The trick is to think ahead about the areas where you want to grow. Choose a growth area and you’ll start to notice opportunities - then you just need to give yourself a little encouragement to take one small step at a time.

Ideas for expanding your comfort zone

• Speaking up in meetings
• Wearing more interesting clothes
• Going somewhere new
• Starting a conversation with someone
• Seeing a different kind of movie
• Reading a book from an unfamiliar genre
• Going to a restaurant with cuisine you’ve never tried
• Traveling to a new holiday destination
• Shopping somewhere different
• Changing the order in which you do things
• Trying a new brand of something - anything!
• Doing something different at the gym
• Switching radio stations
• Buying music from a new artist or genre

Open yourself up to new things and you’ll find that as your comfort zone expands, so too does your confidence. Just be gentle with yourself!

In what areas would you like to expand your comfort zone?

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There’s the array of 2-year-old magazines bearing disturbing stains, the dude scratching himself beside you, from whom you’re convinced you’ve just contracted Ebola, and the rush to be on time only to still be sitting there, 45 minutes later.

But you can organize yourself to minimize the time you waste in waiting rooms. Here’s how…

Be Organized to Waste Less Waiting Time

1. Take the first appointment of the day

This is your best chance of getting in on time. There’s no opportunity for the doc to fall behind. Except with you.

2. Call ahead.

This is especially useful if you have an appointment later in the day, but which time the delays have accumulated.

I always ring the surgery at the time I would have to leave to be on time for my appointment. I say:

“Hi, I’m Michele and I have an appointment with Dr Drooplehead at 4pm. I was just checking whether she’s running on time or whether you can advise me what time I should arrive.”

Invariably I’m told to turn up 30 - 60 minutes later. That’s quality time I don’t have to spend with Ebola-guy.

3. Take something you can do in a waiting room.

You need to be ready to move when you’re called, there may be kids crying, and there’ll be people going in and out. Choose something that doesn’t require space, shut-down time or great concentration. Ideal options include:

• A reading file - magazine articles, reports, etc
• Your PDA or diary - review upcoming tasks or appointments.
• Relaxation - open a game on your phone or PDA, or do the crossword if you have a magazine or newspaper
• Phone de-cluttering - delete ancient items in your inbox and sent items, cull your photos, streamline your SMS
• Plan/make notes on an upcoming work project or personal goal - itemize tasks, resources, priories, objectives, etc

Before you know it, they’ll be calling your name. Better not keep them waiting!

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No matter how fabulous your outfit, a haphazard handbag will undermine your personal presentation.

Not only is an overfilled, misshapen bag a fashion faux pas, it also a time-waster when you scuba dive in search of lipgloss, an embarrassment when you can’t find a tissue, and an opportunity-killer when you ferret fruitlessly for a business card.

So how do you achieve handbag nirvana?

First, the bag itself should be practical, with enough size and compartments to suit your lifestyle. I personally fear those tiny-mouthed bags whose zip bites my hand every time I try to venture in. Ouch!

Second, it should be attractive and in good condition. A tatty, well-organized bag still looks tatty.

Next, it needs to be streamlined, containing only those items you need. This calls for discipline! Your items might include:

• Wallet
• Keys
• Attractive, nice-to-use pen
• Attractive, nice-to-use notebook
• Diary/PDA
• Cell phone
• iPod
• Small make-up purse (with mini sizes of essentials like lipgloss, mascara, a mirror, hand cream)
• Small tissue pack or handkerchief

Last, you need to regularly clean out the detritus that accumulates in every handbag, such as:

• Old tissues
• Old receipts
• Loose coins
• Random pens
• Ancient mints and gum
• Indecipherable notes and scraps of paper

By following these simple steps, you’ll be in handbag heaven.

There are plenty of tips, checklists and worksheets for organizing your Personal Presentation in Get Organized Wizard for Smart Women.

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1. How can I minimize my travel time?
2. How can I make better use of unavoidable travel or commuting time?

