Top 5

I have spent a bit of time (over my morning cup of coffee) to compile my TOP 5 priorities for 2010. I will not call them my resolutions but rather my top 5 priorities to work on.
I feel like I have accomplished something as it does help to focus on the important tasks and should eliminate all non-value-adding activities from my daily life. Anyway, that is the theory. There still are the routines, daily taskes and simply stuff to be done. But now that I have something to focus on, I believe that the routines should be done quickly and early to make time for the Top 5.

Time now to work more on the Top 5, determining the action plans.

Counting down

Today is December 27th. Festivities are over. Leftovers are almost finished. And in 4 days it's New Year's Eve and then it'll be 2010.

2010

A lot will happen in 2010:

My daughter goes to High School. I turn 40. My Mum turns 70. I have to find a new job. I want to start my own business. I want to read all my books and ebooks. I want to be more healthy and fit.

Step 1:
Get clarity on goals for 2010

Step 2:
Write down in detail what I want

Step 3:
Plan it properly

Step 4:
Track progress

Note to self: plan each EVENT or GOAL on it's own.

Happy Xmas

We're off to my Mom's tonight for "Heilig Abend", a German tradition of celebrating Christmas Eve.
Pity it's sooooo hot and rather stuffy today. I'd love to see a white Christmas again some time.

I wish I were....

- a more prolific blogger, who was making more sense
- rich
- employed or the owner of my own business

Let's cross a few off my list in 2010.

2010 - again and again

2010, I like round numbers. They are neat and clean. I like order. I also resist change. Why change when everything is working?

W e l l ,
sometimes you get a push into a new direction (or a kick in the teeth, as it were) and you have got to change. Problem is, "change" is not a subject we had at school. Problem is, you don't really know how to tackle this "change". Some people or personalities are naturals with change, they like it and thrive on it, whilst others prefer constant non-change. How do "non-changers" turn into "changers".

Any advice, someone?

New beginnings

2010

Wondering what 2010 brings...

The soccer world cup is here - perhaps there is an opportunity.
What else? New job, own business, day trading?

But I do believe that it will be a whole lot better than 2009!

Bring out the champagne.

It happened

What I was expecting... it happened.

This means:

(I'll know more tomorrow)

BUT - it is an oppotunity for a change. For a new path. For a brand new career path. Perhaps I should become an entrepreneur?

Some proper planning needed for this decision. :-)

Chat later.

What did we do today?

If you follow me on Twitter, you'd know that we watched New Moon. Kids and Mom loved it alike. Drama, cool guys without T-shirts, suspense, cool guys without T-shirts, etc.

Besides that, I helped my Mom to put up a new screen for her computer. In her eyes I'm a computer techie, meantime I only know a bit. Go figure.

And tomorrow we're going sailing. For the first time ever. On a new, second hand, tiny catamaran. Wish me luck. A lot.

Update on Summer project

Back on track. It helps to put down achievable, short term goals and to track them. At this stage, the project is going well.

Next milestone: Wednesday.

Difficult conversations

You know, being the "initiator" and "deliverer" of difficult conversations is not easy. You are uncomfortable and the situation is awkward, the other person is nervous, upset, emotional, defensive, etc. Really not a good space to be in, but it cannot be avoided. (Although a lot of poeple do avoid it).

It is very different if YOUR boss has a difficult situation with YOU! Like I had on Wednesday. I felt quite threatened, embarrassed, humiliated, emotional, hurt, defensive... Only now, after a good few days of thinking it over, I am ready to think of all the possible alternatives open to me.

1. Get another job (have started applying)
2. Prove him wrong AND STAY (not really an option, he has made up his mind)
3. Move to our central office (if I get the job)
4. Decide on a new career path. something more suitable to my personality
5. Ask for a package and do my own thing

This is not an easy decision. This will require some patience and soul searching.

This I know: I will get out on the other side a stronger, more capable and positive person.

Stuff

My *StUfF* is really beginning to irritate me. I see so many nice, organised homes in magazines and our home is sooooooooooooooooooo full of clutter and stuff. How can I finally get rid of it?

Crossing a bridge

Wouldn't it be lovely to be on this bridge right now?
Where would you go if this lead to any place you could go to?
Or to any place in the past you would want to go to "fix" things?
Does "emotional baggage" direct your choices totally?
And does getting rid of it fix your life?

