Your Life. Organized.

Quote of the Week: Don't Fear Time

"Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use."

Earl Nightingale
1921-1989, Author

 

 

 

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10 Beautiful & Functional Tools For Your Office

I've been in the organizing industry long enough to remember when there were roughly three options in office accessories: Clear plastic, black plastic and that craaaazy innovative option, SMOKE plastic. Wow!

Thankfully, things have changed and these days you have a lot more options in office tools, which make your office not only functional but attractive as well.  Here are ten of my favorites!

 

Small Accordion File by Semikolon (Pierre Belvedere) in Ciel
This pretty little accordion file is just that -- pretty! No longer are you relegated to the brown kraft paper or clear plastic accordion. I love this particular color, but these also come in Lime, Orange, Pink, Yellow and Plum which are equally beautiful!

 

 

Magtacks by OXO Good Grips.
These are just what they sound like; they're both magnets and tacks and they work with either a pinboard OR a magnet board. Pretty cool. I like them because of their pretty colors and because they stand up off the board tall enough that you can grab them easily. (I don't like those really flat magnets that are hard to remove.)

 

 

Mini Magnet Strips
I tend to go for magnet boards in general over cork boards. It's just a personal preference. I really like these little babies because of their size. At only 14 inches long, they're great in small spaces around your home or office for holding note cards, photos, or documents. You can hang them horizontally or vertically using some Command adhesive strips (or two teeny nails). The magnet board comes with six strong magnets but notice they are the small flat kind, which really bug me. I'd purchase different magnets that are easier to handle or get the OXO MagTacks I listed above.

 

Pandan Storage Box - Small Square - Sage Green by Neatnix
These Pandan boxes are one of my favorites because they look so high end, they're durable and they have a lid, so you can easily hide unsightly piles of paper. Just be sure your piles have a name before they go into the box!

 

Collator by russell+hazel®
Love this! Keep action items, magazines, books, reference manuals, or file folders in this modern, expandable desktop collator for easy access. Or heck, actually use it for collating documents! (what a concept) It folds to almost nothing so you can hang it on the wall when you're not using it too.

 

 

International Arrivals "Drops" Blue File Folders
Oh how lovely a departure from plan manila file folders! International Arrivals has a whole array of fun colors and patterns to choose from to make filing just a tad less boring. You could also designate different patterns to hold differing kinds of information. Business files in funky blue and personal files in gorgeous green!

 

 

Small Sway Trash Can by Umbra
The Umbra Sway Trash Can in brushed nickel is adorable and you don't have to see your trash after you throw it away. At just under 15" tall, it can hide easily under a desk or sneak into a small nook in your office and it's so much better looking than a plain, open-top plastic garbage can.

 

 

Vinea Letter Tray - White
No longer do you have to settle for plain old black plastic letter trays. These Vinea trays are functional and creatively styled for holding all your important papers or action items. Gentlemen, you might get your man card revoked if you're caught with these, though.

 

 

Mesh Magazine Rack
I love using the walls for storage, and this mesh magazine rack is a good-looking way to keep periodicals, magazines and newspapers organized, off your flat surfaces and easily accessible to you or your clients. You could also use this in a child's room or play room for holding favorite books or in your kitchen for your favorite cookbooks or cooking magazines.

 

 

OFC Monitor Riser
I've always loved the idea of raising the monitor and the fact that this riser comes in walnut and mahogany is a bonus. Lifting your monitor keeps your head level, and creates space beneath it to store your keyboard, which makes more work space on your desk. What's not to love?

What are some of your favorite office products that not only work well for you, but look great too?

 

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Quote of the Week: Do Not Brood

"Often we allow ourselves to be upset by small things we should despise and forget. We lose many irreplaceable hours brooding over grievances that, in a year's time, will be forgotten by us and by everybody. No, let us devote our life to worthwhile actions and feelings, to great thoughts, real affections and enduring undertakings."

Andre Maurois
1885-1967, Writer

 

 

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Rules Rule!

Earlier this year, I switched from using a custom-built PC laptop to a 13" MacBook Pro. After fourteen years on a PC, I was truly shocked at how simple the transition was! There's a learning curve as there is with anything new, but I found the switch easy and intuitive and I'm in love with my new machine and how it operates.

One of the things I initially missed about my PC was the ability to use Microsoft Outlook for email and contact management. Outlook is such a wonderfully robust program and it offers tremendous functionality for organizing emails through the use of colored flags, filtering rules, and folders. Transitioning to Apple Mail (it's included with the Apple OSX operating system) was a little frustrating at first, until I discovered how to put rules in place.

I subscribe to several lists and participate in a few listservs for both personal and professional education, and before I implemented my rules, tons of non-important emails were clogging my Apple Mail inbox like crazy. I'd have to sift through a whole lot of email to find the ones that really needed my attention.

