Taking a couple of nephews
/home.asp?loc=300austin”>bowling last month cost nearly $100 (they serve dinner at the alley and play the best party music I ever heard at a bowling alley). With the stock market on a roller-coaster everyone is looking for ways to fill free time without breaking the bank. Bowling at 300 is not the way to do that.

Instead, have some family fun, connect with your kids (or some borrowed kids), and do it on the cheap! This weekend plan to play the Wii with the kids, pull out Jenga, or learn how to play little-known and highly entertaining Farkle dice game.

Invite some friends over and turn this good, clean, and often raucous game-playing into a regular event.

The shortcuts and quick keystrokes available on our computers could fill a book. But, who would pick up a book of shortcuts and digest more than a few at a time? Not me! You? For a while I am going to make Tuesday 'Tech Tool Tuesday' and offer some efficient shortcuts for you to try right away. Some will seem glaringly basic to you but to someone who has been doing things the way she's been doing them since she got her first computer some shortcuts will be marvelously helpful. So, skip those you know and try those you don't. Let us know how it goes!

1. When you're reading a web page, the spacebar will scroll down one page or frame.
2. When completing online forms, the spacebar will check and uncheck check-boxes.
3. To create the copyright symbol © type (c) (left paren, c, right paren, spacebar). Some versions of word and excel don't require the space.

For a lively and long lasting activity this weekend, plant a window box – indoors.
Fresh herbs are the most common way to dress a window and have fresh flavors to add to meal preparation. It’s fun to watch small plants, or seeds, flourish and ultimately provide a harvest. The supplies you need are easily purchased at a hardware store or garden center. Here in the Northeast plants are dirt cheap since the growing season is just about complete. The other supplies you need are inexpensive too. Consider reusing or repurposing a bucket, pot, or other container for an interesting option. Beyond that you need some potting soil and that’s it, you’re ready to plant.

Easy-to-grow herbs include basil, parsley, oregano, and mint. The mint might grow wild so I recommend putting it in its own container.

If you’re not used to tending plants, remember to water your new decoration – and occasionally add some fertilizer. (I managed to kill some healthy azaleas by over fertilizing a few years ago – let me (not you) be the one making the mistake by killing with kindness – literally.

If you are procrastinating there are a few steps you can take to get the ball

rolling and to achieve your goals. Here are some of the steps that worked on a recent bout with procrastination of my own.

1. Recognize that you’re procrastinating.
2. Narrow the thing you’re avoiding as much as possible.
3. Prepare as if you’re not putting things off.
4. When you stall, tell someone.
5. Follow their advice.
6. Report back to your someone.

Let me tell you story of my procrastination as it followed these steps.

I recognized that I was procrastinating because my desk is super organized, follow-up to almost everything pending is complete, I keep making trips to the kitchen for a snack, and I was not picking up the phone to find out the information I need (my goal).

I narrowed all the possible things that I was avoiding to one phone call. The goal of that phone call was to uncover the next step that I have to take with Dad’s estate. I know this is the thing that I was avoiding because almost everything else I need to do is done. I was happy to chat with my sister, my business Mastermind group, and almost everyone. I tidied my storage room, my notebooks, my computer, my kitchen (the curse of working at home), and my closet. I’d put getting the answers on the back burner while a presentation deadline loomed even though I might have been able to achieve both deadlines. After the other deadline past I was free to work on the estate question. I put it off for 10 days.

Finally I prepared as if I wasn’t putting off this phone call. I reviewed a teleseminar focused on the topic of the question. I made a list of the 6 specific segments of this question that needed clarification. I was really scared by this because it seemed so obtuse and like asking these questions was going to lead to a multitude of related tasks. I was sitting here with all the documentation in front of me 100% prepared to make the call.

I picked up the phone and dialed… a business friend (notice I justified the call by calling it business). This was a major stall move! After I checked in on an issue she’s wrestled with for the last week I did it. I said, “I need you to hold me accountable to making a call about Dad’s Estate.” And then, the tide turned. By asking LM to hold me accountable I had given myself the push to take the action I’d been avoiding and to make the call. I didn’t want to have to report that I was continuing to procrastinate. I was on my way to actually making the call (though with dread).

I picked up the phone and dialed – the people with the estate answers this time. Whayland said he couldn’t help me. My mind screamed, “Oh no, I knew this was going to be painful.” Wayland transferred me to Chuck. Twenty two minutes later I hung up the phone with my answers, confidence, and elation. It turned out these guys really did have the answers and it wasn’t going to require talking to a half-dozen people. The answers they gave me are manageable. The complexity I anticipated was 50 times what it actually is. And my procrastination is no more.

Of course I called LM immediately and told her the good news.

Now I have new, doable things on my ToDo list and can keep moving forward on Dad’s estate.

What have you been avoiding doing?

Why don’t you identify exactly what you’re avoiding and try telling someone about it. Be brave after you tell them about it and say, “Would you hold me accountable?” Feel free to offer a prize or penalty for yourself (whichever motivates you more). Watch and feel how your mindset changes once you’ve made your issue public. Override the procrastination and get that big thing done!

