What are the 4 P’s of Time Management?

May 31, 2023May 31, 2023 Lori @ Touch of OrganizedLeave a comment

Time management is a way to know where you spend your time and what you can do to improve it. If you find that you can’t get everything done or you are exhausted and aren’t sure why, it probably comes to how you manage your time. The 4 P’s of time management can help focus your attention on the key characteristics to make you more productive.

Here are some of the best time management tips that can make a positive difference in your life.

Prioritization leads to better time management

The first one of the 4 P’s of time management kick-starts the whole process. You can’t really have good time management without prioritization. How can you manage your time if you don’t know what’s important and what isn’t?

Do your tasks have external or internal deadlines? Can you group tasks together?

I am a big fan of grouping tasks. If I have several doctor’s appointments to make, it’s so much more efficient to knock them all out at once. If there are several emails that you have to send, take 30 minutes and get them all taken care of.

I want to mention errands specifically. With the increasing cost of gas (not to mention traffic in my area), I try to group errands together. And I’ve even been known to mentally map them out to reduce the amount of back-and-forth I have to drive. And while you might save a few dollars in grocery bills by visiting multiple stores, balance that savings against your gas cost and your time cost.

Before you put together your to-do list, make sure to check out these strategies to create a more productive to-do list.

Planning for more efficient time management

Once you have your prioritization taken care of, next comes planning. How do you plan to get it all done in the time you have available?

Looking at your calendar, review the blocks of time that are immoveable (appointments, meetings, jobs, etc) and then work around those.

If you feel like you don’t have enough time for everything, then it comes down to one of two things: you are either trying to do too much, or you aren’t spending your time wisely. Take a few days to write down what you work on each day (including non-work tasks), and how long each thing took you. You might find you spend too much time reading email, on social media, or just procrastinating.

Whether you use a time blocking system or set a Pomodoro timer for tasks, it helps to designate a certain amount of time to each task. Some tasks will take more or less time, but without a timer, it is hard to know when it is time to move on to the next thing.

Make sure to maximize your most productive time of day no matter when that may be.

Everyone has their prime time to work each day, often referred to as your golden hours. This is the period of time when you tend to have the most energy and focus. When it comes to time management, you need to know when you are able to focus the most on certain tasks, and when you should spend your time on lower priority items on your list.

Multi-tasking feels efficient but when our focus is divided, all of the tasks can suffer. Let me just say this…

Enough with the multi-tasking!

We are now discovering how detrimental this can be for your focus and productivity. Choose one task to work on and focus at a time before you move on to the next on. It might seem like it would keep you from being productive, but this actually helps you to get more done in the long run.

And don’t forget to “schedule” yourself some downtime too. It can be hard to squeeze it in, but the more complicated our schedules become the more we need that downtime built in.

When you do have down time, make better use of it. Read a book, learn something new, or enjoy a relaxing break. Otherwise, down time just turns into mindless tasks that don’t help you in any sort of way.

Productivity is time management

Brushing up on your prioritization and planning skills definitely leads to increased productivity. Isn’t that the ultimate goal? To get more done in less time? And by the way, let’s be clear on the differences between busy and productive.

There are two rules that I have to share, just so that you actually hear them:

Delegation: It’s okay to delegate tasks. You can’t do it all by yourself in most cases, so if you find that there just isn’t enough of you to go around, it’s time to delegate.
Deletion: It’s okay to not do something. You might also have some tasks that are just unnecessary, and more like busy work that you don’t need to spend as much time on.

Positivity about what your time management looks like

Out of all of the 4 P’s of time management, this is the one that can slip past me. We all have bad days — competing priorities, jobs, school, obligations, responsibilities, bills, chores, errands, family, friends, and the list goes on.

But positivity can really go a long way. It doesn’t reduce everything we have to do, it just makes “getting it all done” a little more bearable.

Lots of errands on Saturday? Maybe treat yourself to lunch. Waiting at the doctor’s office again? Bring a book you’ve been looking forward to reading. I don’t even mind the 3-hour drive to my mom’s house. It’s 3 hours to myself, to listen to the radio or drive in silence and let my mind work through everything.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the 4 D’s of time management?

