Thursday, June 14, 2007

Thursday Thirteen #14: Ways to Save Time




13 Ways to Save Time and Sanity


1. Make a “To Don’t” list of things you don’t have to do today.
2. Use any time-management technique that works best for you, including prioritization, delegation and hiding under the bedcovers.
3. Let your answering machine get the phone. You don’t want it to feel unwanted.
4. Avoid high-tech devices that only add to your feeling of being rushed and out-of-control. These include a cell phone, a beeper, a fax and a cappuccino machine.
5. Live in the moment–or at least in the same year.
6. Avoid perfectionism. Your chances of doing everything absolutely perfectly are about as good as the chance Martha Stewart has Bill Blass sheets on her bed.
7. Lather. Rinse. Don’t repeat.
8. Avoid recipes containing the words some assembly required, meanwhile…and stir constantly.
9. Only hurry if you’re being chased by a herd of water buffalo.
10. Walk slower, talk slower, eat slower. And quit fast-forwarding your relaxation tape.
11. The next time someone asks you what your sign is, look them straight in the eye and say, “Help wanted!”
12. When someone asks you what you did over the weekend, don’t feel guilty saying, “Nothing.” In fact, say: “I did absolutely nothing. And I did it twice.”
13. Remember that the “e” in email does not mean emergency.


*From the article "52 Ways to Save Time & Sanity," Family Circle magazine, 1/6/98 (The things you find when you clean out your files...)


Links to other Thursday Thirteens!
1. Laura 2. M.G. 3. Jennifer McK 4. Crystal 5. Diana C.
6. Elle 7. Jennifer Shirk 8. Kissa 9. Adelle
10. Jenna 11. Babe 12. Robin 13. R.G. 14. Ciar Cullen
15. Gina 16. JAC 17. Dayna 18. Sara
19. Amelia 20. Paige 21. Rhonda 22. Eliz Parker 23. Ava Rose
24. Debbie 25. Ember 26. Kate Willoughby
27. Loribelle Hunt 28. Lyric James 29. Annalee

(leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)


14 comments:

Babe King said...

I like no 11 :-)

Elizabeth Parker said...

"I did nothing, and I did it twice." I'm gonna have to remember that one!

Paige Tyler said...

Great list! We pretty much always let our answering machine get the phone! LOL!

*hugs*
Paige

My TT is at http://paigetylertheauthor.blogspot.com/

Jennifer Shirk said...

Now THAT was a cute list!

I'm a professional screener with the telephone, so I've got that one down for sure. LOL!

Rhonda Helms said...

BWAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA I love it!!!!

Robin L. Rotham said...

ROFL!!! I've got those techniques down cold.

Kate Willoughby said...

Great list! I'd like to add: make your kids do chores around the house, punch out in the evening. No one said being a homemaker needed to be a 24/7 job!

http://katewilloughby.blogspot.com/

Unknown said...

I'm very good at avoiding perfectionism. Very, very good.

Anonymous said...

LOL to number 7, I step in the shower and when I get out it's suddenly an hour later. Hair is such a time constraint, maybe I should do a Britney

P. Robinson said...

I walk pretty slow and don't ever get in much of a hurry but I can't force myself to make a list of things I don't have to do- you're hurting my inner psyche...

Gina Ardito aka Katherine Brandon said...

Try to take my cappuccino machine and there'll be blood on the walls!
But I have no problem ditching the other stuff.

Diana Castilleja said...

I love that idea! Especially the Do nothing... How do we get away with it though??

Heather said...

Glad you all liked this one! *grin*

Kissa darling...you don't *have* to make a to don't list, though it could contain something as mundane as "don't do the dishes tonight, they can wait until tomorrow" or "don't worry so much."

Ava~ That would be the number one reason I don't regret chopping off most of my hair in college. It was once almost waist-length, now it usually sits above the shoulder. MUCH easier to take care of, yet still long enough to play with.

Gina~ LOL - okay, okay...you can keep the cappuccino machine, but that's all. LOL

Diana~ I'm guilty of feeling guilty for doing absolutely nothing. I find it difficult to sit through an entire movie at home without doign something else as well -- cross-stitch, making cards, I have to be doing something else.

Lillian~ LOL @ avoiding perfectionism.

Paige & Jennifer~ I think my own telephone avoidance syndrome stems from having to deal with it so much at work. I have had 3-hr conversations with people before, but in general...I'm not so fond of the phone and would prefer to let the answering machine or voice mail get it. *g*

Amelia June said...

Interesting how saving time and sanity often cancel each other out!