Getting It Done – Adding Hours To My Day With Organization

A couple years ago, a friend gave me Laura Vanderkam’s 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think. It was like a (needed) slap in the face – I had the time to do the things that are most important to me, I just wasn’t using it well. Now, I’ve identified areas of my life that I can stream line to literally add hours back to the things that are actually important.

I am one of those annoying people who posts pictures on Instagram and Facebook of my meals, meal prep and various crafty projects. It isn’t a bragging thing, I honestly have people ask for recipes and menus (which is why I post them here on the blog). I enjoy sharing and conversations like the one that ensued on a Facebook image I shared lamenting that it was taking me SO LONG to finish the afghan that is part of my 101 in 1001. A much craftier friend commented that she keeps her projects in a bag and brings them in the car – instantly, I thought of all the time that I spend waiting for son at school pick up or my husband when he runs into a store “for a minute”. How much more crocheting time would that give me? Most often, though, my shares generate comments about how my friends would love to do something similar but they just don’t have the time.

[bctt tweet=”Let’s get real for a minute – we ALL have the time, we choose not to use it that way.”]

Now, I’m not saying that I’m the most organized, efficient or productive person around (I’m not). It is simply that in order to stay sane, deal with deployments + TDY, ride my horse, work on my health, run a business, raise a 5 year old, manage a home and not be a hermit – I had to figure out what worked. I made the decision when I decided to go back to work that it wasn’t enough to be making an income, I needed to still be living the life that I wanted, that I designed. It’s taken time, lots of trial and error, plenty of missteps, and is always a work in progress. But my life is infinitely more productive and much more focused on my true priorities – not just today’s to do list. So enough of the why, let’s get to the how.

Meal Planning + Prep

Hands down, meal planning and prep is one of the best things that ever happened to my schedule. I’ve always kind of meal planned – but it was half-hearted, I didn’t stick to the plan, and often lost track of it. Over the last year, I’ve created a routine. I have a couple meals that I make almost every week (pot roast, at least one vegetable based soup, spaghetti). I try 1 new meal each week and rotate through a list of 40 or so tried and true recipes for the rest.

Meal planning creates time in a couple of ways. For one, I’m not scrambling in the afternoon for dinner or suddenly realizing there is nothing convenient for lunch. During my busy days, I don’t have to take the time to make a decision – it saves my mental energy for decisions that really do need to be made. Also, meal planning allows me to take the time on Sundays to do meal prep. I cut up vegetables I’ll need for dinners, put proteins in marinades or seasoning, and make my salad-in-a-jar lunches. What I can do in about 2 concentrated hours on Sunday saves me easily 5+ hours during the week when I need to be most productive. It also helps to ensure that even when I’m busy, I am able to get healthy, home cooked meals on the table for my family – which is a key priority for me.

When I first started meal planning, it almost made the struggle worse. I would stress if my plan didn’t work and worry about not having enough time to cook the meal I’d planned. I just needed to take a deep breath and prioritize. Now, my meal plan is flexible. I plan 6 dinners based on what I expect our family’s schedule to look like – Monday through Thursday are meals that can be made in 30 minutes or made ahead of time because we get home from swim lessons at 6:30. But, those days might get mixed up based on my schedule (or forgetting to take something out of the freezer) or what we’re feeling like eating. It’s not that big of a deal! The best part of meal planning is that it gives me a little room to be flexible because I already have ALL the ingredients to make all 6 of those dinners.

[bctt tweet=”But my life is infinitely more productive and much more focused on my true priorities – not just today’s to do list.”]

Integrated Planner and To Do List

I mentioned above that I’m not a naturally efficient person – I am way too easily sent down a rabbit hole, especially when it comes to creative efforts. I am also *slightly* (can you hear my husband trying not to laugh?) obsessed with planners, calendars and similar office supplies. I have tried every internet based planner software I could find, but I keep coming back to something I can hold my hand. And I’ve found something that works for me. Last year’s Erin Condren planner simply didn’t give me enough room for the variety of things that I’m tracking every day. For 2015, I went with Whitney English’s The Day Designer and it is AH-MAZING!

Beautiful, substantial and well organized, The Day Designer allows me to keep my to do list, my schedule, dinner plans,  notes, and a reminder to be grateful on one page. Perhaps my favorite aspect, though, is the space at the time set aside for my top three “must-dos” to help keep me focused. Whenever I’m at a switching point and turning to a new activity, referring back to my planner/to do list reminds me of those three things that need to get done FIRST. Knowing what needs to get done and getting it done on time plus knowing what can wait is absolutely essential for making more time for the things I WANT to be doing.