They are Delete, Delegate, Defer, and Do. Personally, I love the visual guide that the Eisenhower Matrix offers for these guidelines. This works wonderfully with the first of the 4 P’s of time management – Prioritization!

to-do list strategies - Eisenhower Matrix

How does time management increase productivity?

Look at it this way. At the grocery store, we typically walk from Aisle 1 to Aisle 2 to Aisle 3. If we shopped from Aisle 10 to Aisle 3 and back to Aisle 8, what does that do to our energy and our time?

By being in control of our time, we can move from one task to another more efficiently and more effectively. These proactive time management tips such as using reminders, developing a planner system, establishing a routine, and time blocking are in our toolbox now!

What are the benefits of time blocking? How does it work with the 4 P’s of time management?

Time blocking is a method of choosing what tasks you will do during different times of the day. The blocks of time are dependent on your schedule and the tasks(s) at hand. You dedicate each block of time to one specific type of task. This definitely goes hand-in-hand with the 4 p’s of time management, as part of the Planning step. Take a look at all the benefits:

You Can See How You Spend Your Time

The first benefit to using a time blocking schedule is seeing how you spend your time. Assess your daily tasks, and how long they usually take.

You Focus on One Thing at a Time

Each block should be dedicated to just one task or one type of project. It is okay to use batch work, since your focus will still remain on the same type of task.

You Have Better Time Management Skills

If you struggle with managing your time and often spend too long on one project, then not enough time on the next, time blocking will be perfect for you.

You Don’t Get as Bored

With time blocking, you also tend to not get bored or procrastinate, since you move fairly quickly from one task to the next. A trap that many people fall into is that when they finish one task, they take too long to move to the next one. With time blocking, this rarely happens since you are improving the use of your time throughout the day.

You Have More Free Time

Lastly, you might even find FREE blocks of time, thanks to these skills. If you think you don’t have any spare time, use time blocking and find those little blocks of time when you can enjoy yourself.

How can journaling help with time blocking?

Journaling has been used by numerous successful people to actively engage in their future and control various obstacles that will inevitably spring up on the journey forward.

You Can’t Stop Me!

Let’s face it, multitasking, for the most part, is one of the biggest killers of your success in the modern age. Many of us pride ourselves on our ability to perform various tasks simultaneously, new data reveals that multitasking is not what it’s cracked up to be. In fact, multitasking renders us either unable to finish a project or leaves multiple tasks performed below our normal standards.

Once a section of productive time has been completed, follow that with a short-duration break that can range anywhere between 15 to 30 minutes.

Get Control of Your Work Output

Many of us that have full-time jobs have undoubtedly heard grunts and groans from our fellow coworkers over the years about how many hours they’re forced to work. Take a look at the average person’s workday — shockingly, on an average 8-hour workday we only have 2 hours and 53 minutes of productivity.

With time blocking through our journal, we can greatly increase our output and bring insight into how we spend our day and what activities are preventing us from getting ahead.

As a helpful tactic for the upcoming week, write down in your journal areas of your day that you’ve found yourself wasting time, goofing off, falling asleep, or quite frankly, avoiding a certain task that you need to be doing. When we actively seek out tasks that sabotage our future, we are more inclined to correct them.

Stress Relief

Time blocking through a journal approach is, quite literally, like breathing a huge sigh of relief on a daily basis. Many areas of our lives, particularly our career and finances, are riddled with doubt and anxiety from lack of action and clarity.

Journaling gives us a playbook that we can follow throughout each moment of our day and give us a map that can steer us in the right direction. Much like how a football coach would never play a game without his playbook, we should never tackle obstacles without a series of rules and pre-planned actions.

Having structure in your day will, unequivocally, put you in the top 1% of successful people and high-end producers on the planet. In a short period of time you can not only achieve the goals you’ve laid out for yourself, but help others build structure in their lives to succeed in their personal journey.

