Tips of Scheduling

Even the most organised people can become complacent and assume “oh I’ll remember that” then when it comes to the crunch some things gets forgotten - a scheduling system failure, all available RAMS of memory in your brain screams -insufficient space!

There are strategies, even for those who find themselves below the poverty line in the time stakes!

You can introduce simple ideas into your life that will ensure you don’t take the dog to the dry cleaner instead of the hydrobath!

Once a week - Sunday night is usually a good time - write down your “To Do” list for the next week.

Don’t try and change the world in a week, just write the things you know you must do and add in a couple of things you’ve been meaning to get to.

I know, I know, this sounds completely boring, you’ve tried this before, you write the list, loose the piece of paper, it just simply hasn’t worked. But did you know, that the left side of your brain – the location of logic – loves lists! Why don’t you try a different approach, write a list of things to do by category, ie

1. Personal - time for yourself, family and friends.
2. Children - sports training, school plays, after school play dates
3. Errands - posting letters, dry cleaning, return videos, etc
4. Appointments - dentist, hair cut or car service
5. Shopping- groceries, pharmacy, gifts
6. Correspondence - birthday cards, RSVPs, phone calls
7. Home - cleaning, repairs, gardening

A novel approach to some will be putting yourself first - usually we put ourselves last!

At the end of the day, if you don’t look after yourself, it could have a negative impact on everyone else!

We need to learn to allow ourselves to rest, refresh, recharge and rejuvenate throughout the week - essential for survival!

Once you see your “to do” list categories, further arrange them into logical groups, for example, if you need to go out to do the groceries, try and drop the dry cleaning, return videos and post office at the same time, saving multiple trips out, thus saving you time! Arrange all your “to do” list items into groups until you have them all ticked off your original list.

You can then schedule the groups you have created into your diary. An electronic diary is brilliant for this as you can set an alarm to remind you to get into action. In addition, it’s a great idea to put your Weekly To Do List on the fridge or at your desk, so you are constantly reminded of them.