The pro's and con's of this weekend

Did several things this weekend.

Pro:
signed documents to consolidate my credit card debt
paid overdue income taxes
bought the kids some new outfits (only a few to not blow the credit card all over again)
got my son medicine for his wart

Cons:
ate too much
ate too much wrong foods
had to work

Well, not all weekends can be perfect

What is on my mind? What mind??????????

Once again, I feel rather absent-minded because there is just sooooooooooo much to keep track of. Heavy week lying ahead. A lot of stuff to do. Another week closer to the end of this year and I don't know where it went. Technology overload. So much I want to read but do not get around to it. I was supposed to take a vacation, but can't, due to work committments.

S L O W
.
.
D O W N
.
.
........

eAsIeR sAiD tHaN dOnE................

National "braai" day

Tomorrow is national "braai" day (BBQ) and we are celebrating by braaing today already. And we'll braai tomorrow too.

FAIL: Summer project

Does it count to re-start the project a few times? Well, that's currently happening. I analysed the priorities and have decided to do Project 2 later, when I have more free time and money. But Project 1 needs a re-focus and an energised re-start. Well, the re-start is starting tomorrow.


Ready

Steady

Go

Update: summer project

Project 1: going well enough for now. Need to keep the focus, though.

Project 2: I need some extra assistance here or rather some inner strength.
On that thought, how to do what you need to do, even if you don't like it? And I'm a Super-Duper Procrastinator. And I have never found a solution to that yet...

Summer

Summer project.

On the radio, they announced a "secret" project for summer. Anything you choose. Once you've chosen you need to write it down and BURY the paper somewhere (in a box).
I have chosen my 2 summer projects and will commit them today to my laptop's memory with a reminder on the 31st of March to check if I have completed them.
This is exciting. I wonder how it will go...

What would your project be?

Recession

I just saw a depressing and at the same time uplifting television show. It was Oprah's show with Lucy Ling about the effect of the recession. People losing their homes and having to live in shelters, moving to tent camps, living on the streets, moving to their offices. They trail the streets, trying to find some job, close to losing their kids to welfare, etc. Sad, really sad.

Notice the difference between the two pictures? The bottom picture is a holiday tent, sunny, comfy, comfortable. The other is dreary, cold, wet, depressing.

Well, the show has inspired me to look at our own financial situation in more detail and hopefully find a solution soon.

I wonder...

...how do you know when you've reached your limit. When you've had enough?

Sadness

One of my employees was killed in a motor vehicle accident over the weekend. I am terribly shocked and sad. It is hard to be a comforting shoulder for the team who needs you to be strong and provide guidance when you want to mourn yourself. He was such a friendly, capable and pleasant person. May his soul rest in peace.

Deadline management

I *HATE* deadline management, but that's how my life has taken a turn lately. Any advice?

Something to celebrate

I had a comment on my site yesterday, and a good one at that. The thing is, I have not publicized this blog AT ALL. The few visitors are due to my Twitter account and the reference to the site. Magic.

Hi Blog - long time no write...

Back at work.
Lots to do.
Diary is a mess.
Meetings, meetings, and more meetings.

But:
I have started to delegate more.
I have started to say "no" to meetings.
And as I get emails, I answer, delete or defer (a la GTD).
AND I am unsubscribing from email lists wherever I can (especially those I used to save for later, and then never got around to reading anyway).

Next week already looks more promising.

All over the show Part 2

Update:
I sorted through my books (those in boxes, still need some type of book case for them) and found several books that I had forgotten about. This shows me: read more, don't put stuff in boxes, don't forget about your books, etc.
Anyway, I also found a life coaching book that I have bought a few months ago. I'll start with that and see where it takes me. Got my little note book too, to document the journey (to give you feedback)...

See you soon.

All over the show

I have come to the realisation that my thoughts have been all over the show.
I have also come to the realisation that I need to find structure.

There are certain areas of life that are "out" while others are "in". In my life, my career, family and finances are in need of some serious attention. That should take care of the other areas as well (emotional balance, physical and spiritual area).

So, back to the action plan.

Step 1: Define goals
Step 2: Define path
Step 3: Execute

To do step 1, I need to start reading a little.