You’ve probably heard of Lean Manufacturing – a process improvement system at Toyota. Yvette Clay, Certified Professional Organizer at LivingOrder.com wrote this article and it was presented to me by Lorie Marrero former owner of LivingOrder and current creator of The Clutter Diet. I’ve had this article over a year – and the principles have staying power. I think you’ll find value in it.

The other day I was discussing a friend’s workplace with him – he is a machinist at Sanmina.  They are required to follow the 5S (Lean Manufacturing) methodology in keeping their workspaces organized and clean.  A lot of the information below is geared towards manufacturing environments, but the principals it may be used in almost any application.  I found it to be very interesting!

5S (methodology)

5S is a reference to a list of five Japanese words which ’start’ with S. This list is a mnemonic for a methodology that is often incorrectly characterized as “standardized cleanup”, however it is much more than cleanup. 5S is a philosophy and a way of organizing and managing the workspace by eliminating waste.

What is 5S?

The key targets of 5S are workplace morale and efficiency. The assertion of 5S is that by assigning everything a location time is not wasted by looking for things. Additionally, it is quickly obvious when something is missing from its designated location. 5S advocates believe that the benefits of this methodology come from deciding what should be kept, where it should be kept, and how it should be stored. This decision making process should lead to a dialog which can build a clear understanding between employees of how work should be done. It also instills ownership of the process in each employee. As a result, it is often executed in tandem with standard work which standardizes the processes in which the items organized in 5S are used.

The 5S’s are:

Seiri (整理): tidiness, organization. Refers to the practice of sorting through all the tools, materials, etc., in the work area and keeping only essential items. Everything else is stored or discarded. This leads to fewer hazards and less clutter to interfere with productive work.

Seiton (整頓): orderliness. Focuses on the need for an orderly workplace. “Orderly” in this sense means arranging the tools and equipment in an order that promotes work flow. Tools and equipment should be kept where they will be used, and the process should be ordered in a manner that eliminates extra motion.

Seiso (清掃): systemized cleanliness. Indicates the need to keep the workplace clean as well as neat. Cleaning in Japanese companies is a daily activity. At the end of each shift, the work area is cleaned up and everything is restored to its place. The key point is that maintaining cleanliness should be part of the daily work – not an occasional activity initiated when things get too messy.

Seiketsu (清潔): standards. This refers to standardized work practices. It refers to more than standardized cleanliness (otherwise this would mean essentially the same as “systemized cleanliness”). This means operating in a consistent and standardized fashion. Everyone knows exactly what his or her responsibilities are.

Shitsuke (躾): sustaining discipline. Refers to maintaining standards. Once the previous 4S’s have been established they become the new way to operate. Maintain the focus on this new way of operating, and do not allow a gradual decline back to the old ways of operating.

We’ll look into Lean for the Office more in coming months.

The Smead Corporation has developed a ‘must visit’ website for those who want to get more organized. Of course selling their terrific products is the impetus behind the website. And, they’ve put a lot of good information there while they’re at it. (I get nothing from them for saying these nice things.)

My favorite feature is the calculator -  because it makes the downside of disorganization vivid. That makes the upside of organization equally vivid. Try it now. 

Most companies that bring me in justify the cost with a Return on Investment that is less than one month. Often it’s a matter of a couple of weeks. That means the ROI to you learning productivity skills is also high.

You might like the personalized solution that is at My Organiomics. You’re asked a few questions then specific solutions, centered on Smead Products, are offered. Even if you aren’t attracted to some of the Smead products you might get a good idea for how to tweak your own supplies or system.

Look also at the Hot Topics offerings. The articles by Audrey Thomas of OrganizedAudrey.com are particularly well written and focused on the fundamentals. As I always say, doing the fundamentals very well over and over pays big dividends. Ask Tiger Woods or Michael Phelps – they stroke and swing to big payoffs.

In my quest to save trees and a bundle of my time by eliminating Junk Mail (an ongoing quest) I found a new tactic that might help you. Yes, this takes a few minutes. Yes, the payoff will go on for years!

After receiving a flyer for Team in Training from the Leukemia society I called them to stop all future mailing. The customer service rep is amazing – she was conversational and really understood my reasoning. The simple fact that she cared why beyond just checking a box on a screen was impressive.

After ensuring I would not receive future mailings I asked Helen where they got my name and address. She didn’t know but she IM’d her boss to see if he could cross-reference a code on the label to the source. He didn’t answer right away so she took my number and promised to call me back. And, she did! Clearly this is a post about great customer service too. After she called she followed-up with an email. Here is what she wrote:

—-start—-

Dear Susan,
Thank you for calling us today. Your address was supplied to us from a company called “PERFORMANCE BICYCLE CATALOG BUYERS”.

Have a great day,
Helen
LLS Support Services
SupportServices@lls.org

—-end—-

Of course I picked up the phone and called Performance to get my record marked as do not Share, sell, rent, etc. They were responsive so gave acceptable customer service.

Why didn’t I think to ask for the source cross-reference before…?! Better late than never. Hope this helps you too!

Yeah Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.