Erin Condren Workspace Collaboration

December 26, 2022December 19, 2022 Lori @ Touch of OrganizedLeave a comment

An Erin Condren workspace? Yes please! Through my friends at Erin Condren, I was so excited to get the opportunity for this collaboration. One of my favorite aspects of Erin Condren is the customization options available on so many of their products. I know I’ve posted about my EC hauls before. I’ve customized spirals, sticker sheets, and planners. Someone actually made them just for me! I’ve even been to the physical store in Austin, Texas. I may have overspent while I was there…..

(Please let me apologize a little for the quality of some of the photos, I took them with my smartphone. I wanted to show you actual pictures of the products, not just the images from the website).

Before we dive into the amazing products I’ve been trying out, I also wanted to mention that if you love any of them as much as I do, now’s the time to buy them by clicking the sale picture!

EttaVee In the Flow 2023 LifePlanner in Hourly Layout

The famous Erin Condren LifePlanner! This 7″ x 9″ 12-month calendar includes mini months, monthly quotes, monthly notes and productivity pages, dated spreads, additional notes in the back, and contacts page. It also includes 4 planning sticker sheets and 1 Keep it together folder.

Talk about having everything in one place! If you have days that are very scheduled and regimented, then this hourly layout is definitely for you. In the customization options, it also comes in vertical and horizontal layouts. You can even choose your internal color scheme from 4 unique options.

I love the idea that this planner is the all-in-one. With the notes pages and the included folder, you can really take it all with you.

To organize your work space:

Watercolor Stripes Neutral Ultimate Desk Organizer

So I have to admit, I’ve been eying this organizer for a while and was sooooo excited to get the chance to try it out. I’m constantly on the search for beautiful things that will help organize my beautiful things. And after seeing it in person, my Erin Condren Workspace needs this! The organizer is 9.375″ W x 12.1″ H x 2.5″ D when closed and 21.125” W x 12.1″ H when open. Here’s a quick rundown on the dimensions of the different compartments:

Accessory Section 1: 5.125″ x 2.5″ x 1.25″ (perfect for washi & other accessories)
Accessory Section 2: 3.25” x 4.25” x 1.25”
Listpad Section: 5.125” x 5.125” x 1.25″ (perfect for listpads, half-dashboards, etc.)
3 Divided Compartments: 3.25″ x 4.25″ x 1.25″ (perfect for writing tools)
Paper section: 8.5” x 4” x .625 (perfect for 8.5″ x 11″ papers, 7″ x 9″ covers)

Erin Condren Colorful Fineliner Pens 10-pack

Colorful Fineliner Pens 10-pack

In addition to a crisp new spiral, I love a fresh beautiful pen. This 10-piece set includes Navy, Marigold, Garnett, Purple, Amethyst, Black, Dusk, Cerulean, Aloe, and Aquamarine. The most fabulous feature is the stand-up case. It folds back on itself and stands up on the desk at an angle. The smooth writing is perfect for color-coding and planner or journal that you use.

To beautify your workspace:

Metallic Monthly Deskpad

While I plan to use most of these workspace items in my home office, this one will go to the actual office! It is a 19.25″ x 12.25″ large monthly desk calendar, plus it includes an enormous sheet of almost 400 stickers! What event does that not cover???

Medium Mid Century Circles Rotating Desk Organizer

This is one of those things that I didn’t know I needed until I had it! What won’t this hold – writing tools, accessories, art supplies, makeup, and whatever else you want to organize. The set includes six wedge-shaped cups and a round center cup, all of which are individually removable. And it sits at 10″ diameter as far as the desk surface it occupies. This may end up going to my actual office too!

Black Pinstripe Adjustable Wood Laptop Stand

I have to admit — as beautiful and stylish as this is, it probably doesn’t quite work for my large size laptop. It’s definitely sturdy enough to support the weight but puts it at a strange angle. It’s beautiful and has four adjustable heights and folds up nicely to take with you from home to school to the office, or anywhere else you may be working! It is 10.5” x 10” x 1”.

To take your Erin Condren Workspace with you:

Large Watercolor Stripes Accordion Zipper Pouch

I am a huge fan of packing cubes and zip bags when I travel, to keep things organized and easily located inside my backpack suitcase. I think this beautiful three-compartment zip bag would be excellent for that! Earlier this year, I took a lovely vacation to Charleston, SC with my mom and this would have some in so handy. It might even make a good toiletry bag since it just wipes clean. The pockets are 10″ x 7″ so they definitely hold a lot.