2016 Day Designers are going on sale Sept 16! They frequently sell out so snap yours up here!

[bctt tweet=”try #TheDayDesigner for free! bit.ly/1LZpAM7″]

Family Calendar

Aside from planner, my other office supply love is the white board. I have 5 in my office, one on my fridge, one in my son’s play room and I could always use another one or two. Combine a white board and a calendar? I’m a happy camper. But this inexpensive white board calendar (from Target, by the way) is an irreplaceable tool when it comes to getting things gone quickly and easily instead of wasting time on daily to dos. I use a combination of dry and wet erase markers to keep the calendar from getting messy. Every family member’s planned events + the plan for dinner goes on the calendar in wet erase marker (so it won’t get smudged) : school early release, no school days, DONSAs (when the military has a day off), doctor’s appointments, meetings, sports activities, bills due, social functions and generally anything I need to stay peripherally aware of. Quick notes that might change or I just need to remember go on the calender with dry erase markers.

This high level view of our time commitments helps me to avoid those frantic days where I need to clone myself. When I’m doing my meal planning, I can plan for slow cooker meals on days that we’ll be away from the house in the afternoon or home late and quick meals (like spaghetti) on days when I know I’ll  betired from a day of meetings. It also helps me to see when my husband will be busy or away and I might need a lighter schedule to avoid spreading myself too thin.

Home Workouts

This might seem a little obvious and it certainly isn’t right for everyone, but at home workouts like PiYo or Insanity Max:30 give me the flexibility I need to keep my health/fitness the priority it needs to be. While I enjoy the time out of going to a gym, I have so much packed into my day right now that it becomes more of a hassle than anything else. And that means it often doesn’t happen. These workouts give me the challenge I need to meet my fitness goals, the mental and physical boost of a good workout (whenever I need it) and the convenience that is absolutely essential at this stage of my life. It is all about recognized what you need, right now, and setting yourself up for success. Want some company to stay accountable with home workouts? Come join my free challenge group!

[bctt tweet=”Make workouts a priority with #Fit2Ride Challenge group! http://bit.ly/1JZk7XM”]

Gas In The Tank

This one stands out to me right now because it  is one way that I am very different from my husband. During his 2014 deployment, I had to get really organized and efficient – I simply didn’t have a choice if I wanted to get everything done. One routine that I started that turned out to be very impactful was keeping my car’s gas tank at least half full. On Sunday’s when I go grocery shopping or mid-week after school drop off, I fill up my tank if it is anywhere near the half full mark. This means that on those occasions when I am in a hurry or have to suddenly be somewhere or am simply on a schedule, I am not put behind by the need to stop and put gas in the car. More than anything, it reduces stress and the feeling of always being on the run.

Proactive Evenings For A Smooth Morning

My evening routine is probably the single most important factor in the increase in organization and productivity that I made during 2014. We consistently have dinner at 7 (5:30 – 6 pm during the school year) and I only shift this if I absolutely have to. After dinner, we take a walk in good weather or read a book/relax when its raining or super cold. By 7:45, my son in the bathtub and I’m picking out his clothes for the next day. After getting his PJs on, he picks up his room and reads a book or plays with his tablet until lights out at 9:00. Once he’s in bed, I clean up anything left in the kitchen, take out anything needed for the next day (meat from the freezer to the fridge to thaw for example), and during the school year make my son’s lunch for the next day. Typically, from 8 – 10 I’m either working (usually on the lap top from the couch), working out, or crafting. When my husband is home, he watches TV during this time so I’m generally doing whatever it is in the living room. He knows I can’t sit and watch TV for two hours while it’s a key relaxation technique for him  so we’ve learned to spend time together without necessarily doing the same things.

I try to be in bed by 10:30, so the TV generally goes off at 10. I shower, take out clothes for the morning, and then sit down with my Day Designer and a large Post It Note and make my plan for the next day. I choose my top three priorities, remind myself of anything on the schedule and double check the family calendar to make sure I’m not missing something. Then I add anything to the to do list that is on my mind.

Your Thoughts

To some degree, what you need to get things done in a way that doesn’t feel like a chicken with its head cut off will vary depending on your work style. For all of us though, we need to keep track of our obligations, remind ourselves of our priorities,  and make time for the things that nourish us.

How do you make more room in your day to day?