Ian's Messy Desk

• Understand what keeps you from getting and staying organized
• Learn the two basic organizing formulas
• Create a unique action plan for yourself
• Attack your paper, space, and time troubles
• Know that you can succeed like never before

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Posted by Ian McKenzie at 04:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This may have been around for awhile, but I only noticed it last evening. I received an e-mail announcing a concert on May 14. On the right-hand side of the message was a link to “Add to Calendar” (see image below). Clicking the link popped up an event entry box for Google Calendar, with the event name and date completed. I’m guessing Google used a natural language feature to extract the data from the subject line of the message.

(click for larger image)

I also understand the you can send an SMS to GVENTS such as, “Mill Creek Colliery Band concert May 14 at 7:30pm” and it will add it to your calendar. This feature is currently only available in the US.

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 10:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

“I am constantly writing notes. Whether it be for my blog, work, meeting, new ideas, or just basic notes, I am always jotting something down. So I started thinking about all the services I’ve used for taking notes and thought it would be a good idea to share them with you and while I’m at it, to make a list of any others that I find. Now, when it comes to note taking, I personally look for quick and simple. If I have something on my mind, I don’t want to go through some advanced system and climb a mountain just to save a note for myself. There won’t be all the note taking tools out there on my list, but ones that I feel get the job done well.”

Fifty Ways to Take Notes » Solution Watch

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• 20 Resources on GTD software at Listible!
• Overcoming Procrastination - free Wikibook
• GTD with Google's New Calendar by Isaac Bowman
• The Epic Tale of Ivanhoe the Cat, not really GTD related, but an entertaining story from Doug at D*I*Y Planner
• bignoseduglyguy points to the Site Submission MultiTool
• TelegramSam posts some nifty Google Calendar SMS Tricks
  

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Posted by Ian McKenzie at 09:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

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Posted by Ian McKenzie at 09:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Google Calendar is now available.

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 09:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Do you get too much email? Do you send too much email? Sick of spam?

Have you ever thought about how much time is lost just due to handling e-mail?

If you can relate, sign up for this free course with Kevin A. Miller, vice president of Christianity Today International, and author of Surviving Information Overload. In less than 15 minutes you'll learn seven expert strategies for reducing your e-mail overload.

Technorati Tags: GTD, E-mail, Computer Tips, Time Management, Productivity

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 08:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Last week Time Magazine ran a cover story on The Multitasking Generation. Writer Claudia Wallis takes a look at the effects of technological multitasking on young people. Along the way, she also offers some tips on de-cluttering your life.

• Create uninterrupted time for concentrating.
• Manage your in-box.
• Plan on face time.
• Manage your desktop, both real and digital.

Read: TIME.com —Four Tips to Unclutter Your Life

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Posted by Ian McKenzie at 09:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 08:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A couple of days ago I made an on-line purchase from my laptop. At the end of the transaction the final screen told me to print the receipt as it would be unavailable after the window was closed. I wasn’t connected to a printer, so I right-clicked on the page and selected the “Add to EverNote” Firefox extension. A copy of the receipt web page stored in my EverNote database for printing, if needed.

EverNote is Free note-taking software that lets you easily store and quickly access typed and handwritten memos, webpage excerpts, emails, phone messages, addresses, passwords, brainstorms, sketches, documents and more!

EverNote Plus includes all of the above features plus handwriting and shape recognition, Advanced Note Recognition (ANR) and Ink-Note Search, for $34.95.

I have posted EverNote links a couple of times, but thought I’d like to collect the links in one place, that I use regularly:

• EverNote - A single place for all your notes!
• EverNote User Forum
• EverNote User Forum —Template Specific Questions
• Download EverNote Default Template Collection
• GTD Wannabe —EverNote user
• GTD Wannabe —EverNote Templates Page
• GTD Wannabe —EN Template Catalogue
• Nontrivial Exercises: EverNote
• Kids’ Turn Central: EverNote®
• Personal Technology from The Wall Street Journal —EN Review
• I still dig EverNote » Slacker Manager
• EverNote and note management » Slacker Manager
• Technorati Tag: EverNote
• del.icio.us Tag: EverNote
• Using EverNote with GTD
• Getting Things Done Forum: EverNote
• Wacom Graphire Tablets: EverNote Plus

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Posted by Ian McKenzie at 12:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Meetings can often seem to be the antithesis of getting things done. Susan M. Heathfield outlines a series of tips for getting the most out of your meeting time.

