Livable Solutions Professional Organizing -- "Ask the Organizer"

Ask The Organizer
January 11, 2009

It is hard for me to believe that I am entering the fifth year of writing this column. Again, I want to thank all of my loyal readers and those who continue to come up to me and tell me how my advice inspires and motivates them. Even after four years, I am humbled by those who find what I have to say so interesting and I am thankful for the opportunity to keep connecting with all of you.

Many of you have probably established your New Year’s resolutions. While you may have had much success in your first weeks, some of you have probably already failed. Just remember, it doesn’t have to be January 1st to justify starting a new habit. January marks National Get Organized Month, and getting organized is among the top ten resolutions each year. I thought, on the anniversary of this column, I would share with you my organizing resolution: To Be On Time.

You may find it ironic that a professional organizer would have a time management issue, especially since I teach workshops on it. But, for those who don’t know me well, I have a confession to make, I am chronically ten minutes late. I am sure some of you can share in this fault. You might find it even more interesting that I failed my resolution on the very first day!

Let me first point out, I hate being late. It causes me stress and to feel unprepared. Not to mention embarrassment (especially because I have an organized reputation to live up to!) Being late can imply disrespect for the person you are meeting, interruptions to the speaker you are going to see, or cause disappointment to others counting on you.

I’d like to think that I am always late because my clocks are set to the wrong time or the fact that I have an hour commute each day and that school bus held me up. But, the truth is that I am not following my own advice.
So, for those of you who share my habit of being late, let’s review how to fix it. First, look at the root of your problem. For me, it is over commitment. I recently conducted a time inventory by looking at my calendar. Almost every day there is not enough time allowed for travel and too many activities with no wiggle room for that extra ten minute phone call before the next appointment. But most importantly, there is not enough down time to recharge. Most small business owners suffer from this dilemma, but there are ways to combat it. The next issue is the fact that I am not a morning person. Getting out of bed is a struggle, especially because have to factor in an hour commute and work late into the evening each night. Getting moving on time is a struggle and an extra five minutes can be multiplied even more if there is traffic. Sound familiar?

Knowing the reasons that cause your tardiness can help you create an action plan. Part of my action plan is to eliminate some of my volunteer activities that require extra work that I don’t have time for. Additionally, the words “No, thank you,” or “I would love to help, but I can’t at this time,” must become part of my regular vocabulary. I challenge you to take a look at what you can eliminate in 2010 that sucks away your precious time and does not honor your daily goals. To combat my desire to stay in my cozy bed, I set two alarms. One is located across the room so I have to get off to turn it off. I have also set a bed time and a consistent wake-up time to train my body to follow a regular schedule. Preparing my lunch the night before and ensuring I have a full tank of gas before I leave the house in the morning are other small ways I can fight the small things that derail me from being on time in the morning.

As you assess your time management issues, continue to think out of the box and accept that some of your regular habits are not going to produce the results you want. I may have failed on the first day, but I succeeded on the second and the third. I always remind my clients that beat themselves up over failed organizational goals that no one is perfect, not even the person who teaches perfectionism. So as you set your resolutions this year, remember it is a process of trial and error. Some changes will be successful, others will be impossible for you to carry out. But, when you find that perfect solution nothing is more rewarding!

Kristin Mastromarino is a professional organizer and owner of Livable Solutions Professional Organizing and The Organized Lifestyle retail store in Guilford, CT. (www.theorganizedlifestylestore.com). You can e-mail her your questions at Kristin@livablesolutions.com.