Spend less time commuting

1. If you can, negotiate to work from home one or two days a week. Voila - instant time saved!
2. Reduce travel time by avoiding peak hours, especially if you drive. Although trains and buses may be more frequent during peak times, the ride will likely be less comfortable, with your options for time use limited to sniffing someone’s underarm or jostling indecorously. Experiment with different times to find a sweet spot of comfortable travel and time effectiveness.
3. Consider a more radical re-jigging of work hours. For instance, might four longer work-days rather than five standard one suit both you and your workplace?
4. Look for alternative travel options. Is there a faster bus? A train that takes a longer but lets you prepare for your day en route?

Make better use of travel time

1. Read work material
2. Read for pleasure
3. Read blogs - you can download them into a reader such as FeedDemon so they’re ready for offline perusal
4. Listen to podcasts on any topic that interests you - there are plenty at iTunes to get you started
5. Listen to audiobooks - check out Audible for stacks of fiction and non-fiction titles
6. Listen to music - get in a little soul time or crank something nasty to relieve stress
7. Meditate
8. Work on your laptop (who cares if that kid thinks you’re geeky)
9. Prepare for your day - make a to-do list, go through your diary, center yourself.

(Um… perhaps limit yourself to the listening ones if you drive.)

What ideas do you have for cutting down or sprucing up your travel time?

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Rather, if/when you’re ready to take steps to organize your computer backups, here are 4 levels to consider…

Organizing 4 degrees of computer preservation

1. Save often.

• Use the autosave function.
• Also get into the habit of saving manually on a regular basis, especially if it’s a large or important file.
• Every so often do a Save as…, using a new file name.
  For instance, I use the protocol [Filename] 08Sep28 1400 and save the document as a new name with the time/date updated every couple of hours - so at 4pm I’d Save as…  [Filename] 08Sep28 1600.
• Consider backing up or making a copy of key files on your hard drive - you can do this automatically.

2. Copy a current important document to a CD or flash drive.

• If you’re working on an annual report, thesis, novel or other receptacle of blood sweat and tears, save it to a portable drive when you head to lunch or log off for the day. It’s a great short-term insurance policy if anything should suddenly happen to your file or computer.

3. Back up your computer files to an external hard drive.

• You might not do it every night, but do it regularly enough that whatever you lose will not send you naked and screaming through the streets.

4. Keep a copy of backups offsite.

• This is a safeguard in the event of theft, fire, and other things you don’t want to think about. Don’t think about them, just protect against them.
• It’s especially important if you have a business or precious/irreplaceable items on your computer.
• There are now many online places to store backups, such as Jungle Disk.

Got some tips of your own? Please share them!

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Before you get started, think about your values for the home you want to create…

For instance, which of the following values do you want your home to evoke:

Home values

• Comfort?
• Beauty?
• Warmth?
• Order?
• Family?
• Minimalism?
• Retreat or sanctuary?
• Harmony?
• Simplicity?
• Visual clarity?
• Aesthetic appeal?
• Love?

By clarifying the tone you want for your home, you’ll have a guiding vision to simplify organizing decisions and streamline de-clutter choices. It will help you decide what to throw out, what to keep, how to arrange things, which colors to work with, and whether some fresh additions are needed.

And the end result will feel more like ‘home’. Your home.

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Welcome to the Get Organized Wizard Blog!

Here you’ll find regular tips, tools & techniques for organizing your whole life.

Yep - not just home or family or office, but the entire 360 degrees, including:

• Personal Development
• Health & Fitness
• Career & Work
• Fun & Recreation
• Managing Technology
• Home
• Personal Presentation
• Strategies for Happiness
• Money & Finance
• Relationships
• Time Management
• Family

These posts will be short and sweet. I’m guessing you have neither time for, nor interest in, long, ponderous meditations on the minutiae of organizing principles (snore…). So I’ll give you what I think you want: short, succinct snippets that you can read in about a minute.

And this minute is almost up - so see you next time!

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