I hope you enjoyed learning about all these ways to “up-level” your workspace with Erin Condren. I was always the kid who loved picking out new school supplies, and now with these goodies I get to do the same as an adult!

How to establish new habits

December 19, 2022May 16, 2023 Lori @ Touch of OrganizedLeave a comment

Simple, yet true. Anytime you want to establish new habits and ditch the “bad” ones, you’ll face opposition from yourself. This might not even make sense because you know that the good habit is in your best interests, but you’re still struggling to stay consistent with it. One common example is eating clean. We all know that we should be eating healthy, nutritious foods, and yet, we still overconsume processed foods, sugar, alcohol and other foods that will harm us in the long run.

“Bad habits are easier to
abandon today than tomorrow.”

Trying to make the switch to clean foods will be a Herculean task that’s unpalatable and a constant struggle. So how do we form newer and better habits?

There is a proven process…

1. Focus on 1 or 2 habits at a time

This is one of the most important points to note. When effecting change in your life, less is more. If you try to change too many habits at once, you’ll be overwhelmed and your willpower will be drained. Changing your habits will take a toll on your energy levels… and the amount of energy you have daily is finite. So, the more you try to do, the lower your chances of success because you just won’t have enough energy to see them through daily. Just focus on 1 or 2 new habits until you master them.

2. Go slow when you are trying to establish new habits

Inch by inch, life’s a cinch. Yard by yard, life is hard. Even when focusing on just 1 habit, it’s best to apply it gradually. For example, instead of overhauling your diet overnight, aim to replace one or two food choices in your daily meals with healthier options. Drink one less can of soda a day. Drink more water and so on. Over time, reduce your intake of the ‘harmful’ foods, and increase your intake of the healthy foods. You’ll face fewer sugar cravings and be less likely to binge eat at night. Your body and mind need time to adapt. Yes, it will take time. You can’t rush the process and trying to do so will only sabotage your efforts.

3. Be consistent

The goal is to make small changes, but stick to them daily. Like Will Durant said, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.” So, aim to comply with your habit requirements every single day. The more you do it, the more you’ll reinforce it in your daily life.

4. Track your progress

Keep a journal to track your compliance. It’s inevitable that you’ll slip up occasionally. Always remember that a slip-up is NOT the same thing as failure. You only fail when you quit. So, acknowledge your error and strive to quickly correct yourself. You’re always only one better action from correcting your mistake. Don’t aim for perfection. Even a compliance rate of 90% is fantastic.

5. Control your environment

You’ll notice over time that some environments make it more difficult to stick to your new habits. For example, if you’re trying to eat clean, joining your friends at the bar may make you binge on pizza later. The bar environment and the drinks made you let your guard down. So analyze why you slip up and see if the actions or environments preceding the slip-up had anything to do with it. In most cases, you’ll see a very clear and definite link.

Once you follow these 5 steps, it’s just a matter of staying accountable to yourself and removing any obstacles that may trip you up. Do remember to reward yourself once you’ve successfully built the habit. Now it’s just a matter of practicing this new habit for life while you work on instilling the next beneficial habit. That’s it in a nutshell.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to form a new habit?

“They” say that the 21/90 rule will help cement the new habit. If you’re not familiar with that rule, it states that after 21 days the goal becomes a habit. And after practicing that new habit for another 90 days, it becomes a permanent change. I think this is a reasonably good rule, and sets realistic expectations of three weeks and then three months.

How many habits should I establish at once?

To get the best results, it’s good practice to focus on only one or two at a time. Too many and you will lose your focus and willpower and all of the new habits you’re trying to establish could suffer. Trying to change too much at once is the recipe for disaster so please don’t set yourself up for that kind of failure and disappointment.

Is it possible to establish new habits?

But of course! The old habit that you are trying to lose didn’t happen overnight and neither with the new habit. But patience is the key. You have to patient for the change to happen and you have to be patient with yourself. If you slip up, that’s okay. Just refocus the next day and move forward.