Back soon.

Kniffel

Kids and I have been playing "Kniffel" the last few days, it's like Yahtzee. I keep on loosing and my kids keep on winning. They love it and I love that they love it. It's nice: TV turned off, spending time with family; good stress buster. Tomorrow I will clear clutter and make some curtains - or maybe not (if we play some more Kniffel).

Only 1 week left at home...

Today is my birthday. I'm officially 39! Is it too early to start drowning my sorrows? Yes? Well, turning 40 is lying ahead, horror! I'll be spending my day with my family, hope all goes well.

I still have 1 week vacation: I commit to:
- spending more time with family
- spending less time with laptop
- spending less money
- clearing more clutter
- planning my first week back at work (I need to be more assertive - plan that)

That's it for now.

The next 2 weeks

It's winter school holidays and I am on leave for the next 2 weeks - yeah. But let me tell you - what a mission to make sure all runs smoothly while I'm on leave...
Anyhow, I am now planning how to spend my time. I know that I'll have to stay current with work stuff, so I'll spend one or two hours going over my emails. Then I also want to take the kids to the movies, visit my mom in hospital (small procedure, hope it goes well), and I want to clean and clear clutter at home. This needs an action plan, I think. Well, I'll do that this weekend.

See you soon.

About Me (2)

5) We have 2 kids, they are 10 and 12 years old. And they are fighting like cats and dogs. Not always, though.
6) We have 3 dogs: 1 dachshund, 1 cocker spaniel, and their baby. Cute puppy.
7) We also have 5 parrots: 1x blue-fronted Amazon, 2x ringneck parakeets, 2x Senegal parrots.
8) No other pets.
9) We have been married for 14 and a half years, did I mention that?

About ME...

1) I am almost 39 and dreading turning 40. If I could, I would put it off for a few years yet.
2) I have been married to Faans for 14 and a half years.
3) We have 2 kids. They are now 12 and 10 years old. Teen years, here we come.
4) My husband's 2 kids from a previous marriage are in touch, but we would love to see them more often.

I'll keep adding to the list.

F r U g A l

Today, I made my own yogurt. Instructions are available on the internet, here is the like that I used: www.makeyourownyogurt.com. The instructions are long, but only because they are very detailed.
It's very easy to make, all you need is milk, some plain yogurt, some pots and containers and a thermometer (I used my candy thermometer). The process is very easy and took less than 30 minutes.
Next step: find recipes with yogurt.

Signing off for now...

I took the VOW

Go to http://www.itakethevow.com/ to join a global movement.

To do list

Isn't it funny, how your to-do-list grows, but you don't get the stuff done? List grows, you try to catch up, list grows some more, you soon give up as there is no end in sight... HOW to get there is the question...

Personal Finance

Isn't it funny that your money runs out long before the end of the month? Actually NOT funny.

My familiy is currently in a tight spot as my hubby has not been able to bring home the bacon due to the recession (although he would like to) and as a result I am the breadwinner and provider. Our savings have been depleted and the credit card has hit the limit (and I cannot get it back down). I have cancelled the non-essentials and luxuries. No take-away food, no M-Net, no eating out, no parties, no movies, no shopping, no new clothes. I have changed to cheaper life-insurance and might have to go for a cheaper car soon. Also, convenience-shopping is out, it's down to bargain-hunting. I will take up sewing again for the kids, stuff like pyjamas and track suits are easy to make.

At http://frugalyou.com/ I read that: "Either you have time, or you have money. If you want to save money, you have to spend time. If you are unwilling or unable to commit a certain amount of time on a regular basis to practicing homemaking and money-saving skills, you will have to resign yourself to spending more money - money you could be saving."

This fact is actully sad, but true.

I'm going to search for more frugal tips now, see you later.

How connected are you?

I read this blog this week, here is the link: http://www.thebridgemaker.com/five-electrifying-ways-to-unplug-and-actually-connect/ and I just love the term: hyperconnectedness as coined by the author. He has a very good point: all the multitasking causes us to miss at least half of what we are trying to achieve and I will follow his advice to have at least one technologically-free day per week where I focus on my family and surroundings. That will mean that I don't update the blog, visit Facebook, check Twitter and read my emails. I will give it a try.

