Lesson of the Day: Don't Let Your Kids Throw Their Toys Out The Window

The other day I heard a true story about a mother of 3 year old triplets who instructed her children to clean their room and then she walked away. When she returned, she discovered that her children had opened their bedroom window and thrown all of their toys out the window and onto the front lawn.

Now, this story is wrong on many levels, beginning with the fact that 3 year old children should not be able to open their own bedroom window. There should be a safety mechanism on the window for obvious safety reasons.

But, safety aside, let's talk about this mother's unrealistic expectations of her 3 year old children.

When it come to training your children to be organized and responsible, it is very important that you set them up for success and not for failure. The instruction "clean your room" is much too broad for a 3 year old. You are setting that child up for failure because a 3 year old will not be able to live up to your expectations with such a general instruction.

It would be more appropriate to say "Pick up all of your books off of the floor and put them on the book shelf." That is a specific instruction that a 3 year old can clearly understand and accomplish. You are setting your child up for success.

Once the books are picked up and your praise the child for doing such a good job, you can move on to another specific task. Obviously, training your child in this way will require some of your time and attention, but if you put in the time now and work with your young children to make sure they understand exactly what your expectations are, when they get older you WILL be able to say "clean your room" and you will know that your child has a clear understanding of your expectations.

When it comes to raising organized children, there are some important points to keep in mind...

• start when your children are young
• give age-appropriate instructions
• be present to help younger children
• as your child grows, increase their responsibilities slightly
• make sure that your expectations are clear and understood
• always praise a job well done.

Nobody said that it was easy to raise organized children, but it is definitely worth it!

Great Grocery Shopping Tip: Stick Within Your Budget AND Stock Your Pantry

If you have been to www.tips-to-organize-life.com you know that I strongly recommend weekly menu planning and grocery shopping with a list to ensure you get everything you need and eliminate multiple trips to the store for forgotten ingredients.

You also know that I recommend stocking your pantry with frequently used items that are on sale for a really good price...even if these items are not on your grocery list that week.

There is only one issue remaining. What do you do if you are on a tight budget (like most of us are these days) and you absolutely cannot overspend?

Here is a little trick that I have tried with great success. When you get to the check-out lane, separate the items in your cart into two categories..."must-have's" and "wants."

The "must-have's" would be the items on your grocery list that you need to prepare your meals and snacks for the week. Ring up these items first and then take note of the total.

If you still have room left before you reach your budgeted grocery dollars, prioritize the "wants" and ring up those with the highest importance to you first. Continue watching the total as you ring up each item. When you have reached your budgeted amount, stop.

This is a great way to stick within your budget and still stock your pantry.

Clear Clutter, Collect Cash!

I'm sure you have seen the commercials that are all over TV about selling your old jewelry and being paid for the scrap metal. Well, this is something that has been in the back of my mind for more than a year now.

A few days ago I was sitting on my couch, watching TV, feeling a little unmotivated and wondering what to do with myself for the day. As I sat there a commercial aired for a new jewelry purchasing business that had recently opened in a high-end mall not too far from where I live. They were advertising a 15% Grand Opening Special which meant that they would calculate the value of your jewelry and then give you and extra 15% on top of that amount.

I am not a big fan of fancy jewelry, so I don't have a lot. I went to my jewelry box and in about 5 seconds flat I was able to pick out about 8 pieces that hadn't seen the light of day in years. I decided, what the heck! I didn't have anything else to do that day, so I took a drive out there.

As I was driving I decided that the trip would be worth my while if I received $50.00 for the small amount of jewelry that I had brought.

Much to my surprise, I walked out of that store with a check for over $200.00!

Was it worth the drive out there? Absolutely!

I got rid of some clutter from my jewelry box and I made some extra cash. How much money do you have hiding in your jewelry box?

What is Your Favorite Quick-Fix Meal?

Let's say you have had one of those days when nothing has gone right. Dinner time rolls around and you realize that you have either forgotten to defrost something or you just don't have the energy or inclination to make anything from your weekly menu plan.

Dining out or ordering in are not options because we are all watching our budgets. What do you make?

When you need a quick meal that requires no prior planning or prep-work and uses mainly non-perishable ingredients that you can always have one hand, what is your go-to meal?

Leave a comment and let me know.

Valentine's Day Special

If you have read my story, you know that my discovery of a product called Site Build It! got me out of a cubicle and a one hour commute to work and gave me the ability to stay home and have more time for me and my family.

If you haven't read my story and you would like to, you can read it here.

If you have ever dreamed of doing what I did, now is a great time to invest in your future!

Site Build It! is currently offering a Valentine's Day Special which means that from now through February 14, 2010, when you purchase one subscription at the regular price, you can get a second SBI! subscription for only $100 more. That is a pretty big savings.

You can keep both subscriptions for yourself, you can go in with somebody else you might know who is looking to change their future (if you split the price in half, way you will both save money), or you can give a subscription away as a Valentine's Day gift for somebody you love.

As I am typing this blog post, it is 8 degrees below zero with the wind chill factor where I live, but I am sitting at my computer, in my comfy clothes, with my cup of coffee and my dog by my side. No more early morning commutes in the freezing cold for me.

If you would like to be able to say the same thing, check out SBI!. I promise, you will not be sorry.

Time Management Tip: Learn to Say No.

Do you often feel that your plate is overflowing and you are overwhelmed by your time commitments? Do you have trouble saying no?

These two things often go hand in hand.

One of the biggest favors that you can do for yourself is to learn to say no. In order to manage your time effectively, you have to be able to recognize when your plate is full. In other words, when you have enough commitments that you will be busy, but not overwhelmed.

Start paying attention to your schedule and your feelings. Try to figure out how many hours per week you can commit to before you start to feel that overwhelming feeling creep up on you. When you start to become overwhelmed, overworked or frazzled you start to lose productivity. When you start to lose productivity you are not doing anybody any favors. You will suffer and so will your work product.

Once you are aware of your breaking point. Do not over-commit yourself. If your neighbor calls and asks for a favor, say "I'm sorry but I can't." If the PTA calls and wants you to organize a fund-raiser, say "I'm afraid I can't commit to that right now." If your friend calls and wants you to go shopping with her, say "I would love to, but I don't have the time right now."

If you are realistic about what you can take on, you will save yourself a lot of grief. You are not a bad person if you say no once in a while.

Put an End to Procrastination

Do you find that there are certain tasks that you always procrastinate about? Maybe these are the tasks that you dislike the most or maybe they are the most time-consuming. Whatever the reason, there always seems to be something that we all put off until we just can't put it off any longer.

For me, that task is returning phone calls. I am not sure why. It's not as if picking up the phone and dialing a number is difficult, and it is not as if I don't chat on the phone with friends and family on a regular basis. For some reason, though, when it comes to an obligatory phone call, I always put it off.

Here is a trick that has helped me, and I hope will help you, to put an end to procrastination and adopt a "just do it" attitude when it comes to those tasks that you dread.

Figure out when your most productive time of the day is. We all have a most productive time. For some it is in the morning when they are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. For some it is mid-day after they have had time to wake up and get going. For those night-owls, the most productive time of the day might be in the evening.

Whatever your time is, take full advantage of the height of your productivity by purposefully saving your dreaded tasks for your most productive time and then doing them first.

I have found that I feel so proud of myself after doing something that I know I have been putting off, that it actually increases my motivation and sends my most productive time into overdrive. I know it can do the same for you so give it a try and put an end to your procrastination.