Using Small Bits of Time Effectively
by Ronda Asta - rondaquilts@bellsouth.net

Description: Tips for organizing your time for maximum effectiveness.

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Saving money little by little eventually leads to having a good amount saved. Step by step, week after week it begins to add up. We can do the same things with our time. When we use those small spaces of time to our advantage, little by little we can soon look back and see we've gotten some things accomplished without too much effort. This month I'm going to research my vast library of books on this subject and provide you with some ways to do just that. Get things done with the time we usually let slide by unproductively. 

With an extra five minutes you can: - Make that appointment you've been meaning to get around to - Drop a note card to a friend you've meant to contact - Water the plants - File your nails. 

Double the time and see what you can accomplish - ten minutes - Sort your mail (don't forget to toss that junk mail without reading it - it saves time down the road) - Dust a room - Pick out a card from the collection you have sorted and organized at home from those you bought on sale. I pick up cards once in awhile I know I can use later and have them filed in plain manila folders labeled by category: birthday, sympathy, wedding/anniversary; get well, friendship etc. - Make a to do list of things you want to get done is larger time segments - Plan a weekly dinner menu - Write out your grocery list - Sort through your coupons. 

Thirty minutes used effectively - Organize your dresser drawers - Sort through backed up reading material and pull out the pages you really want to read and toss the rest. What a difference when that big pile disappears, but want you want to read is still there for another 30 minutes free. 

With today's portable phones you can do two things at once. While you're talking you can - Iron while making plans with a friend - Catch up on next weeks meeting agenda while loading the dishwasher - Sort and throw in a load of clothes or fold some fresh from the drier - Wipe down the kitchen counter. 

Just sitting and watching TV sometimes make me feel unproductive (though sometimes we need to do nothing but veg in front of that TV). Here are some suggestions for while your sitting there - Shell and chop fresh nuts for baking and freezing - Sort thought those pictures you've been wanting to organize - Work on a craft project - my favorite is cross stitching (yes I can't always see the picture while I'm focusing on my work but I can still follow the story with just the words). 

These are just a few ideas to get you started. One idea usually leads to another and another. Now consider what you might do with those few extra minutes you have before its time to dash out the e-mail box every Friday for an appointment or work. 

Reprinted with permission. 

Evaluating My Schedule
Managing Multiple Priorities
Procrastination Pointers

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