Do you occasionally or often run late? Do you rush to get out of the door, are the last person to arrive, and frequently apologize for keeping people waiting? From personal experience and observation of clients, family, and friends, I’ve noticed one common factor that is the top cause for the time management challenge, punctuality. If you’re looking to shift your time dynamic, reduce your daily stress, and feel more in control of your day, keep reading. I have one idea for you that might be the ah-ha you need to make a change.

Have you heard of or experienced OMT, which stands for one more thing?  Very simply, this is the desire and implementation to do just one more thing beyond what should be your stopping point. By doing this extra thing, it puts you behind schedule and often results in being late to your meeting, date, or appointment. This can take many forms. Have you had one of these experiences or know someone that has? It could look like this:

Before I leave, I’m just going to  . . .

• eat a small snack

• read one more email

• return a quick phone call

• respond to one short email

• listen to voice messages

• change my clothes

• use the bathroom

• send out a message on social media

• load the dishwasher

• make a doctor’s appointment

• comment on a blog post

• research “x” on the Internet

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with doing any of these activities. As a matter of fact, these are routine activities that we do on most days. However, doing them beyond our stopping point, as in during the time we need to prepare to leave, is not the best moment to engage.

Ideally, you want to build a time cushion around your scheduled meetings and appointments. Consider your travel time, contingency time for the unexpected, and prep time so that you will know when you have to stop what you’re doing to get ready for next.

Setting a timer usually helps me. On occasion, when I ignore the insistent buzzing and continue doing my OMT, it makes me late. However, more often, the ding reminds me to stop what I’m doing, begin the transition activities like teeth brushing or cleaning up the breakfast dishes, and head out of the door.

The desire to do OMT can be intense. Has this happened to you? Does it influence the way you manage your time? What have you noticed? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Join the conversation!

If you’re anything like me, you might think, “There’s no possible way I’ll ever get to inbox zero.”  Over the years, I’ve read many articles and books and even attended seminars with advice about the value of having zero emails in your inbox. I’ve commented on many posts, “I greatly admire your ability to get to zero and would love to do it myself, but don’t see how I can realistically get there…ever!” I’ve imagined how it might feel to be unencumbered by old emails and an inbox that felt more like a “to-do someday list.”

While I haven’t set all of my 2018 goals in motion or even decided what they will be, one of the goals I committed to this year was my project “inbox zero.” I wanted a fresh start and a clean slate to grow from. With this new goal of “zero” in mind, I was curious if I could achieve it. I also wondered how to make it happen.

So, I set a simple plan in motion. I remembered some advice I learned, which helped me create a doable plan. Using the breaking-down-large-projects-into-small-parts thought process, I set up a few basic rules.

Linda’s Rules for Project Inbox Zero

Set a completion date. I opted to have this done by January 1st. Guess what? That didn’t happen, but it did happen a week later. It’s good to remember that deadlines are great motivators, but be flexible. As it turns out, I needed that extra time to complete my goal. And if I needed more time, I would have made another adjustment.

Create some parameters. With hundreds of emails and decisions to process, I knew I’d need more than a day to get through them. I used small time blocks daily to process the old emails while keeping up with the new ones. The beauty of doing a little bit each day was that decision-making wasn’t overwhelming. If I experienced decision fatigue, I stopped. I aimed for progress, not completion. That kept me motivated and ready for the next email session.

Establish the “dump” buckets. That may seem like an odd term, but it’s what it felt like. Reviewing each email, I decided which “bucket” to “dump” the email or information into. My favorite bucket was the trash. If the email was no longer relevant, I let it go. Another bucket was my “to-do” list. Anything that required action or follow-up got assigned a date on my list to review later. A third bucket was contacts. Some emails required transferring stats or information to my contact system. The other types of emails are related to current or past projects. Those went into archive buckets. These archives are digital folders with specific project or topic category names.

Be Realistic. The most challenging emails to decide about were those I hoped to have done something with someday but hadn’t. I used the “how long I’ve been ignoring this email factor” to determine the likelihood of ever attending to that thing. In most cases, those emails ended up in the “trash” bucket. A few were archived or added to my to-do list. However, I tried to be as realistic as possible before they were kept. The point of achieving inbox zero wasn’t just to empty the box but also to make realistic assessments about the contents.

“Use small time blocks daily to process the old emails while keeping up with the new ones.”

