Stack - Find more time: how to get things done at home, organize your life, and feel great about it

Table of Contents

For my Boopers

INTRODUCTION

YOU HAVE A SINK FULL OF DISHES to wash, three loads of laundry to do, seventeen bills to pay, youre not sure how many e-mails to answer, a big stack of novels on the nightstand youd love to read, and zerocount them zero minutes of free time.

Where does the time go? you lament. I just need to find more time!

Suddenly, a time fairy appears, waves her magic wand, and says, Your wish is granted. You now have a thirty-hour day! and then she disappears. At first, youre delighted. But strangely, within three weeks, your list has mysteriously expanded and now your thirty-hour day is just as full. And you still have a pile of projects to start, books to read, places to go, bills to pay, chores to complete, and things to do.

You begin to realize: I will never get it all done. This is the harsh reality of time. There will always be more things to do than time to do them. In fact, you dont need more hours in the dayyou just need different habits. You do have the time; youre just not using it well.

The problem isnt time shortage; its time usage.

My first book, Leave the Office Earlier, focuses on the workplace and teaches professionals how to leave the office on time, every time. But busy professionals said they want more. Great! Ive used your systems to get my work life in order, they told me. Now what about my home life?

So this book picks up where Leave the Office Earlier leaves off. Now that youre more productive during your workday, this complementary book teaches you how to get things done at home, rather than feeling that you never have enough time. You can create a fulfilling, productive life... or just wander through it aimlessly, never quite satisfied with what you accomplish.

I wrote Find More Time for busy men and women who work long and hard on the job (outside or inside the home) and also face kids, chores, and household projects. Using the ideas in this book, professionals will get more done than ever before. Theyll learn ways to free up time for leisure, volunteer work, and plain old quiet time. And theyll learn how to leave work behind at the end of the day.

College students will also be thrilled to have this book, as will moms and dads who work in the home full time. So will single working adults who want time for more leisure activities, CEOs who dont have time for grocery shopping, homebodies who like to garden, parents who cant seem to accomplish anything with the kids around, and parents whose children left long ago but who are busier than ever in retirement. Readers will span generations and cover the gamut of life experience. Regardless of the differences in our ages and situations, the things we have to get done in our personal lives are fairly universal. We all have to eat, have clean clothes to wear, and live in sanitary environments. Handling those tasks efficiently will allow us time for more fulfilling things.

After reading and implementing the concepts in this book, youll feel like youre controlling your life instead of your obligations controlling you. The ideas will help you create and sustain a productive home environment, so youll have more time for enjoyment. Find More Time will also help you organize your space, time, and information to reduce your stress. Youll be able to focus your energies without letting things fall through the cracks.

Youll create a home environment that lets you avoid burnout and keeps you relaxed and having fun. When youre productive, your home and schedule reflects who you are, what you want, and where youre going. By getting things squared up around the house, youll gain time to achieve those loftier dreams and relax into them.

Whether you need help with just a few things or feel like your life runs completely out of control, read this book and learn how to:

Picture your ideal situation and determine where you want your life to go.

Schedule family activities and community work.

Complete those projects youve been thinking about.

Organize your storage areas, kitchen, closets, and kids rooms.

Accomplish your housework and chores more quickly with shortcuts and timesaving techniques.

Eliminate procrastination and multitasking.

Manage paper, mail, personal e-mail, and phone calls.

Find time to invest in your own self-care and leisure.

If youre thinking, Ugh, I work hard all day! Why would I want to be productive at home? I understand your anxiety completely. Its difficult to think about productivity at home, especially in todays do more with less world.

But understand this: Productivity isnt your enemy. Being productive is essential, since the reality is that all of us have so much to doand that isnt changing.

Productivity is not about cramming more into your day. Rather, productivity helps you create more space and time, so you can get to the important things in life. Without it, youll take on too many tasks; have too many late nights and too little sleep; increase your stress level; miss deadlines; and find yourself living in the same cluttered mess you started with.

If you embrace productivity, you can get clear about what you really value; realize your life goals; feel a sense of control; and change your life for the better. Productivity helps you reduce frustration by finding a purpose and direction in your life while adding structure to your day. It allows you to put your head on the pillow every evening with a sense of accomplishment.

Think about how a home in a high flood zone is constructed. It is most likely built on a platform supported by strong pillars or columns. If one or several pillars are weak or missing, the houses stability is threatened. But if the pillars are strong, they can save the home from damage when a hurricane or flood comes through.

In the same way, pillars also support your lifeyour personal house. The strength of your supportive structures determines your ability to perform at your productive best. When one pillar is weak or nonexistent, you feel unstable and your life begins to tilt. If several of your life pillars need repair, you may feel like the walls are collapsing around youor may even feel like you might crash.

But when the pillars are strong, you wont be bothered at all when the floods hit: activities to schedule, meals to cook, laundry to do, and projects to tackle that you hadnt even anticipated. Its vital to discover and strengthen the weak pillars in your life, so you can weather the challenges that come your wayor at least reduce their impact. With proper life supportwith strong pillarsyou can function optimally.

Youre not a house, of course, but a person. So what are these pillars that hold you up? This book identifies eight pillars of personal productivity that support successful lives. Each pillar is a chapter and begins with the letter P.

PILLAR 1: PLANShelps you outline the desired direction for your life based on your ideal vision for yourself.

PILLAR 2: PRIORITIESexplores your life balance and determines where you want to spend your time in support of your plans.

PILLAR 3: PERSONALITYencourages you to look at your behavior, habits, and choicesand then figure out which ones to adjust to support your desired direction in life.

PILLAR 4: PESTSlooks at the termites that eat away at your foundation: the time wasters and robbers that keep you from accomplishing what you set out to do. This could actually be thought of as pest control, the problems you need to eliminate to keep this pillar strong.