Making meetings effective:

• Effective Meetings Produce Results: Tips for Meeting Planning
• Effective Meetings Produce Results: Tips for Meeting Implementation
• Effective Meetings Produce Results: Tips for Meeting Follow-up and Success

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 11:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

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Have a plan

There a plenty of time-management quotes and adages about the need to plan. Having a daily plan lets you make educated decisions about where to focus your efforts during a day.

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 09:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

by Nancy Twigg

For those of you who consider yourselves organizationally challenged, here are Ten Commandments of Organization:

1. Thou shalt think things through.
2. Thou shalt find a place for everything, and put everything in its place.
3. Thou shalt use space efficiently.
4. Thou shalt multi-task whenever possible.
5. Thou shalt group like things together.
6. Thou shalt routinize.
7. Thou shalt prioritize.
8. Thou shalt delegate.
9. Thou shalt simplify.
10. Thou shalt not procrastinate.

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 11:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Rebecca Writes: A Collection of Lists

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 11:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

“Tomorrow is, perhaps, one of the most important and neglected holidays of the year: National Clean Off Your Desk Day.”

“It's true - the second Monday in January has been set aside to deal with a year's worth of clutter, papers and dust bunnies. I'm a little fuzzy on how this all became official, but, well, it is official and probably a pretty good idea.”

National Clean Off Your Desk Day

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 02:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

"Out of sight, out of mind." The reverse of that is true too. When it's in sight, it's in mind and we cannot help but be distracted.

Studies have shown that a person working with a messy desk will spend, on average, one and a half hours per day either being distracted by things in their view or looking for things. That's seven and a half hours per week.

Keep the clutter before you at a minimum and you will have a more accurate focus on what you need to do to increase your daily productivity.

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 01:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

In his classic book, The Time Trap, Alec Mackenzie identifies these 20 behaviours that lead to wasted time:

1. Management by Crisis
2. Telephone Interruptions
3. Inadequate Planning
4. Attempting Too Much
5. Drop-in Visitors
6. Ineffective Delegation
7. Personal Disorganization
8. Lack of Self Discipline
9. Inability to Say "No"
10. Procrastination
11. Meetings
12. Paper Work
13. Unfinished Tasks
14. Inadequate Staff
15. Socializing
16. Confused Authority
17. Poor Communication
18. Inadequate Controls
19. Incomplete Information
20. Travel

Technorati Tags: GTD, Time+management, Getting+Things+Done, Productivity, Organization

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 08:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

THE PROBLEM
Police recover lost and stolen items such as bicycles, cameras and laptop computers every day, but are often unable to return the items because owners cannot specifically identify them. Although manufacturers affix serial numbers to many products, most people are unable to provide police with this number after the item has been lost.

THE SOLUTION
All citizens are encouraged to register the serial numbers of their possessions in the Serial Number Registry. When police recover an item, they can search for the serial number in the database and notify the owner that their property has been recovered.

WHAT TO DO
Fill in the form on the next page and then click the "Next" button. If the information you entered is correct, click the "Yes, Go" button. Your serial number will be stored in a secure database that is accessible only to police personnel, and a printable page showing the date and time will be displayed. Data collected under this program will be used to aid in the return of recovered property, and not for any other purpose. There is no charge to use this free service.

Serial Number Registry

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 09:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

by Maria Gracia

Keeping everything organized 'after' the holiday season, will ensure that next year's holiday is merrier than ever. Here are 5 simple ideas.

1. HAVE AN UN-DECORATING PARTY. Set a date to undecorate. Get family and friends involved, and you'll get it all done in no time! Make it a party. After everything is stored away and cleaned up, enjoy food, music and conversation with everyone who helped.

2. UN-TRIM THE TREE. Don't remove lights and ornaments from the tree before developing an organized system. Wrap strings of holiday lights around cardboard so they're not in a tangled mess next December. Store ornaments in an ornament container with divided sections, or simply in a large, sturdy, plastic container. Be sure to wrap fragile ornaments in bubble wrap.

3. STORE SMART. Do your best to keep all of your holiday decorations in one or two containers. You won't need these things until next year, so store them in an out-of-the-way place. I have an area in my home for my year-round holiday decorations. All the Christmas decorations are in one container, and all of the other holiday decorations (Easter, Halloween, etc) are stored in another container.

4. UPDATE YOUR HOLIDAY CARD LIST. The very best time to update your holiday card list for next year, is at the end of this year's holiday season. Add, modify or delete as needed, and your list will be updated and ready to use in December. P.S. If you missed sending a holiday card to someone this year, send him/her a New Year's card instead!

