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Posts from the ‘Office’ Category

Apr 2

Time Trials

Time Tracking Activity Chart This is a blank chart for you to pick whatever you want to time. Believe me, this can be fun!

Time Trials This is a chart of suggested activities to try timing, with room to record 4 trials for the same item. You can use this as an idea prompter in case you have trouble dreaming up things to time. You can use it for yourself to get base line times for activities you want to coordinate for yourself. You can use it for a family night as a time trial Olympics. You can assign it as a project for teens to work through timing  themselves.

Give that cell phone stopwatch a work out!

Mar 28

Better Birthdays

Serious about adding to your child’s life skills consistently?

Try this idea of linking every new birthday with a new job around the house. Click here for a list of ideas to have Better Birthdays.

Remember Longer Lasting Gifts from awhile back? It has other ideas for gifts that are not the latest item on the toy shelf.

Feb 19

Perpetual Calendar and Time Trial Sheets

Today you get your first look at the highly efficient perpetual cleaning calendar. If it only did the actual cleaning it would be perfect!

Do you know why I like charts? Even before it was so easy to make simple computerized forms, designing a chart or writing an article ratcheted up the professional level of a home project. My charts are embarrassingly simple, functional, not made to win design contests, but to get things done efficiently in a home that could always use just a little more time. Some of you amazing design whizzes out there can surely make them fancier. . .just send me a copy when you do. I appreciate good artwork.

Here is the  Perpetual Cleaning Chart.

Remember some simple codes will help you as you insert your own cleaning tasks. I’ll list mine after the break.

For a bonus, since the sun is shining and the snow is melting and a visit to one of my two favorite sisters is only a week away:

Here is a blank  Time Tracking Activity Chart  sheet. Print one of these and carry it around timing everything in sight for several weeks; time things more than once: four, five, six times or even more. Time your Bible study, dish washing, taking showers, getting to work, grocery shopping, team meetings, bed making, resolving childish arguments (the children’s arguments, mind you–not the adults having a childish argument). I guarantee you, you will be amazed at how little time some things take that you always put off doing because you don’t have time. Have fun! Read more

Feb 6

Week Two: Tidy Trials

Week Two dawns with you having a full file folder or a notebook of completed room evaluations, right? Perhaps. But if you didn’t quite finish all the rooms, of course, you want to do that. If you only have one room to attend to, week two may very well be day two. The point is to have worked through on paper what each room needs, or could have done to it. Here’s what you will have if you actually do all the work:

  • General information about the room is permanently recorded for future reference for those big improvement projects (new window treatments, painting, etc.). Accrued benefit.
  • The detailed list, broken down by how often the job should be done, for everything you can think of to keep the room spit spot. Pre-planning. Back Planning. Profitable inefficiencies. 
  • Several quick fix ideas that will improve something about the room or its function, as well as long-term ideas to improve the room. Evaluations. Attend.
  • A quick routine plan to pull the room into order in a limited amount of time. Attend and Automate. Dovetailing.

That’s where we start in week two, so if that didn’t get done last week, do it before “week two” starts!

Read more

Feb 1

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Week One, Part 1: The Big Picture and the Little Details

Before the week begins: Print a Room Evaluation Form for each room you are responsible to maintain. Get a tape measure, a pencil, and another blank sheet of paper.

You can also print the Room Evaluation Instructions for the room evaluation form. They are essentially the same as below, but you can refer to it as you work in each room.

Assignment: Evaluate only one room a day, starting with your personal space (usually a bedroom, and for most a bathroom). Have too many rooms for one week? Trying doing all the bathrooms on the same day, since the routines will be similar, just don’t overlook any unique responsibilities in each bath. You can also try to do one family use room (living room, family room, kitchen, dining room) and one bedroom each day. Or just don’t worry about being done in one week; just work through the rooms until you are done.  Read more

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