You may also be interested in…

Etsy Gift Guide – for journals and planners

November 5, 2022May 16, 2023 Lori @ Touch of OrganizedLeave a comment

Who doesn’t love a good gift guide? It’s like someone else doing all the legwork and you get all the credit! And an Etsy gift guide makes for truly unique and wonderful gifts.

enjoy the little things notebook — Photo by Miesha Renae Maiden on Pexels.com

While we all know what Black Friday is, you might not be aware of Small Business Saturday. I love shopping small businesses, to support folks who are going the hard road of doing their own thing and doing it on their own.

The pinnacle of small business owners are Etsy shop owners – people who create and produce their own goods and put them out into the world. That’s why I’m so excited to talk with you about these planners, journals, and planning accessories straight from Etsy!

This post may contain affiliate links and I may earn a small commission when you click the links but at no additional cost to you.

The editors over at Etsy have put together a beautiful collection of journals and planners that you have to check out! I do want to point out a few of them in particular that caught my eye:

This customizable birth flower name journal would be perfect for your mom or a new mom you might know.
I saw this terrific bundle of 5 mini leather journals and immediately thought of stocking stuffers or coworker gifts.
I love a guided journal and this gratitude journal would be a beautiful gift for someone who needs a boost of self-reflection.
If you’re searching for something with a more professional appearance, you have to check out this personalized padfolio.

An Etsy gift guide would not be complete without mentioning several of my own favorite vendors. I want to introduce you to:

If you’ve never checked out Planner Kate, you’re missing out! She offers all kinds of planner stickers, including stickers that are the perfect size and shape for all your Erin Condren planners.
Sunshine Sticker Co also offers stickers, and my favorites are the sticky tabs you can add to any planner or bullet journal.
I just love my planner pouch from Naptime Craze Designs, not only does it hold my discbound planner together but it has all kinds of storage for my pens and supplies.
If you’re looking for some fun and unique stencils, you have to check out Moxie Dori. It was one of the first stores I discovered when I started bullet journaling.

4 people who would love to get a journal as a gift

Many people choose to start journaling because of the unique benefits that it can provide. For example, it can help you to de-stress and to even get through some very difficult times.

Others start journaling because they believe that family or friends may be interested in learning more about their life many years or decades from now.

While some people buy a journal for themselves, a journal is a very thoughtful gift for someone special in your life. In fact, these are some of the people who may enjoy receiving a journal as a gift.

A new parent

Bringing a new child into the world is one of the most emotionally-charged experiences that a person can go through. Regardless of whether this is the person’s first child or fifth, the act of creating a life and being responsible for raising that child successfully to adulthood and beyond can stir emotions that the person may not have even known they had.

Some new parents understandably may want to share their thoughts and feelings with their child at a much later date. After all, the overwhelming sense of love that a parent innately feels at this important time can be difficult to share later.

The parent’s hopes and dreams for the child, lessons that he or she wants to share and more may be written down so that the child can read them when he or she is mature enough to handle them.

A high school or college student

High school and college years are some of the most formative and challenging years of many people’s lives. These are years when people generally transform from a child into an adult.

Each person has a unique coming-of-age story, and a journal gives them an excellent space to capture those memories. More than that, the stress and drama associated with the transition into adulthood can stir many emotions.

Teens and young adults may be able to use their journal to explore their feelings and to gain great insight about who they are and what they stand for.

A retiree

You may think that a retiree’s life is on a downward swing, but retirees may tell you that this is when their life is truly beginning.

Retiring is a new and exciting chapter for many people. It may be filled with experiences of being a grandparent, of traveling to new places and making incredible relationships with people who they meet along the way.

In fact, retirement can actually be much more thrilling and exciting than a younger adult caught up on the mundane mediocrity of a nine-to-five work life. Many older adults also understand that younger generations may want to learn more about their life at some point.

A journal can be used to preserve thoughts and even to share memories from many years or decades ago. These documents may even be handed down from generation to generation so that your experiences become a part of family history.

Someone dealing with a hard time

Journaling is an excellent way for anyone to deal with an emotional crisis. Everything from dealing with a new disability or a divorce to overcoming grief after losing a loved one may take years to move past.

