Quote of the Month

"To achieve greatness:
start where you are, use what you have, do what you can."

- Arthur Ashe

Preparing For The New Normal	This is Part III of the Podcast Series produced as part of the "Smart Business for Tough Times" Initiative of the
De-Clutter ...

Organizational experts agree on four ways to manage the things, relationships, and ideas that are cluttering our lives. Clarity is really important in times of stress. In order to maintain perspective, it's important to stay focused and optimistic. And it's hard to be focused OR optimistic when we're overwhelmed with distractions and "stuff." Here are five ways to deal with distractions.

Dump It. If there's something in your life that doesn't help you live out your values or achieve your goals, then it's not important. Get rid of it.

Delegate It. No one in this world has achieved success without the help of others. True delegation requires you to invest in a relationship enough to develop trust and mutual understanding.

Defer It. Don't have time to work on something now, but just can't bring yourself to throw it away? Then put it away, and make a date with yourself to work on it again when you have the energy or experience to do it with excellence and pride.

Do It. Some experts define stress not as having too much to do, but having too much left undone. If you can finish it in 2 minutes, get it done. Your sense of accomplishment will soar. Need more than 2 minutes? Then defer it, delegate it or dump it!

Delocate It. Move it out of sight until you have the time to recycle it or dump it. Keep it out of your line of sight so it doesn't distract you.

Building a clutter-free habit...

It's easy to say no to distractions when you have a bigger "Yes." Now that you've decided on your purpose, fill your days with important tasks and activities that relate to your "Yes." Then you won't have the time or space for clutter.

To-Do's for Today 1. Schedule an Appointment with yourself to De-Clutter. Try not to cancel! 2. Make a List of the people, things, and ideas that you need to live out your values and achieve your goals. Call that your Keepers list. 3.Start with a small section of your workspace. Clean it completely. Pat yourself on the back, then tackle another small section. That's how you eat an elephant!

Quick Links to the Rest of This Podcast Series Introductions 1. Rodger Price: Decide . . . 2. Chuck Reid: Dream . . . 3. Ann Harten: De-Clutter . . . 4. Kathleen Ponitz: Drill . . . 5. Rebecca Bruns: Do . . .