Family Management Tip #3: Getting Ready for the New School Year
Clothes. Check. School supplies. Check. No doubt you've got to have all the physical goods required to carry your child through the school year. But perhaps the most important way to get prepared for the new school year is by planning to spend your time and your family's time wisely.
It's important to take a step back from your busy schedule to think about how you want your family to spend the upcoming year. What are your most important goals? Peace? Happiness? Good grades? Harmony? Weight loss? Better health? While you're planning your family's activities, be sure to allocate some time towards meeting those important goals.
You don't have to spend the upcoming year as you've spent the past year - especially if the lifestyle of the past year is not getting you closer to the most important goals you have for your family. People often hear this and agree, but discard the thought as not being applicable to them - so pay close attention: overscheduling yourselves is not necessarily in the best interests of your family.
It is one thing to make a conscious decision that some things are more important than others and to make sacrifices to achieve specific goals. But if you're just going along for the ride, unsure about what you want for yourself and the family, then you're basically gambling with your life. The consequences of these actions will be felt for a long time in your family. So take a thoughtful approach to planning the upcoming year.
Time management is central to success - for an individual or a family. But what does that term really mean? It's not about just scheduling appointments or activities. It can only be successful if time is managed to achieve certain goals. The best way to achieve this is to come up with a daily plan for each family member - well in advance to the extent possible.
Here's how you can achieve this for your family in the new school year:
You'll want to take care of this first. Before you schedule all other activities, make sure you account for homework time. Depending on how old your kids are, this can take anywhere from 15 minutes to a few hours in a day. Of course, this gets top priority. If you're homeschooling, you'll need to plan for the curriculum as well.
Straightening up the room, making the bed, bringing in the laundry, walking the dog, feeding the fish - a thousand things to do everyday. To keep things going smoothly during the year, you need to come up with a daily, weekly, and monthly chore schedule for each family member. A little bit of planning and buy-in from the family on this front will go a long way. Don't compromise on this or prioritize this lower than other activities - much stress builds up if this schedule falls apart, and you want to avoid this. If you have a conflict with other activities, you can schedule these activities at a different time on the days where you have a conflict. For example, if Mike has hockey practice at 6am on Tuesdays, you can give him a break from dog walking on that day, or maybe he can do it in the evening.
Pick one or two long-term goals for each member. Maybe it's health-related, like dropping a few pounds, or perhaps it's getting a higher degree. Whatever it is, unless you plan for it, it "ain't gonna happen", so schedule these activities in.
After you've accounted for the most important activities, and only after, consider how much time is realistically left for other activities, and fit those in. If you don't keep it realistic, you're always going to find yourself compromising on your longer-term goals and you'll never get out of that cycle.
Once you've set up the whole plan, talk about it as a family and see if any adjustments need to be made.
Use a good family organizer to implement the plan. If every member of your family can have a daily plan for each day (and they could be guided to use it as they begin each day), it will give them a head start. Plan for success this school year - I'm sure you'll be happy with the results.
2005 by Saro Saravanan.
Saro Saravanan is the Founder-CEO of Mediabee, which makes Mediabee Family Dashboard, a free family management tool built to address the needs of busy families and their organizers. Be sure to read the rest of his articles from this series on Family Management. Download Mediabee Family Dashboard today at http://mediabee.com and streamline your family life.
 Google News Updated : Sat, 30 Aug 2008 00:25:40 GMT Microwave baby killer convicted - BBC News
BBC News - A US court in Dayton, Ohio, has convicted a mother of murdering her one-month-old daughter by burning her to death in a microwave oven. Video: Prosecutor: Ohio Mom Killed Baby in Microwave US jury convicts mom in microwaved-baby case Publ.Date : Fri, 29 Aug 2008 20:30:22 GMT Earwax: Too Much of a Good Thing? - WebMD
WebMD - By Kelley Colihan Aug. 29, 2008 -- The body is a miraculous mechanism. Consider the once-lowly earwax. People used to try to remove it. Leave That Ear Wax Alone National Guideline Against Ear Poking Publ.Date : Fri, 29 Aug 2008 18:32:14 GMT Protests Rise in Thailand In Challenge to Regime - Wall Street Journal
Wall Street Journal - By JAMES HOOKWAY and STEPHEN WRIGHT BANGKOK -- Waves of antigovernment protests spread beyond Thailand's capital Friday as clashes between police and demonstrators intensified, forcing the closure of several regional airports and disrupting rail ... Thai protest alliance not so happy with democracy US asks Thailand to end crisis through democratic means Publ.Date : Fri, 29 Aug 2008 22:33:23 GMT Obama’s Plane Palin Problem - FOXNews
FOXNews - by Major Garrett Reporters covering Barack Obama heard the news aboard Obama 1 (the campaign for the first time chartered a second plane for the swelling press corps), just before takeoff. Video: Raw Video: Schwarzenegger Praises Palin “Tougher in Alaska” host Geo Beach discusses Sarah Palin Publ.Date : Fri, 29 Aug 2008 22:07:29 GMT Aid agencies scramble to help flood victims - CNN
CNN - (CNN) -- The grinding misery triggered by the massive floods in a downtrodden part of northeastern India and across the border in Nepal persisted Friday, with government and aid agencies swinging into action to help the 2 million-plus people fleeing ... India: Up to 2000 feared dead in Bihar floods Millions displaced in Bihar floods Publ.Date : Fri, 29 Aug 2008 23:45:57 GMT US Economy: Spending Slows, Inflation Accelerates (Update1) - Bloomberg
