Time Management For Moms

In the past few weeks several moms and I have discussed the need to spend 15 simple minutes a day planning their strategies for home success.

Topics we have reviewed:

1. Manage your to do's: Write your to do's in your planner. Prioritize your to do's (ABC). Give a to do to someone else if it is not imperative that you do it.
2. Clean one room a day for 15 minutes and your home will sparkle.
3. Spend 15 mindful face to face uninterrupted minutes with your child, your relationship will blossom.

Now my wonderful colleague Heather Dominick www.energyrichcoach.com has introduced me to Paula Eder "The Time Finder." This is what I learned on her blog this morning - thetimefinder.com/

Finding Time You Didn’t Know You Had!

The secret to finding more time for yourself is by developing the skill that I call “Thinking 15.”

‘Thinking 15″ means looking at 15-minutes as the time-block that you build your day, and your daily plan, around. It means knowing that 15-minutes is plenty of time for many, many tasks in your life. You may not be able to complete a task in 15-minutes - but you can always make a start!

When you’re “Thinking 15″ you’ll find that you are making choices about time in a whole new way. What if you have 15-minutes between the dinner dishes and your coaching call? You won’t let that precious time go, thinking that there’s nothing on your plate that takes just 15-minutes.

Something is better than nothing.

Rather than letting that time go by, when you’re “Thinking 15” you might make a start on a task that you haven’t been getting to. Or how about jumping on the treadmill for a quick run, or lifting some weights? You could return a phone call or respond to some e-mails. Or you might choose to take the moment and sit quietly with yourself, as Connie Ragen Green and I suggested in yesterday’s post.

In all of these examples, the operative concepts are “Thinking 15” and recognizing that whether you consciously choose or not, you’re always making time choices!

As you go through your day, I guarantee that you will find “Thinking 15” to be a very useful tool for both finding and using time more effectively!

How many 15-minute time blocks can you reclaim and put to use today?

I'm looking at my day differently already. Thanks Paula!