When you give a journal to a close friend or relative who is going through a rough patch, you are showing them that you care. This is a way to tell them that you are thinking about them and that you are trying to be supportive, but you also understand that their journey at this time of life must be experienced fully on their own.

A journal gives them a place to let it all out, and it may even help them to get through this period of their lives more easily.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do you include in a journal or planner gift?

When I give a journal or planner as a gift, I like to include a few nice pens, some relevant or pretty stickers, and an accessory or two like a snap-in bookmark or a pencil case.

Why give a planner as a gift?

Journals and planners make great gifts, for so many people. Especially if they are going through a transition time such as changing jobs, graduations, retirements, etc.

What do people like in a planner?

The biggest components that a planner needs to have are a calendar system and notes pages! Everything else can be adapted to the design of the planner itself.

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Why you should support small businesses

July 2, 2022July 2, 2022 Lori @ Touch of Organized1 Comment

Have you been asking yourself why you should support small businesses? Because small businesses keep us connected!

How much impact do small businesses really have? Well, I’m glad you asked! By 2021, there were approximately 32.5 million small businesses in the US – that accounts for 99.9% of all US businesses. That’s just incredible to me!

Whether I’m shopping at a farmer’s market or on someone’s website, I love the idea of supporting the people who are doing it on their own; who are coming up with these ideas and products and services and then providing them to their clients and customers.

I suspect that in the last two years since March 2020, these numbers have changed dramatically. With the shifts taking place in the workforce and in the homeplace, more people are starting their own businesses. Or at least side businesses. I think the pandemic and the corresponding quarantine(s) have changed how people view the workplace and their work-life balance.

Not only does running your own business open the possibilities of being more connected to your own family because of the potential for more flexible work demands, but I feel like it connects us to each other. When I buy a photograph from an Etsy shop, it warms my heart to think that the photographer took and developed the picture and then carefully packed it up and mailed it to me. I feel connected to that photographer in a way that just doesn’t happen when you buy a picture form a big box store.

My favorite places can show you exactly why you should support small businesses!

Creative Market sells beautiful digital products, so you have access to them immediately upon purchase. No waiting on the postal service! But they aren’t made by Creative Market, they are made by wonderful creative people! Personally, I have quite a few files and collections from different independent creators such as fonts, graphics, and templates. And a secret between you and me? Every Monday they offer six free products for you to download and use.

Personally, I’ve bought so many beautiful things from Etsy that it’s hard to know where to start! But I love that the shops that are owned by the people making and selling their own creations. A few of my faves are:

Phoenix Botanicals and Green Beauty Cosmetics
Country Creek Seeds and Valley Variegations
Sunshine Sticker Co and Planner Kate
Smoldering Creations and GRN House of Glass

I just love a good subscription box. I have tried so many over the years but some of my favorites have come from Cratejoy. It’s time to discover 1,000’s of subscription boxes as unique as you are! Whether you want fun coloring books or tasty coffee or pretty soaps or even planner stickers (yay!), there is a subscription box for that. And the best thing about Cratejoy, you get one of these wonderful packages created and sent to you on schedule from these amazing creative geniuses!

When I think about why you should support small businesses, it comes back to being connected. When I buy a plant from an Etsy shop, it’s amazing to me that the same person who grew the beautiful little plant in their own greenhouse is the same person who put him in his pot of soil, carefully boxed him up, and took him to the post office. I feel connected to that plant and that gardener so much more than if I just bought the same plant from a massive home-and-garden store. And I feel so much more excited when that plant grows because it feels like that connection with the gardener is thriving along with the plant.

Frequently Asked Questions

3 reasons why you should support small businesses

You can make an impact in someone’s life. You will be directly affecting someone’s livelihood.
You can make an impact in your community. Your community farmers at the market appreciate your business in a much different way than the mass market grocery store does.
You can make an impact in your own life. Many times, the products and services are more customizable, more personal, and more cultivated with you in mind.

Why are small businesses so important to the economy?

In addition to creating millions of jobs all over the country, small businesses create growth and innovation to almost any industry. And small businesses support each other. Owners of small businesses tend to support other small business owners and freelance entrepreneurs.