Today is a 30-minute interval kind of day.

I have so many different kinds of tasks to get done that I must use the old tried and true egg timer to propel myself through the day. It's funny. When your To Do List is filled with so many unrelated mini-projects, it is hard to gain momentum and get anything done.

That is why I turn to an external source. My little green co-worker/task-master. See you in 30 to 60 with another post.

[page print from zoozoom.com]

Published: Zoozoom.com, The Zoo Daily
Read it on Zoozoom: click here
Writing: Elaine Perlov
Photo: Vadis Turner



This is a piece I wrote for Zoozoom that is near and dear to my heart. As you know from reading my blog, I am quite focussed on time managment. When I crossed paths with this artist's work, I felt great kinship.



If you cannot view on Zoozoom: click on the image above
To read more of my articles for Zoozoom: click here

The 10 minutes per room trick did the trick.

If you are having a dinner party and your place is not quite people friendly (piles of mail, piles of paper, half-done projects spread all over the place), pour a big glass of water, put on your work-out togs* and set your egg timers!

Ready, get set, clean each room for 10 minutes, starting with the bathroom. When the egg timer dings, change rooms and take a big sip of water. No cheating! You're looking for the Big Picture Clean with this exercise. As your space gets de-cluttered, you also get hydrated. Great idea right? It works! And you feel an instant sense of accomplishment.

If your space needs more cleaning (which it most often will), do a second pass, this time setting your timer for 15 minutes. Repeat the cycle, increasing your time interval, until you feel satisfied. It's a great way to clean your space in a hurry and stay on-task.


*I always find that wearing racing stripes and sneakers makes me work faster. I do this when I need to get an order out the door too.

Two things struck me as my mouth dropped open upon viewing Vadis Turner's 'soft alarm clock' on display at the Vanina Holasek Gallery last week. One, this artist is obsessed with time like I am. Two, this artist is obsessed with time and some sort of sewing like I am. "I must have this clock!" is all I could think as Ms. Holasek explained to me that Turner, in making these digital clocks wrapped in yarn, is interested in how people spend their time, and more to the point, what people have to show for their time. I must see more of her clocks. I wish I was at this show.

Turner also does a line of jewelry, which can be viewed on her website. I must say, I like the Yarn collection best. Below, a screenprint from her site highlighting the 'Circle Bracelets.' I would imagine Turner has quite a lot to show for her time.

[image from indiefixx]

I don't know about you, but my day would not progress without my trusty To-Do List. I always include a number of easy tasks on the list, so I can get some immediate cross-offs get some momentum. Come to think of it, I haven't made my list yet for today...

Go public with your list. I saw these crafty Emoticon Magnets by Pillowhead on IndieFixx this morning, so I thought I'd pass them along. Take your To-Do List from the private pages of your notebook to your fridge, or cubical wall, or Project Success Board (click and scroll). And remember, have fun making good use of your time!

A public service announcement from Elaine. ;-)

Yes that was a long title, wasn't it. I am in the process of restoring my Egg Timer Posts for all of you time management enthusiasts and new readers. Due to Blogger mysteries beyond my control, some of the posts have become un-retrievable. That will never do! Time management is one of my favorite topics, and boy have I got some great tips for you. Involving an egg timer.

Think of your egg timer as your friendly co-worker. Or your imaginary boss enforcing a deadline. Set your oven timer until you buy yourself a cute one like mine. I found some great ones at the dollar stores in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Yes, you are just $1.08 away from maximizing your minimalism, time-wise that is. And then you can start maximizing your minimalism, fashion-wise too. gee!











RESTORED EGG TIMER POSTS

6.22.06 egg timer tips + pep talk

8.10.06 clean like you have company coming over

3.27.06 another egg timer success story

6.22.06 time management

4.25.06 another success story, part 2

2.15.06 time for timer

1.16.06 almost done!

2.23.06 in the studio

7.10.06 seven ten split

10.3.06 musings

1.23.06 monday monday

Sometimes I need a false goal to get projects done. Like pretending like company is coming over to get the place clean. I think I might have to do that today...

Another beautiful summer day today!! The weather is perfect.

***
Update: it worked! I used my 15 minutes per room trick. Set the egg timer for 15 minutes and focus. Move from room to room. Then go back and finish. This way, if you don't get back to finish, you will have done enough to make it lovely, and cleaned the whole house without too much time-wasting. Maybe I should be a guest on Rachel Ray. She is looking for tips...