— Linda Samuels, CPO-CD®, CVOP™

Do it now. Some emails required more immediate action, like signing up for ICD’s new teleclasses. The time needed to complete those tasks was minimal. However, once the task was completed, the email could be deleted. So, I opted to handle any quick action emails right away rather than adding them to my to-do list.

As you’ve figured out by now, with these simple rules in place, I got through hundreds of emails within a few weeks, routed them to their buckets, and arrived at inbox zero. It’s a little strange to see my empty inbox. It looks kind of lonely. I’m still expecting hundreds of messages every time I open the program. Along with the strangeness, I feel liberated with a positive feeling that fresh starts often bring. There’s a certain clarity and focus when attending to the few new ones that pop in.

I’m looking forward to other types of letting go in the coming months. There are papers to shred, files to clear out, and general “stuff” to release. Emails were just the beginning.

What is your relationship to your inbox? Have you struggled with managing email? What works or doesn't work for you? What has your experience been with inbox zero or fresh starts for this year? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Join the conversation!

9 Clutter Management TipsWhat is your favorite clutter management strategy? I asked several of my wonderful colleagues (Ellen Delap, Janice Simon, Jackie Hollywood Brown, Aby Garvey, Peggy Pardo, Ramona Creel, Janine Sarna-Jones, Sue West, Helena Alkhas ), many of which I recently had the pleasure of hanging out with at the NAPO conference in New Orleans, to share their best ideas with us. Their responses are creative, practical, and doable. My gratitude goes to each of them for taking the time to reflect, and give us their proven clutter management strategies. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by clutter, I encourage you to keep reading and try one of their fabulous ideas.

What is your favorite clutter management strategy? . . .

1. Shift Perspective

“My favorite clutter management strategy is to view decluttering work as a treasure hunt. Rather than sifting through, I help my clients prioritize and find what is most valuable first in their clutter. This focus helps them move forward and look toward what will be most useful, functional and beautiful to them as they create their vision of organization. ”

Ellen Delap, CPO^® – Certified Professional Organizer & Family Manager Coach

2. Decide Now

“Make a decision. Whether it's paper, emails or anything else, it's important to make a decision about what you want to keep in your office and life and what you need to let go. When you put off making a decision, things pile up, and it takes more of your time to clear the decks to move forward.”

Janice Marie Simon, MA, CPO^® – Professional Organizer

3. Evaluate Costs

“Although moving from one city to another isn't my favourite clutter management strategy, it is certainly effective. When the price to pack/load/move/unload/unpack an item costs somewhere between $3-$8 per pound, it is a little easier to make decisions about what to keep and what to toss! Anything that costs less to re-purchase than it does to move, doesn't get moved. Often when you get to your new home, you find out you really didn't need all the stuff you left behind after all.”

Jackie Hollywood Brown, M.Sc.  – Organizing & Productivity Consultant

4. Organize Thoughts

“We often associate clutter with the visible and tangible, however the most paralyzing form of clutter is the mental one. When we feel stuck and overwhelmed mentally, we allow clutter to accumulate in our spaces. To find relief, I practice both for myself and with my clients, what I call ‘mental dump’ time. I use a notepad to write down everything that's on my mind. After writing everything from the multiple ‘mental to-do lists,’ I categorize them into personal, professional, and family. My clients and I love clearing the ‘floor’ with this process. We feel great and are able to re-focus on getting organized.”

Helena Alkhas – Professional Organizer & Virtual Assistant

5. Be Proactive

“To help manage clutter, I like to attack it before it gets out of hand. For example, stacks of incoming mail could easily take over our house. When I bring the mail in, I sort through it right away. That which isn't shredded or recycled goes into the appropriate family member’s ‘in-box’. Taking a few minutes each day to handle small tasks like this helps keep the clutter under control.”

Peggy Pardo  – Interior Decorator, Professional Organizer, Author, & Blogger

6. Clarify Purpose

“What do you stand for? What gives you daily purpose? If we can tie motivation, reasons for managing clutter, and practical strategies to who the person IS, there’s greater chance for continued success. It’s the minister who elects to donate his things because this IS ministering; the mother who values making her mark and so passes along traditions, photos and heirlooms to family; and the business leader who listens to TED talks to improve his skills, while he manages paper and emails.“

Sue West, COC^®, CPO-CD^® – Organizing Coach & ADHD Specialist

7. Delegate Responsibilities

“A strategy that has worked great in my home has been to assign each family member a container called a clutter bin, which is stored in a centrally located area of the home, such as the laundry room, mudroom or family room. When you find small toys or other clutter strewn about, it gets tossed it into the appropriate person’s container. Then, once a week each family member is responsible for emptying their clutter bin by putting items away where they belong.”

