By Paul Bishop

The alluring clean slate of a new year is once again pending.  With it, however, comes the daunting pressure so many of us place upon ourselves to change our habits, to get ourselves organized, and put into action all of those plans we made for ourselves last year, and the year before, ad infinitum.  Unfortunately, most of these good intentions are bound to failure. 

This discouraging factor can occur for a number of reasons. Often the resolutions we set either ask or expect too much of ourselves.  Other times, we frustrate ourselves by not having a clear idea (beyond wish fulfillment) of how to achieve our organizational resolutions.  Perhaps most importantly, however, we attempt to organize ourselves by fighting against the natural and biological instincts inherent in our individual personalities.

How many of you out there are night owls?  Why would you plan on accomplishing things first thing in the morning simply because “the early bird gets the worm?”  Not only will you not be at your most efficient in the morning, but you will also detract from the energy used to fuel the best part of your day.

How many of you believe a clean desk is the sign of a sick mind?  Why would those of you with your hands raised attempt to exist in a pile-free environment because traditionalists tell you being neat is the only way to be organized.  Oh, the horrible connotations that word must carry on its back!  Many of you are actually already organized, and draw creative energy from your stacks of paper.  

What follows are common organizational tips with added twists to help adapt them to your own style and needs:

Spend Time Planning and Organizing

Who really has time to do this?  Not taking the time to plan can result in disaster, but this doesn’t mean everything has to be written down and planned to the N^th degree.  However, taking a deep breath, a pause to plan and think before plunging in, can save much time down the road.

Organize in a way natural to you.  If you are a visual person, fill your calendar or planning book with color and pictures.  If you need to have things filed away (like me) then get your file draws open, but only do enough filing to make yourself comfortable and then shut the drawer. 

If you get stimulation surrounded by stacks of paperwork, make sure your stacks are ever changing and not simply ornamentation.  Forget all the shoulds and organize in the way you find most comfortable.

Prioritize

An Italian economist is credited with noting 80% of the reward comes from 20% of the effort.  If you can identify and isolate the valuable 20% of your own efforts, you can prioritize and concentrate on those tasks providing the greatest reward.  Use color, numbers, letters — whatever makes the most sense within your personal style to prioritize items and denote deadlines.

Set Goals

This is an old saw.  However, goals are not something of which to be afraid or at which to scoff.  Goals are simply a way to define our direction.  Before you go on a trip, you have to decide where you’re going.  Before you can accomplish anything, you have to decide what you want. 

Setting successful goals means identifying specific, measurable, and realistic objectives.  You need objectives to stretch you, but not break you as you strive for achievement.  Goals can give creative flakes (such as myself) a much needed sense of direction.

Use a To Do List

In the quest to keep our organizational resolutions, even the most Bohemian and eclectic of us can benefit from some fashion of to do list.  Some people run their lives off to do lists constructed either at the end of the previous day or the first thing in the morning.  Some people scribble their to do lists on their calendar or other larger schedule.  Others prefer a constantly evolving to do list worked on the run by adding items on as they pop up and viscously crossing other items out as  drop off. 

Don’t be afraid to try a new system.  Take the plunge, look for a to do list scheme designed to work for you or adapt your current process to a more comfortable level. 

Be Flexible

One of the biggest problems we all face is over-scheduling.  By not allowing time for interruptions and distractions, we constantly find ourselves running behind or feel like a dog chasing its own tail.  Time management experts often suggest planning for only 50% or less of your time. Such an approach will give you the flexibility to handle interruptions and the unplanned emergencies bound to arise.  When you are interrupted, ask the crucial question, “What is the most important thing I can be doing right now?” Sticking by the answer can help get you back on track fast.

Biological Prime Time

What is the time of day when you find yourself hitting your stride?  Consider those hours to be your biological prime time.  Are you a morning person, a night owl, or a late afternoon whiz?  Knowing your personal prime time, and planning to use that time of day to (if possible) pursue your priorities, can kick start you on your way to maintaining your resolutions.

Eliminating the Urgent

Most often, our important tasks are those with long-term implications.  Urgent tasks are generally directed at short-term consequences. Some people live their lives in a constant state of urgency, blithely creating a whirlwind of demanding activity wherever they go.  They thrive living on the edge of panic.  If this is you, your energy may be your edge in life, but an awareness of your natural tendencies can help stop them from becoming a constant negative trait holding you back you from achieving your dreams. 

By curbing our own predisposition to whirlwind activity, or steering clear of those with urgent personalities who want to trample over our personal schedules, we can work toward reducing the urgent things we must do.  This is never easy, but it will give us more time for important priorities.

Intelligent Neglect

Out of habit, we often engage in trivial tasks that suck time out of our schedule.  Is there anything on your to do list that can be handled by someone else such as a co-worker, or even your kids (wow, what a concept!).  By eliminating these tasks, by giving stewardship of them to someone else (and accepting the results), you are free to concentrate on those tasks you alone can achieve.

Conquer Procrastination

The bigger the task, the longer I want to put off doing it.  The thought of writing a whole novel is daunting.  Some days the thought of writing a whole chapter can be just as daunting.  However, if I can break the writing down into smaller and smaller sections, I can somehow get from sentence to sentence to finish a whole project.

By breaking a big task into a series of smaller tasks, or simply setting a timer and working on a big task for fifteen minutes at a time, you’ll eventually reach a point where you can see the finish line ahead.

Learn to Say No

No — a small word with a lot of power.  No may be a small word, but it is also a word that is almost impossible to say.  Blocking out time for important, but unscheduled priorities such as family and friends can help.  Focusing on your goals can also help, but only if you are convinced you and your priorities are important.  Saying no is hard, but once practiced, saying no to the unimportant in life can get easier.

Reward Yourself

Even small successes deserve a celebration.  Promise yourself a reward for task completion or finishing a total job.  A movie, dinner out, a game night at home, anything you enjoy.  A happier, healthier, and more creative lifestyle can be achieved when we balance work and fun.  Use your promised reward as a carrot to get you through your task, and then enjoy your reward by yourself or with family and friends.

This year let’s make a resolution to stop setting ourselves up for failure and seek to find ways to use our strengths to overcome our weaknesses.