needed to engage the enemy to come together in the same place at the same time.

I’m sure you have decided (as I have) to work on a certain project only to spend 20 minutes or more gathering all the varying pieces of information, supplies, and equipment before you can begin. Whether that is finding your mixing bowl in the kitchen, asking yourself “Where did I put my 3-hole punch this time?”, or just trying to get the kids out the door in the morning, it is time-consuming as well as frustrating!

The answer is to designate action zones.

First make a decision that you are going to start now! The time you spend in planning for efficiency will be returned to you tenfold.
Brainstorm. Ask yourself what activities you actually DO in the room/area you are organizing. Perhaps the question should be – what activities do you ideally want to do there!
Assign specific areas in the room, or zones, to similar activities. Try to limit each room to 2-3 zones. In an office you might have action zones for:
- Communication Central – your desktop and shelf above
- Reference library – bookshelf and file drawer
- Action/Projects – credenza with In/Out boxes and incline sorter for specific activities/projects.
Place equipment and supplies within arm’s reach in the appropriate zone for each activity.
- Filing – extra hanging files, manila file folders, labels
- Enjoying media – TV, Radio/CD player, VCR/DVD player, CD’s, DVD’s, and remotes, of course.
- Paying bills – computer, bills, calculator, check book, stamps, address labels
- Baking – measuring cups and spoons; mixing bowls; baking pans; spices, extracts and leavening agents
- Getting in the car – keys, diaper bag, shoes, coats, hat, gloves & backpacks

Now that you have the stage set for control over each new project, all you need are the trained personnel. Is that you or do you have employees, friends, or children you can delegate the task to?

The beauty of action zones is that whoever is assigned to that battle will have all the tools necessary to succeed! That will save you time in both set- up and in wages paid.

You may find that once you know where everything is to get started quickly, you are raring to take on that project yourself, right now. You are the commander and it is an easy victory!

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Product Review: Packing and Grocery Checklists

Martha — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 12:30:28 +0000

I love these ready-to-use checklist pads! They were perfect giveaways for my Moms Summer Series listeners.

You get 60 sheets that save you little grey cells and loads of time NOT WRITING your list over and over.

These are available at The Container Store for $6.99 each. Buy 2 of each and wrap a set for that friend’s birthday!

All Out Of Checklist Pad

Make your grocery (or take with you on vacation!) list as you go with this pre-made checklist.

Frequent purchases are listed under major shopping categories so you don’t have to write those staples every time.

Magnetized so you can post on your refrigerator and everyone can add to the list.

Pack This! Classic Checklist

Read through the list and mark what you want to pack. Then check off each item as you assemble what you need.

Now you don’t have to rack your brain wondering what you are forgetting! Let the checklist remind you.

Go back to revise your list after each trip until you have it down to a science!

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Getting That Project from To Do to DONE!

Martha — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 14:10:58 +0000

My husband, Jeff, is a Project Management Professional (PMP). He oversees Information Technology (IT) projects for the State of Ohio.

You and I are project managers, too. Without thinking about it, we go through certain steps to make sure something gets done on time. Sometimes we miss a step, the project falters, and we are scrambling to catch up. Perhaps we can learn some tips from the experts.

First, let’s make sure we agree on what a project is. This is the short definition in Project Management for Dummies by Stanley E. Portny, PMP:

A project is a temporary undertaking performed to produce a unique product, service, or result.

In plain English, that means:

A project has a beginning, middle and an end with specific start and end dates.
The result or product is well-defined and measurable.
Resources are necessary to complete the project (ex. people’s time and effort, money).

There are 5 steps that constitute a complete project cycle. Let’s walk through the steps and apply them to a summer project. Say, for example, you want to take a trip to see the Grand Canyon.

Initiating – Starting the project by clarifying needs/desires, expectations, budget, who will be involved.~~ Decide you are actually going to take that trip to Arizona to see the Grand Canyon. Invite
people to go with you, ask what else they want to see. Estimate how much the trip will cost
and whether you can afford it.
Planning – Working out details on what is involved (scope), resources available, timing, and what can go wrong. Decide who will do what and when in order to be done on time.~~Check out airfares to see where and when you will fly out west. Plan how long you will stay based on available resources. Map out what you will see and where you need to book overnight stays. Look at the extended forecast for an idea of what to pack. Think about what could go wrong and plan for contingencies.
Executing – Taking action; work as a team.~~Book flights, rental car, hotel rooms. Have mail and papers held. Pack suitcases, get spending money and meet at the airport at the appropriate date and time. Delegate some tasks to make other traveler(s) feel invested in the process.
Monitoring/Controlling – Tracking performance to stay on time and budget.~~While vacationing according to plan, be flexible to account for unexpected delays or expenses. Adjust your itinerary accordingly to stay within your budget and get to the airport on time to come home.
Closing – Get approval on final results. Do a post-project evaluation to acknowledge what did well, lessons learned on ways to improve.~~Pat yourself on the back for checking that wish off your bucket list! Jot down a few notes on what you will do differently next time.

My Request to You

Take a piece of paper. Identify one project you are thinking of starting or are in the middle of.

Write the 5 steps on your paper. Next to each one, brainstorm what tasks/actions will be needed.
Assign a start and an end date to your project. Then work backward asking yourself, “When will I have to get this particular task done in order to finish my project on time?”

You will be amazed at the solid plan you end up with! Call this your “skeleton” and flesh it out as you walk through each stage. Don’t you love having a plan on paper so you don’t have to waste brain cells rethinking all the time? Now, just do it!

Get There on Time, Never Early!!

Martha — Wed, 25 May 2011 17:16:36 +0000

The latest article from ADDitude Magazine arrived in my email today.

“Always Late? The Professional Organizer’s Tips for Arriving on Time”

is a great article by one of our local NAPO-Ohio organizers, Tiffany deSilva, owner of Order and Balance. Tiffany’s background is in counseling and it shows with her 1-2-3 punch that gets right to the root of our tardiness problem.

Tardy is a nice way of saying LATE!!

In her 7 tips, Tiffany addresses these causes of tardiness – not setting a realistic departure time, not allowing enough time for travel (especially in rush hour traffic!) , an aversion to being early and bored – and more!

Check it out. I know you will find a way to improve your “on time” stats.