Imagine this scenario:

You sit down at your desk, ready for a nice, productive day of work. You need a specific file to get started on a new project. You look around and realize that in all the mess on your desk, you don’t have a clue where you placed the file. You start rummaging, shuffling messy piles from one section of your desk to another. After an hour and a half, you finally find the file. Now you’re upset because you wasted so much time looking for the thing to begin with.

Does this sound familiar?

Getting your desk organized will help you to become more productive, almost overnight. In fact, staying organized can shave minutes, even an hour or more off your day. Your time is precious, so don’t waste any more hunting for what you should be able to automatically lay your hands on. Use this simple 3-step process to organize your desk today:

1. Clear everything off the top of your desk. If you have to, get a box and put everything inside it. Using the one-touch rule (you can only touch everything one time), go through the box and either throw it away, put it in your To Do folder, or file it.

2. Get rid of the extra clutter. Special knick-knacks, like pictures of family members and trinket boxes that your child made you for Christmas are cute little reminders of what you love. However, if these cute little reminders are multiplying overnight and taking over your desk, then it’s time for them to go. Keep only a couple, three at the most, of these special items. Bring the rest of them home, where they belong.

3. Make a tomorrow pile. Now that your desk is clean and free of clutter, choose a certain spot on your desk for your tomorrow pile. This is simply a specific place where you will place unfinished work or things that need to be done on the following day of work.

Posted by Maureen | No Comments »

Procrastination can often grow to monstrous proportions in your life, but sometimes it can be much more subtle too. Perhaps you don’t have huge, messy snarls in all areas of your life due to procrastination, but is it possible that you procrastinate just enough to limit your potential?

If you’ve had some big dreams and goals that you never seem to get around to achieving for any length of time, you may be procrastinating without even realizing it! There’s nothing wrong with putting off your dreams and goals, unless doing so leaves you with a vague sense of dissatisfaction or boredom with your current circumstances.

In order to overcome even subtle levels of procrastination, you’ll need to work on developing a stronger awareness of when and why you’re doing it, and then take action to correct it.

Below you’ll find three easy steps to help you do so:

1. Clarify your goals.

If you’ve never formally identified and clarified your goals, it’s much easier to keep putting them off. Perhaps you think that “someday” you’ll do something to create a more fulfilling life, but you never get around to doing so because the demands from your current life seem more pressing.

When you get very clear about what you want and set goals to make it happen, you suddenly find yourself feeling much more inspired and motivated about taking action! Putting your goals off no longer seems so attractive, and you’re more willing to overcome any tendencies to procrastinate.

2) Be aware of potential problems.

Once you’ve set your goals and you’re excited about achieving them, do what you can to become aware of any temptations you may have to set them aside again. If you normally shy away from challenges, write that down and come up with some possible strategies to build up your courage and determination. If you tend to let the demands of your life take precedence over everything else, make a commitment to keep working on your goals no matter what.

Just by planning and preparing ahead of time for potential problems, you greatly minimize the possibility of getting overwhelmed and giving up.

3) Form a plan of action and begin moving forward.

Finally, once you’ve set your goals and prepared for potential obstacles, there’s nothing left to do but create a plan and begin working it diligently! You may find it helpful to continue to review and evaluate your progress frequently so you don’t slip back into old habits without realizing it. Awareness is power!

Posted by Maureen | No Comments »

Procrastination has been a long- time problem that sometimes can be taken for granted. Studying for an exam the day before can result in low grades and nothing more no egos have been hurt because of it. Starting on a project a week before the deadline promises to be a little challenging and exciting. Sounds a little bit easy right? Nothing deadly?

The truth is, there really is a huge problem with procrastination. Not only do we get low grades, but we lose time, effort and attention because of it. And these are factors that money cant buy.

So how do we prevent procrastination? How do we know if anyone is procrastinating or not?

Here are some telltale signs.

Knowing if anyone is procrastinating and what to do about it:

1) I work better under pressure anyway! To some, this might ring true. So what to do about this? If this is the case, then its better to move your time a little bit forward. Try to set a deadline for yourself. If you have a paper due on a Friday, then just imagine that your paper will be due on Wednesday. That way, you still have enough time.

2) I just dont know how to do it! Dont let this be an excuse to the things that you have to do. Life is all a learning process. If you dont know how to do this, then approach a teacher, a classmate or a friend, and let them teach you how to do this particular job.

3) I still have enough time! On the contrary, you dont have enough time. Time is of the essence and it runs faster than a racecar driver traveling at a fast pace. Before you know it, time has already passed and your paper is already due the next day.

4) I am waiting for the right mood! To some people, they need the right mood to finish what they need to do because it might turn out not as good as they had hoped to be. There is actually no cure for this since the right mood comes at no particular time. But to incur the right mood thats a different story. Watch television, read a book or write do things related to the job that you have to do. That way, the mood might come in a jiffy.

Procrastination is indeed a rampant problem in the society nowadays. But it does have a cure you just need to let yourself be aware of it. And learn how to take charge!

Posted by Maureen | No Comments »