Since I created rules, the majority of email I receive is automatically filtered into specific mailboxes and shows as UNREAD until I do something with it, leaving my inbox for truly important communication. I have most of my subscriptions go into a mailbox called Lists, my NAPO professional association email listserv has its own mailbox, and I have rules set up for everything else from my Freecycle list to daily motivational quotes.

I really like the ability to use rules because although the vast majority of my email now gets filtered and relocated, it's not "out of sight, out of mind" because Apple Mail has an unread mail indicator next to each mailbox. You can see at a glance if anything new is in there without opening the folder. Sweet!

Thanks to all the rules I've set up, my inbox stays lean and mean. What are some of your favorite email rules?

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Quote of the Week: Appreciation

"The best way to keep relationships happy, healthy, and supportive can be summed up in one word: appreciation.
What you appreciate, appreciates. When we demonstrate our appreciation for the support we receive from others, it reinforces that behavior and deepens our connection to them."


Marci Shimoff
Author of Love For No Reason

 

 

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Why You Need To Live In The Net

We all have 24 hours in a day and no matter who you are or where you live, you're working on the same timeline as everyone else. It's a whole earth-sun-rotation-thing. So with 24 hours between earthly rotations, you're the boss. You get to choose how you allocate those hours, and the results will show up in your life. Allocate time to exercise and your health will improve. Allocate time to network and your relationships will improve. There is a direct correlation between what you give your time and attention to, and the results that show up.

It stands to reason then, that you can tell how a person is allocating their time if you will begin noticing the way people around you live. I find it fascinating that we're all working within the same time-space framework, yet some people create amazing results while others can barely make it out of bed in the morning.

What's the difference between the person who is calm, focused, and effective and one who is a disorganized, chronically late, express trainwreck to nowhere? Many factors are involved; potentially hundreds of factors play into it, but one important one is understanding the difference between gross time and net time.

Those who live in a constant state of disorganization, lateness and stress don't understand how to schedule their lives and tasks according to the amount of NET time they have available. They don't take into consideration sleep time, meals, dressing, grooming, exercise, and simply getting from one place to another, so they're always late and trying to cram more into a day than is humanly possible. The result is a life lived at breakneck speed, a physical environment that's broken down, and an abundance of stress.

The business of basic LIFE takes time, and one big key to being calm, focused and effective is remembering to schedule your tasks into the NET time leftover after you account for basic life tasks. Don't over-schedule yourself and you'll find that although you may feel that you're doing less, you'll actually be doing everything better, you'll be calmer, and you will have time to take control of your home and office.

 

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Photo by M$$MO

Screw The Joneses

There are several supposed origins of the phrase "Keeping up with the Joneses" and it's rare you meet someone who hasn't said it, or doesn't know its meaning. Since we (blessedly) find ourselves in a new year, along with your resolutions (if you make them) and goals for the year ahead, I invite you to adopt a new theme for the year: SCREW THE JONESES.

Comparing your life to someone else's life is a great way to feel falsely inadequate or falsely superior. Either way it's a big head game because you make assumptions without knowing all the facts.

You might think your friends and neighbors are doing better than you are because of what appear to be obvious outward signs -- a nice home, new cars, beautiful clothes and perhaps a second home or a boat. What you can't see is their crippling debt that keeps them awake at night. What you don't know is they may be just a few paychecks from losing their cars. They've given in to the pressure of looking good and are trying to keep up with the Joneses. As a result, their lives are stressful, despite the outward appearance of success.  

Or, you may look at your neighbors and friends and make an assumption that they're not doing so well. Perhaps they drive older model cars or live in a surprisingly modest home. However, what you don't see is that their cars are paid off, their monthly house payment is small and affordable, and they sleep like babies at night. They've made the choice to ignore societal pressure to keep up and look good and instead have crafted their lives around their values, creating peace of mind and security for themselves.

It's also possible that those who appear wealthy and successful might be, and your friends who look as if they're struggling might be struggling. The point is you just don't know.

The truth is you NEVER know what's going on behind the curtain. Comparing your own life with others is futile and it because it's based on empty assumptions, it offers you nothing productive. So if you want a great "theme" for the coming year, it's Screw The Joneses.

It's time to stop comparing your home, your job, your life, your "success" with the people around you, because there will always be people who have more than you do, and those who have less. Instead of looking at what others have, be thankful for what you have. Focus on YOUR life, your goals, and your dreams. Run your own race, on your own track, at your own pace, and as long as you can sleep at night secure in your choices and hold true to your priorities and values, it's the Joneses who will be green with envy.

Here's to a fantastic 2011!

 

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Photo by TheBusyBrain

Quote of the Week: Do Not Wait

"Do not wait; the time will never be 'just right.' Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along."

Napoleon Hill
1883-1970, Author of Think And Grow Rich 

 

 

 

 

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