Feedback next Monday.

Twitter

... is addictive.

16 June - National Youth Day

16 June [Youth Day]
Previously known as Soweto Day.
In 1975 protests started in African schools after a directive from the previous Bantu Education Department that Afrikaans had to be used on an equal basis with English as a language of instruction in secondary schools. The issue however, was not so much the Afrikaans as the whole system of Bantu education which was characterised by separate schools and universities, poor facilities, overcrowded classrooms and inadequately trained teachers. On 16 June 1976 more than 20 000 pupils from Soweto began a protest march. In the wake of clashes with the police, and the violence that ensued during the next few weeks, approximately 700 hundred people, many of them youths, were killed and property destroyed.
Youth Day commemorates these events.

Some peace and quiet

Somedays you just want to sit back and do absolutely N.O.T.H.I.N.G.
But, all the time your subconcious keep's bugging you - "I should be doing this" or "There is this thing that cannot wait". I want to know how to shut down that voice and to enjoy the ME time.

I think I need to use my calender to book myself my own time. Then I just need to follow my own advice :-)

More hours in my day

Let's think about the options:

• work fewer hours
• find job closer to home
• move closer to job
• have a flexi-time arrangement
• don't pack a lunch box
• don't do any cleaning yourself
• get help with the chores
• get help with cooking supper
• buy instant/convenience meals
• have fewer hobbies
• sleep fewer hours
• etc
• etc

This list touches my pocket - needs my money. Clearly not an answer.

So, now I think it's time to think about a life audit - I had something, need to find it. Hopefully can report back tomorrow.

The "bragging" board

Achievements

I tend to focus on the TO DO LIST and and all the outstanding items on the list. But what about celebrating success?
My team was recommended today for having the best "Visual Performance Managament" boards for the whole plant - excellent achievement. And just recently our Organisational Effectiveness score came out - ours was one of few departments whose score went up - the rest went down. Again - excellent achievement.

That made me realise - we need a "bragging" board. That said - I will start it today!

Today, once again, I'm amazed at all the available media, social and otherwise. Facebook, blogs, Twitter, LinkedIn, email newsletters, and hundreds of others. How do we keep track without loosing our mind? Information overload!
When I was at university, no one had a computer - you were lucky to have an electronic typewriter. Now kids have cellphones, playstations, computers with internet access... I think that someone needs to document for them how it was in the "old days" without 24 hour TV, no cell phones, no internet, no email, no sms's... It did not seem so rushed, not so fast, not so overloaded...

Well, I'm not sure I would survive in the "old days" anymore and would I like to? That is the million dollar question.

Quick thought

What would you do with an extra hour a day?

How would you spend the extra time?

What would you give up or do to get that extra hour?

Note to self: what would I do? Smell the roses? Watch a sunset?

T...R...A...F...F...I...C

Grrrrr.... 90 minutes for a trip that should not take longer than 25 minutes. And that's without an accident clogging up the roads any further. I should consider myself lucky. Yeah, right.

Anyway, the time spent in traffic adds up to 8 hours to my work week (not counting the work I do at home at home when the kids have gone to bed) - this means that I work a minimum of 60 hours for a 45 hour salary.

So, what can I do?

• just work my 45 hours? I don't think so.
• ask for an increase? Again, I don't think so.

What can my employer do?

• pay me more?
• make the traffic more bearable? I'm thinking: supplying business books on MP3 or a bus?
• allow me to work from home?

I'll try to add to this list and see if I/we can come up with an answer.

Technology ;)

Indeed, clutter can be very confusing.

Today

I wanted to clear some clutter today and throw old stuff away. Instead, I finished reading a book and then we visited my mom and had supper there. It turned out to be a lovely day, my husband even replaced the washing line, something I had been reminding (sounds better than nagging) him about.

About blogging

I have been reading some blogs and it really amazes me where these poeple get their ideas and inspiration from. I can just aspire to (one day) have the same type of following they have.

On my mind

Is the secret of productivity in the execution? I mean, does it help to read all those books if you're not going to try what they recommend? Are we wasting our time reading all the books? Well, I don't think so, but I'm still struggling with doing the stuff, no matter how brilliant the tips...

I think I should be reading about "doing stuff" next.