Aby Garvey – Professional Organizer, Author, & Online Class Instructor 

8. Activate Plan

“When a client feels like they are drowning in clutter, I encourage them to think of using ‘buckets’ to bale themselves out—essentially, containing items in macro categories to clear some space and avoid getting bogged down in minutiae. When a client is frustrated by clutter, but not overwhelmed, I encourage them to create a set of criteria to manage clutter, e.g. recycle all reading materials ‘x’number of months old.  But my all time favorite clutter management strategy is helping clients identify the dynamics in their relationship with clutter.”

Janine Sarna-Jones, CPO ^® – Certified Professional Organizer, Blogger, & Change Agent

9. Increase Attention

“Clutter creeps up on you and takes over your space when you aren't paying attention to your stuff – so the trick to taming clutter is to pay better (and more frequent) attention! Every time you walk through a room and see something out of place, take a second to put it where it belongs. And if that item no longer seems to serve a purpose in your life, drop it in the ‘to donate,’ ‘to sell,’ ‘to give away’ (or otherwise ‘to get rid of’) bin – rather than sticking it back into storage.”

Ramona Creel – Professional Organizer, Simplicity Coach, Author, & Blogger

Do you have a favorite clutter management strategy? I love the variety in these fabulous responses, which include shifting perspectives, not delaying decisions, evaluating costs, and organizing mind clutter. I’d love to hear from you. Come join the conversation and share your thoughts about your favorite clutter strategies, success stories, or challenges. What are your thoughts?

Are you feeling frustrated or overwhelmed by mounting clutter and are not sure where to start? Would you like to activate your decluttering rhythm? If so, think mini projects. Each tiny step you take will help you feel lighter, less stressed, and happier. Using short, quick energy bursts, focused on easy projects, will result in the “voilà” factor.

Are you curious about the “voilà” factor? It’s that sense of satisfaction and positive energy surge we experience when a task is completed and we stop to appreciate the results.

I’ve identified five mini projects for areas that clutter collects. Try one and let me know what happens.

5 Quick Decluttering Tips

1. Pencil Cup – Is your pencil cup overflowing with writing utensils that don’t work or you don’t like? Time to declutter.

• Grab a piece of scrap paper.

• Empty the cup of pens and pencils. Test them.

• Let go of the ones that don’t work. Sharpen the pencils you like.

• Refill the cup with only your favorite and working pens and pencils

• Voilà! You’re pencil cup is functional and clutter free.

2. Magazine Bin – Do your magazines enter your home and rarely leave? Time to declutter.

• Set a date parameter for how many back months of magazines you will keep. For example, “I will only keep the last 3 months of magazines.”

• Empty the magazine bin.

• Separate the last 3 months of magazines into one pile.

• Recycle all the rest. Refill the magazine bin.

• Voilà! Your reading time will be more focused and your bin is now clutter free.

3. Handbag – Is your handbag so full that you can’t find what you need? Time to declutter. Empty the entire contents. 

• Gather the obvious tossables first, like used tissues and food wrappers. Release them. Set aside any items that you want to keep, but don’t belong in your bag. Route them elsewhere.

• Of the remaining items, group like things together (cosmetics with cosmetics, snacks with snacks) into pouches or an organizer such as the Purse Perfector.

• Arrange the keepers back into your bag.

• Voilà! Your bag is organized and clutter free.

4. Clothing Closet – Is your closet so full that it’s difficult to get dressed? Time to declutter. This might seem like a huge project to tackle. For now, just focus with the basics. At another time, continue to the next phase.

• Remove all extra hangers. Recycle, giveaway, or reroute hangers that don’t belong. Pickup your clothes from the closet floor. Hang them up or reroute to laundry, dry cleaners, or giveaway.

• Set the timer for 10 minutes and quickly remove clothes that you absolutely no longer want. Reroute them to giveaway.

• Voilà! This is a great beginning. Your closet feels more spacious and on its way to being clutter free.

5. Email Inbox – Are you inundated by incoming email? Time to declutter.

• Focus only on the “junk” email.

• Unsubscribe to as many as possible.

• After unsubscribing, delete them.

• Voilà! You are on your way to a clutter free inbox.

Come join the conversation. I’d love to hear about your “Voilà!” moment. What quick decluttering tips work for you?