I have to say, my hokey Project Success board has been working really well. Click on the link and see how to set one up for yourself. Choose categories that suit you, of course. I have gotten three new store accounts and 8 more stores who are interested and want to see more since I put up my board. I have also done a lot in the Blue category and immediately made my money back 7-fold. Yay. Most of all, it has helped me set my goals and track them. Having the board in front of my face in my work space makes me remember that I set the goal in the first place. Try it! Here again are the supplies you will need.

Living in New York, with all the go-getter energy that swirls around you everyday, has made me realize (finally!) that there is no mystery to success, no single magic thing that you have to do. It just boils down to this: Just do it(!) and never ever stop doing it, even if you get frustrated that no one is returning your calls or emails; just do a lot of different things everyday, and it will eventually add up. Don't prejudge. Just try it. I just had an email yesterday from a query I sent more than 2 weeks ago! And it was tremendously good news. And I got a new store account yesterday from the Market I did Sunday. Who could have predicted that? The store is in Ohio. And a new store account that resulted from my stopping in to say hi while doing my laundry, laundry soap in hand, and a terrible outfit on. You never know until you try. Take one risk everyday. You will be rewarded.

If you are feeling particularly stressed, time-crunched, in deep dread of a very unpleasant task or just can't concentrate for some reason, use the 15 minute interval. It will help you get started. And sometimes all you need is someone to force you to get started. (Think of your egg timer as a someone, not a something. It is your very precise co-worker.) This one is also helpful for toggling between 2 unpleasant tasks. Or for tasks that seem to go on forever when you really need to run to the post office (like invoicing and packing). Just do 15 mintues of one, then 15 minutes of the other, and keep repeating until both tasks are done. Also great for starting to chip away at a seemingly insurmountable mountain of to-do's.




The 30 minute interval is good for when you are feeling calmer (like I am today, like I wasn't yesterday) and feel like you can really get into what you are doing with pleasure. Play a CD while you are working, and be a happy worker bee.







The 55 minute interval is when you are starting to flit about too much because you have over-used the 15 minute interval. Now it is time to sit still and focus, Kathy Lee-style! No bathroom breaks. No drinks of water. Just do your work for one hour without distraction (I bet you can't) and then you can get up. But don't start at 55. Work up to it. You can do it!

First you may want to read the entry entitled, "another egg timer success story," because this post is along the same lines: something I wrote about which inspired another! Erin of Erin Originals sent me a photo of her Success Board, and wrote this [excerpted]:

"As promised a photo of my more haphazard Success Board. Sorry for the [blurry photo] but I think you get the gist. It's been really helpful if only because it adds a bit of colour to the place!"

Thanks Erin, I love it!

Note to readers: I got this email a month ago, but it took me awhile to figure out how to save the picture properly and upload it. Consult this older post for background information: Project Success!

Wow, people are finding some of my organizing tips useful!!! I am so excited! I have had a lot of good feedback, especially from working artists and from those who run their own companies. Many love the egg timer and have put it to good use. Allow me to transcribe this phone message I received today from my friend who is a painter:

It works! It works! 'What works?' you ask. The egg timer. I took the day off today and it is just fantastic. I got myself a 5 dollar egg timer. It is just so much fun. It's like, [whispers loudly in egg timer voice] 'ten minutes!' But I've got to go now. I've got to finish my things. But I wanted to tell you. See you at the studio. Bye!

You see? The egg timer commands you to do it, and you do it. No more messy deep inside your head stuff. It works!

And also today, I saw on my stats that there was another seeker of my kooky organizing advice. That person typed in "organizing fashion design workspace" into Google, and sadly, did not come up with the pertinent entries on my blog, of which there are many on that topic. Instead he/she was lead to the general "blogspot.com." Alas. Unfortunately, the indexing of information on blogs is not always the most specific. But I urge you all to use the SEARCH TOOLBAR at the top of the page once you land here, and persevere in your searches.

That person gives me a good idea though. I will provide more on the topic of how I organize my workspace. And I will provide photos too. Stay tuned.

I feel excited about possibilities for my company! It is amazing what a little green, yellow and blue can do! And yesterday, I did a lot of red. And I think it may be paying off. See the "Project: Success!" board to decode what I am talking about. (p.s., I chose the rather cheesy name on purpose; and it is working!) My new designer friend from England said that I must have been "an informations systems guru in another life." I like the ring to that.

Here it is. My "Project: Success" bulletin board to organize my short-term, long-range goals. I am a visual person, and I needed to put something in my workspace, right in front of my face, that could help me organize projects (and keep relentlessly pursuing some until I see some results).