Bloomberg - By Shobhana Chandra Aug. 29 (Bloomberg) -- US consumer spending grew at a slower pace in July as the impact of the tax rebates faded and a pickup in inflation eroded Americans' buying power. Bonds fall on mixed economic reports Consumer spending flags, but confidence rises Publ.Date : Fri, 29 Aug 2008 18:25:06 GMT Boeing union leaders recommend strike - MarketWatch
MarketWatch - By MarketWatch Leaders of the International Machinists and Aerospace Workers on Friday rejected Boeing's third and final contract proposal and recommended its workers vote to go on strike. Union Leaders Reject Boeing Contract Offer Boeing Union Urges Workers to Reject Offer, Setting Up Strike Publ.Date : Fri, 29 Aug 2008 23:15:15 GMT More Web Site Traffic |
PARLOT::Ebooks, Scripts,
Websites, and more... Color-There Is No SubstituteIn anatomical illustrations you see the brain's... Read More Questions come my way all the time regarding my God-given... Read More I know I have a problem when I have to... Read More Getting Things Done (GTD), is a productivity methodology designed by... Read More Nature loves clutter. Just think of all the stuff that... Read More Feeling Overwhelmed and Unorganized? - How to Use Index Cards... Read More 1. Divide big jobs into smaller jobs. Make a list... Read More Buried under mountains of paperwork from your company? Do the... Read More Laundry. You sort, you wash, you fold, you blink ?... Read More The following procedures will insure an organized and well run... Read More Chances are, most of you have a lot you need... Read More I've noticed that in the two years since the major... Read More Spring is such a refreshing time- we are filled with... Read More So you've decided to get organized, but you just don't... Read More Paper1. You may already be in the habit of filing... Read More ? Are you embarrassed when you walk into your home... Read More Getting organized is hard. If it weren't, we wouldn't put... Read More What stops you from 'getting things done?'Have you ever started... Read More Many people have a huge challenge coping with the incoming... Read More Getting and staying organized is critical to achieving your goals.... Read More At this point, you have probably run across some belongings... Read More Spring?. Fresh breezes through open windows, sleeping trees come awake... Read More I recently conducted a survey to look at the relationship... Read More An organized living lifestyle can cause you to weed out... Read More I gathered some things you can do this spring while... Read More
Adsense
websites
10 Tips on Color Coding Your Paper: From Chaos to Coherence
Organized For Life
Effective Closet Cleaning Tips - Let Go of More Than Skeletons
Getting Things Done: A Guide To Next-Action Lists
Clutter Is Natural
Feeling Overwhelmed and Unorganized? - How to Use Index Cards to Organize Your Life
10 Simple Steps to a More Organized Household
Three Effortless Ways to Win the Paperwork Battle
Organizing Tips to Help You Conquer the Laundry Monster
Getting Organized For The New Year - Part 1
Mental Clutter- Is It Taking Over Your Life?
After the Clutter: 5 Steps to a New Daily Routine
Spring Cleaning
Basic Organizing Principles
Common Clutter Culprits- How to Bust Through Clutter
The Clutter Factor: From Packrativity to Productivity
Organizing for Today, Tomorrow and the Next Day
Organization Tips - How To Get Things Done
How To Organize Your Paperwork
Getting Organized for Achievement
Letting Go Of Your Excuses
Four Tips For Clearing The Clutter
Calendars and Personality Type
Organized Living-Secrets About Your Lifes Hidden Power Revealed
It?s Spring Cleaning Time? Let?s Make Room For Abundance!
Affordable and Reliable Web Hosting Starting at $4.49/Month
Don?t Be A Clutter Victim
There are 3 kinds of clutter: Inner (between our ears);... Read More
Clutters Side Effects: How the State of Your Home Affects Your Life
Each area of your home has a symbolic meaning with... Read More
It?s Spring Cleaning Time? Let?s Make Room For Abundance!
I gathered some things you can do this spring while... Read More
Balance - And Other Things
The Mexican VillagerThe American investment banker was at the pier... Read More
Memorabilia -- Use It or Lose It!
What do you do with those special items that have... Read More
10 Easy Tips for Digging Out Your Desk Today
Has your polished mahogany (or modular plastic) desk been buried... Read More
Secrets to Eliminating Emotional Clutter
Are you plagued by clutter in your personal or professional... Read More
Organized Living in a Disorganized World
We are bombarded with so many factors that perpetuate disorganization.... Read More
Spring Cleaning: Mission Garage Organization
Spring is here and the garage door is open. This... Read More
Time for a Clean Out
Time has flown. It's been six months since you came... Read More
Creative Storage Solutions
When the things in your home start crowding in around... Read More
How To Organize Your Paperwork
Many people have a huge challenge coping with the incoming... Read More
Organizing Lessons from a Bookstore
The store reminded me of a well-worn slipper ? tattered... Read More
Clutter Clearing Tips that Work
Coping with clutter is rarely easy. There's more involved than... Read More
Is Your To Do List The Problem?
You start each week with great intentions. You are determined... Read More
Get Organized - Stay Organized
My mother is one of the most productive people I... Read More
The Problem With To-Do Lists
Do you use to-do lists? Do you find it satisfying... Read More
Getting Organized For The New Year - Part 1
The following procedures will insure an organized and well run... Read More
Creating The Perfect Closet
Your closet is often the first thing you see in... Read More
3-Step Clean Sweep Program to Organize
3-Step Clean Sweep Program 1 -... Read More
Kids Clutter: Organizing at Every Age
Our children are probably the biggest clutter creators we have... Read More
Get Organised Before Its Too Late
Last year I attended a presentation from Parenting Expert and... Read More
Getting Organized For The New Year - Part 2
In part 1, we discussed a system you could use... Read More
Basic Organizing Principles
So you've decided to get organized, but you just don't... Read More
Clutter-Clearing and Your Authentic Self
Have you ever felt so discouraged, your life so out-of-control,... Read More
Get Organized - Organization |