Procrastinate for Australia

Last night as I brushed my teeth, I glanced over at my shower caddy and thought, just as I had every night for the last 6 months, that it was looking a bit shoddy. 

I made a promise to myself (for the hundredth time) to buy a new one. 

But I know I probably won't get around to it. There will be some excuse - I'm never at the shops, I don't have the money to spare this month, I can't find one I like...

Yet even when all excuses are rendered invalid I still won't buy one. Know how I know? Because two weeks ago I was standing in the $2 store looking at the same shower caddy that I have, had money in my pocket and still didn't buy it. I can't even remember the excuse I gave myself. Probably that I was in a hurry or something equally idiotic. 

I am a world-class procrastinator. I could procrastinate for Australia. Doesn't matter what it is; housework or bill-paying or present-buying, I will usually find a way to put it off in favour of something else. Sometimes for no logical reason!

As you can imagine, this impacts my life in ways that cause me stress later. I need to take a leaf out of Nike's book sometimes and just freaking do it. 

After the frenzy of Getting Things Done, I will give myself a pat on the back and them go back to being the Great Put-Offerer that I am. 

Do you procrastinate? How do you break the habit?

How Twitter Lists Have Changed My Life

It's a big call, but I'm making it. Twitter lists have changed my life by making my social media time more efficient and interesting. 

I did not expect this small change to have such a positive effect on my life. Sure, I'd made lists before, but it was not until Sochi that I realized how darn useful they could be. Once set up with the right people (mainly sports journos); with the tap of a button I could filter my massive twitter feed with just the Winter Olympics news I wanted. 

After a blog chat a few months ago, I decided to focus on sharing fellow blogger's content from within my niche. I hoped my followers would like the improved content curation of my twitter feed. So I created a new list just made up of bloggers.  First thing in the morning I can check my list and see that morning's blog posts being flogged and any other interesting updates- all without the background noise and unending scrolling required when viewing everyone I follow. 

I save oodles of time and I also now get to see more of what each person is sharing throughout the day when I'm at work, because it's also the first thing I check when I get on the train to head home. If I only have a short amount of time I also have an "Essential reads" list of people/news outlets that gives me a quick snapshot of what's happening at any given time. 

I also now am able to read what my overseas tweeps are posting when I'm asleep, through my UK people list. Previously I would only have the patience to scroll back an hour or two in the mornings, but now I see most of what has been happening overnight. 

Yes, I do still read my whole feed - but only small chunks at a time. Lists have given me a more comprehensive view of what the people I follow are posting, and it's totally customizable for my needs. By creating lists of twitter accounts based on type of content (eg bloggers) or geographic location (another hemisphere) I save time and get to see a lot more varied tweets. 

Do you use twitter lists? What for? Do they save you time and trouble?

Finding Time, Making Time

I was talking to my workmate the other day about weeknight cooking. She pointed out that it eats up a lot of our 4 hours a day of spare time. 

Hang on, 4 hours? I mentally did the maths. Yes, it was true. We both work 8 hour days with 2 hours of commuting. Home at 6pm, bed at 10pm-ish. Up at 7am to face the new day. 

In those precious 4 hours, we have to cook, clean, shower and then with what time is left over - relax a little. 

I usually use my "relax" time to watch my tv shows, peruse social media and read blogs. 

So now I'm wondering if there are changes I can make to positively and more constructively use my time.

Perhaps I could go to bed later, or get up earlier? Do I really need 9 hours of sleep a night? I probably should be exercising at some point!

Should I use my commute time for more writing, instead of reading?

Should I bulk cook meals on the weekend to cut down on prep time in the week?

All of these are options. But at the end of the day, the decisions I make about how I spend my time will be based on my priorities - what I want to do! If I want to spend more time reading books or blogs, I will make the time. I'll borrow it from the precious minutes I was spending doing something else. If I want to spend more time with my partner, perhaps I'll reduce my social media time. 

I believe that complaining you can't find time to do the things you like is useless. Because if something is important, invariably you'll MAKE the time. I just need to decide what is a priority to me!

What do you always make time for in your day?

Getting Myself Together

Lately I've identified that a lot of my stress both at home and at work come from feeling so many things are OUT OF MY CONTROL. I feel lost and helpless sometimes.

At work, I have been trying to start each day with a plan, because focusing on executing said plan does actually help to get stuff done. It also helps me realise that some stuff IS not able to be controlled or influenced by me, and thus I need to just let it go.

Which leads me to my next problem - home-related stress. I need to Get It Together, gurl.

I'm not sure when I started watching Filofax decoration vids on YouTube, but somehow I discovered this whole personal organiser subculture and kind of fell into it. I became convinced that somehow, a physical, paper, hard copy organiser would help me gain some control of my domestic life, where other digital options had failed. Yes, I've tried Evernote. I do use my iPhone calendar, but only because I have a memory like a sieve.

So, I ordered one of the cheaper Filofaxes, the Domino. In pink. Hey, it was half price and it's pretty. So now I'm waiting for it to arrive, and planning how I'm going to decorate it (of course).

I'll let you know if it changes my life.

Meanwhile, here is my fave Filofax YouTuber's channel, mits t. I like her stuff.

Are you, or WERE you, a personal organiser fan?

Errand day - supported by modern tech

Yesterday I had a rostered day off. This meant I was keen to get a lot of stuff done that needs to be taken care of in business hours. I'm not sure if you get this from my online presence - but I'm a pretty disorganised person. I struggle to do things like pay bills on time, get the right groceries or know what is for dinner.

I've been combating this general lack of organisational savvy in recent years one problem at a time. I've set up regular bill payments and direct debited as much as I can. I order groceries online, and yes actually use a LIST, and use a weekly meal plan.

One thing I didn't anticipate was that my iphone would also help. In between apps like Google maps, my bank, Reminders, Notes and Evernote I have no excuse for forgetting things any more. That is, if I remember to put it in there...

So yesterday I used Evernote to keep a list of the things I needed to get done.

No, I'm not commenting on why I needed to go to the gunsmith! I then set reminders in my Calendar to have alerts pop up when it was time for my appointments. In Evernote you can do this just by clicking the link in the time!

I even had a list ready for the library - since seeing a segment on Sunrise about "chook lit" I've been interested in sampling the genre.

After going to the doctors, I had to go to Pathology to have a whooping cough test (joy). Used Google maps to find the place.

And lastly, on a whim I cancelled my haircut and allowed the hubby to whisk me away to the movies - using Safari to check the times first as I didn't have an app for that particular chain.

Knowing that I had a list of absolutely everything, and even reminders buzzing to let me know when I had to be someplace was extremely comforting. Even though I had a day full of errands, I was more relaxed.

Here is a great post on how to get more out of Evernote from crashtestmummy. I really want to use it more dynamically in future. I especially have to get used to tagging notes.

Here is the link to the Sunrise segment on chook lit that I saw with Fiona Palmer.

What apps or organisational tools are making your life easier lately?