So I came up with a color-coding system, where projects could be added as I dream them up, and removed when I complete them. I like to use notebooks and to-do lists too, but those work better for me with short-term goals. I filled out all my cards and the board is up in my workspace now. I think it is already working! I feel accountable.

The stack of cards only cost $1.99. I cut them in half because it fit on my board better. The pushpins I found for $1.99. The board, I had bought a year ago, and hadn't put it to work yet. So all in all, a nominal investment in my future success. Try it! My color coding system is:

purple - new designs
blue - advertising, shows to do, expansion
green - exercise (important to make it a part of my work day)
yellow - orders due
red - stores to pursue

Yes I know, that is not really helpful to the project or you, but it looked so neat, I had to take this picture. Look at this other nice board I could have bought. Oh well. But I think the rectangle works better for "Project: Success." Hey, that is a good name!

I have purchased the key elements to my near-future success: a perforated magnetic bulletin board, colored magnets that look like push-pins and colored index cards. I will show you what I do with them a little later. Now I have to go McBurn It!

I dreamed last night that I was applying for a part-time position that paid $18,000 a year to take exercise classes. I wrote in my cover letter that I had plenty of experience taking exercise classes and worked well with a variety of teachers, and then listed all that I had taken at different gyms. And that I had an exceptional skill at being able to pick up routines quickly. I told them I could only do this part-time because I am a fashion designer otherwise, and have a company to run. I got the job.

Yes I am poised to do too many things as usual. Can a person give herself A.D.D.? No I doubt it too. But the timer sure works! Above, the timer in situ as I raced to get a few orders shipped the other day. Another happy egg-timer-adopter wrote to me yesterday. I was so pleased! I must excerpt some of her e-mail here. She is a designer from England! (name withheld because this is a very discreet blog with lots of manners afterall)

"Just wanted to say how much I love your designs and that I have been putting your egg-timer time management strategy into action, to great effect. I wrote an article today that I'd been putting off for yonks, as I 'rewarded' myself with a fresh cuppa after a half-hours toil- I can't go any longer than a half hour, I'll have to think of some other rewards or I'll be completely wired."

Needless to say, I am very pleased. I like this blogging stuff.

I have just poured myself a big glass of iced coffee and I am ready to Photoshop. I am setting the timer for 30 minute intervals to alternate with other work, because Photoshopping is one of the biggest time-eater-uppers I know. Before you know it, it is 3 am!

A number of you have been e-mailing me asking, "What's with the timer Elaine?" Upon answering your individual e-mails, it seems that you like my clever time- management device. It seems that you want one too! I am so glad!! Here is a great one that the Jodiverse found today and wants to get: with a tape measure motif yet! I have started somewhat of a timer frenzy, I am happy to say.

Once you read my reasoning behind using the egg-timer, I am sure you will love it too. Here it is. The timer is my quiet co-worker that holds me accountable for completing my tasks when no one is around. I set the timer and say to myself, "OK focus! You must do this yucky task that you hate (like straightening up fabric*), but hey, it is only 15 minutes and then you can be done with it!" Then it becomes like a fun game of Beat-the-Clock. If I focus for certain intervals, then I get the job done. (15' if I am really spazzy, 55' if I am calmer, 30' if I want to alternate between 2 tasks that are equally time consuming so this way I get 2 things done without even feeling the pain) Otherwise, I just sit around dreading doing that thing and not doing it, or having little idea how to prioritize my to-do lists. What can I say, I am deadline-driven.

Another great by-product of using the timer is that I know exactly how long specific tasks take to do. When it comes to pricing jobs, or promising orders, this is great great information to have! What did I tell you, you are hooked right? Use your oven timer until you pick out an egg timer of your own. That works too! And..........TIME! (This blog entry clocked in at 13 minutes, minus the Photoshopping of the photos.)

*I did get the job done this morning. I set the timer for 15' for each giant piece of fabric that needed to be rolled up and put on the shelf. Success! Rolling up fabric is tedious and yucky because I would much rather be making things!

But not quite. I will take pictures when it is all clean. I can't wait! I am setting the egg timer for 55 minute intervals and sticking closely to my to-do list.

(A note on the timer: my friend Harriet brought this back for me from Amsterdam. As she puts it, she never meant for this cute egg timer to become my personal instrument of torture; but on the contrary, it is the only way I get things done some days! I love it. It is my little co-worker.)