5. KEEP A HOLIDAY JOURNAL. A holiday journal is a wonderful place to keep track of things you'd like to remember from year to year. Perhaps you'd like to keep track of things such as what gifts were given/received, favorite holiday recipes, meals your family especially enjoyed, etc. A journal will help you keep track of everything.

by Maria Gracia - Get Organized Now!
Want to get organized? Get your FREE Get Organized Now! Idea-Pak, filled with tips and ideas to help you organize your home, your office and your life, at the Get Organized Now! Web site
http://www.getorganizednow.com

Get Organized Now. Tips and ideas to help you get organized..

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 09:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

(NC)—Is your home office a cluttered space that you avoid? If your desk is a dusty disaster area, filled with outdated office tools, there is hope! By replacing old accessories like outdated calendars, rickety calculators and inefficient filing systems, your home office can be transformed into a clean, efficient space where you actually enjoy spending time!

Grand & Toy wants to offer you the chance to update your office with the latest in office accessories. Send in a description of your most out-dated home office accessory and you will be entered into a draw to win some of the latest office supplies. One grand prize worth approximately $500 and two secondary prizes worth approximately $200 will be awarded. Some of the products you have a chance to win include:

• Targus Universal Monitor Stand

• ACCO Leather Personal Organizer

• Assorted Post-It Notes and Bonus Note Holder

• Fellowes Fully Adjustable Keyboard Manager

• Logitech Cordless Keyboard with LCD Display and Cordless Mouse

• Logitech Video Cam

• PileSmart View Jackets

• Sanford Black Wood Desk Organizer

• Sanford Black Wood Magazine Holder

• Sanford Black Wood Desk Pad

Submit your entry, including your complete name, address and phone number to:

Grand & Toy "Goodbye Dusty Desk" Contest
1075 Bay Street, Suite 600
Toronto, ON
M5S 2B1

Contest closes February 10, 2006. Winners will be contacted by phone.

- News Canada

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 09:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Do you need a little help for the holidays? Use these idea and planning resources to stay organized!

Christmas Planning at About.com

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 04:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I pointed to an EverNote upgrade yesterday and mentioned that I was using it to organise all manner of data. I use it to store all manner of data might be a more accurate statement. I tend to clip or copy information and dump it into EverNote and use categories and search to recall the data.

Evernote has a useful template feature that allows users to design custom templates that can bring more structure to individual notes in EN. A user can export a template as an XML file, which can then be imported by other KN users. Once imported, ctrl-key combinations allow you to quickly add a template to your database.

The Evernote user forum has an area for Template Specific Questions that includes templates for download. GTD Wannabe has a Template Catalogue with some of the templates from the user forum and some GTD Wannabe creations.

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 08:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 07:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It might be early to be thinking about Christmas, but if you want to be organised for the holiday, it’s a good time to begin. Visit Christmas Countdown to get a head-start on your planning.

link from March Forth! Marssima Edasi (where it has already snowed)

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 01:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (1)

by Maria Gracia

You are busy and you have tons of things to do. How can you possibly remember it all?

Having a sharp memory recall can be as simple as finding ways to help jog your memory throughout the day. Here are 10 quick ideas:

1. WRITE IT DOWN. With the amount of things you have to remember in any given day, why should you try to stuff it all into your memory bank? When you want to remember something, the very best thing to do is write it down. Then, when you need to recall it, it will be there for you in an instant.

2. KEEP IT TOGETHER. When you write down things you want to remember, keep them in one consistent place. Otherwise, you're going to spend a lot of time looking for your notes.

3. MAINTAIN GOOD HEALTH. Eat healthy foods, get enough sleep, and exercise. These are all important for your memory, staying focused and being alert.

4. RECORD YOUR THOUGHTS. Sometimes you might want to remember something, but it's impossible for you to write it down, such as when you're driving. A little hand held tape recorder is a wonderful gadget to carry around with you and record your thoughts, or your parking space number, or a phone number you see on a billboard.

5. CALL YOURSELF. If you're at the office, and you want to do something when you arrive home, call your answering machine and leave yourself a message. When you get home, you'll listen to your message and remember exactly what you wanted to do.

6. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. If you keep saying you have a bad memory, you'll probably continue to have a bad memory. It's important to have a motivated, I CAN remember attitude.

7. SEND YOURSELF E-MAIL REMINDERS. There are many free e-mail reminder services available. You simply type in what you want to remember, such as a birthday, anniversary or event, and you then receive an e-mail reminder when the date is approaching.

8. POST STICKY NOTES. Those wonderful, little sticky notes can be amazing memory helpers. Want to remember something before you leave the house? Jot it down on a Post-It Note and stick it on the inside of your door. You'll be sure to see it as you're getting ready to walk out. Have to make an urgent call first thing in the morning? Leave a Post-It Note on your telephone.

9. SET TIMERS AND ALARMS. Take advantage of alarm clocks and timers throughout the day. Have to take the clothes out of the wash at 3:00? Set your alarm clock to remind you. Want to leave for the basketball game by 6:15? Set your timer to beep a few minutes before.

10. USE VISUAL REMINDERS. Visual reminders can help you remember and focus. I especially like visual reminders for remembering your goals. If your goal is to take a trip to a beautiful island in a few years, keep a magazine photograph of the island right on your desk. If your goal is to own your own business one day, find a picture or ornament that will help remind you of this goal each day.

by Maria Gracia - Get Organized Now!
Want to get organized? Get your FREE Get Organized Now! Idea-Pak, filled with tips and ideas to help you organize your home, your office and your life, at the Get Organized Now! Web site
http://www.getorganizednow.com

Technorati Tags: GTD

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 09:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

• Shut off auto-check
• Pick off easy ones
• Write less
• Cheat
• Be honest

Link from Maggi Dawn

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 11:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

As much as you would like to avoid it, there's no getting away from having to wait. You wait on hold on the telephone or wait for meetings or appointments or wait for hockey practice to end or a spouse to finish work, and wait and wait and wait. If you are not careful, waiting can take control of you time. Good self-management puts waiting time to use.

Whether at the office, out and about or at home, here are seven ways to make use of waiting time:

• Work your lists: Check your to-do lists, your shopping lists or other reminders; add, subtract or rearrange, as necessary.
• Work your calendar: If you're not on the phone, set-up, confirm or reschedule items on your calendar.
• Sort mail: E-mail, paper mail, at work or at home can be organized while on the phone or watching T.V.
• Personal/professional development: Read an industry journal or a school assignment. Carry a media player and listen to speakers, trainers or podcasts.
• Use the phone: If you're not waiting on the phone, use the time to make or return calls.
• Work on hobbies: Carry needlework with you. If you draw, carry a sketch book. Carry a digital camera and snap off a few pictures.
• Structured relaxing: It doesn't have to be all about efficiency; read a book, solve a crossword puzzle, play a game on your PDA

Make it a practice to carry your "tools" with you and you'll find you never have to sit twiddling your thumbs while you wait.

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 12:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

CNN.com - Seven rules for a tidy inbox - Oct 12, 2005

Teten and Allen researched effective systems that workers have used to tackle their inboxes. Although everyone has his or her own best way of dealing with e-mail overflow, the duo's book outlines these seven rules for keeping your inbox under control:

1. Keep your inbox empty
2. Organize around action, not data
3. Save everything
4. Organize just enough
5. Review regularly
6. Keep your file sizes manageable
7. Filter spam

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 09:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

i d e a * i d e a - How to Bubble Map - drawing your To Do the stress-free way -

So a few weeks ago, I began "drawing" my To Do list. Each bubble represents a To Do and the bigger the bubble the more troublesome it is to your mind. I named this map the "bubble map".

And a follow up to the above posting

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 02:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

Unproductive meetings. To most people, that would be a redundant phrase. Meetings can easily be unproductive and a waste of time. Probably all of us have attended meetings that were not productive and, if we were being honest, have called a few meetings that were a waste of time. Unfortunately, meeting are a fact of business life. If you've gotta have 'em, you might as well make 'em work. Here are some on-line articles on holding productive meetings:

• Top 7 Strategies for Productive Meetings
• 5 Steps to a Productive Meeting
• Productive Meetings
• Power Meetings
• Productive Business Meetings
• How to Hold Productive Staff Meetings
• Conducting a Productive Meeting
• Meeting Ice Breakers: 26 Ways to Make Them More Fun and Productive

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 10:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (1)

Technorati Tags: GTD, Gmail, Getting Things Done, Time Management, Tips and Tricks, Productivity

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 10:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Personal information management and organization styles can differ greatly among people, even though they may use the same PIM program. Whatever program works best for you may not necessarily work well for the next person. When I come across a PIM that is unique and stands out, I do like to share it with people. One such program is EasyNoter 3.5.

What's the right personal organizer for you? Try this one out

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 10:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Prayer Partner from Laridian is a great program. The problem is keeping organized enough to use it to track prayer requests. The truth is, a big part of the problem is keeping organized in prayer, period.

Technorati Tags: Palm, PDA, Spiritual+Development

Posted by Ian McKenzie at 10:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)