Precrastination

Precrastination

Procrastination has met its guilt ridden match—Precrastination! Now there is social stigma associated with being too efficient. Ironically I can relate.

Back in the early 90s I worked at a small local CPA firm and the construction industry was doing its usual dip, so there wasn’t a lot of work to do in my area. I was responsible for all of the financial statement audits and there was another division of the CPA firm that prepared all of the taxes. Apparently the Tax Partner was swamped and couldn’t get all the tax returns done timely. Since I was in the audit division I had no idea what was going on in the tax department, so I was spending my spare time on continuing professional education.

What is YOUR key to Success?

The Tax Partner complained to the General Partner that I wasn’t doing “anything” to which I said, “Give me some tax returns. I have prepared taxes before. I will help!” Of course I thought I was helping until I finished three personal tax returns by noon and I was promptly told, “You did that on purpose!” “Did what on purpose?” I said, thinking I would get praise not condemnation. “You just did those tax returns so fast just to make a point…” Trying not to laugh at the craziness of what was happening, I explained, “I used to do taxes, so it really wasn’t a big deal, do you have anymore?” “No, you’ve done enough…” OMG sometimes people just want to make things harder than they need to be and they really don’t want someone to come help them, be more efficient, or figure out a better way to do it.

So when it comes to this new thing for people to feel guilty about—Precrastination—don’t fall for it. Make every moment count, big or little, do what you do with purpose and passion and don’t put it off out of fear of precrastination and what others think of you. In my case above, it turned out I stopped working for that firm within a month after the above incident and went on to work at a very large local CPA firm where I was not only happily very busy, but where being efficient was rewarded in the way of promotions and bonuses. I also met my future client, friend, and employer/biggest client that changed my world in ways I could never have imagined. Had I stayed in the other small firm and tried to fit in, who knows where I would be now? Probably not as far as I am today…

Sherri Sue Fisher, author of TimerOrganizer and TimerDiet

www.timerorganizer.com

www.timerdiet.com

Blame Your Brain for Being Late? Really?

Blame Your Brain for Being Late? Really?

So now there is a biological reason for being late! Well according to the researchers reported by Elle Magazine. But, I am guessing that if you had to meet an attorney at $500 an hour you would be on time, or tickets to a program that did not allow late arrivals, or how about your surgery that is scheduled at 7AM sharp. More than likely if you are late, it is because you have decided the consequences are not that dire.

Surprisingly I Used to be Late

You may be surprised to know as an author on Organization, that I used to be almost always late to my appointments by about 15 minutes, back in the 90s. I did it all the time, to the point that even my client’s “joked about it.” I suppose it was their way of telling me that they noticed. It actually worked. I don’t think I lost any clients over it, but I was tired of the, “Oh I knew you would be late so I didn’t schedule the conference room till now”; “No worries that you are late, I can usually count on you being about 15 minutes late.”; or “I would be shocked if you were on time, I schedule our meetings 15 minutes late anyway.” This was not how I wanted to be perceived.

Different Standards for Others!

Ironically, my boyfriend was also 15 minutes late but never allowed me to be late…he would leave if I wasn’t there by the time he arrived. We finally had an open discussion (after many years of dating) and he was upfront, “I don’t want to wait at the restaurant by myself.” He continued, “I am perfectly capable and do appear on time when I need to…lawyers, time sensitive meetings like depositions, and court cases…but if I don’t need to be on time or I don’t want to be on time I don’t." Basically, it sounded to me like he was claiming the status of the Queen—the Queen is never late, when she arrives that is when things start. But I also got the message, we decide when we can be late and when we can’t…

How to stop being late!

So for myself, I decided I wanted to always be on time and it was time to make a change. In making any change deciding what you want is the first step. But, here are my tips on how I got over being late without changing my DNA.

1.     Decide what you do NOT want to be late for! (it may be only certain events or everything!)

2.     Figure out how much time it truly would take to arrive approximately 5 minutes early with realistic traffic

3.     Decide to leave 5 minutes before the time decided in #2 above (avoid quarter hours to leave—i.e. leave at 10:55am instead of 11:00am)

4.      As tempting as it is to do one more thing, stop at the designated time and walk out the door

5.     Bring things that will fill the time while waiting for the appointment/meeting/lunch to begin. My iPad, magazines, a book, anything that I can think of…(I actually have to give my boyfriend above credit for this suggestion when I asked, “What am I supposed to do while I am waiting for you to arrive?”)

6.      Most importantly notice how it feels to be on time while you are getting to your destination. I used to get all stressed out within minutes of getting into my car, because I knew I was late.

Being on time is good for your heart!! But maybe your brain doesn’t know that—yet!

Sherri Sue Fisher, author of TimerOrganizer just released June 27^th

www.timerorganizer.com/newsroom.html

Stress

STRESS

Stress Affects Us All Sometimes

We feel it! We hate it! We want to get rid of it! But, should we?

Recent Focus on Happiness

There has been a lot of focus on happiness lately, so much so that if you aren’t happy people begin to think you are just a whiner. But, I don’t think that is true. For the most part the desire to be happy is for one’s own purpose. It may be true that someone around you may also feel happier momentarily or they may just be annoyed that you are happy.

Is Stress Bad or is it Possibly Important?

In our quest to get rid of stress are we possibly burying some factual issue that needs to be addressed that we don’t want to address? Perhaps it is a bad job, no job, finances in disarray, a relationship that is not in our best interest…I could go on, but what IS stressing you out? Is it something you can change, even little by little, day-by-day? Trying to get rid of stress with a massage or a scented candle when we haven’t addressed the real cause for the stress and what needs to be done about it could have devastating consequences.

Now You Have a Plan

So if you took my advice and looked at the real reason you are stressed and you now have a plan or decided that what was stressing you out cannot be changed (for whatever the reason may be) now you can have your massage and scented candle and get a good night’s sleep and get started on your plan as soon as possible so you can make meaningful changes in your life.

Stress Comes and Goes

There are problems in our lives that we have to deal with and more than likely many of the problems we have today will not be there tomorrow. So write them down and then next month look at the list and see where they solved favorably or unfavorably. Are you surprised?

Sherri Sue Fisher, author of TimerOrganizer just released on Amazon.com

Available in E-Book Format very very soon! (if not now)

Having it ALL

Having It ALL

This appears to be a topic on the minds of many this last week and ironically it is one of the topics I touch on in my recently released book TimerOrganizer. In Chapter 3—Before You Start Organizing, I discuss the theory of Having It All.

 

Here is an excerpt from my book:

“We hear so often that we cannot have it all. But before you dismiss your dreams think about what this really means to you. Sometimes, we do not give ourselves a chance and we claim defeat by saying that we cannot have it all. What would be your dream? If you could have the exact life you wanted, what would it be? This is not about not being ungrateful for what you have; it is about desiring more for the future. Which brings up an important part of having it all: Many times we see people that appear to have instantaneous success, when the reality is they have been preparing for years if not decades for this moment. If you have a dream, what are you doing to prepare for it? What can you do to prepare for it? If you don’t know what “it” is, my guess is that you are probably not prepared for “it.”

A lot of times when people say they cannot have it all; it is not their version of all which they are referring to. No one wants to feel that they are holding you back from your dreams, not your spouse, kids, friends, or even your boss. They hope they are a part of your dreams, but no one who cares about you, wants to keep you from yours.” By author Sherri Sue Fisher TimerOrganizer copyright 2014

As You Can See

I didn’t really say a lot about it, I think what I said really covers it all. But, since there seems to be so much being said this last week between you can’t have it all as a woman, to women deciding to not have kids because of their careers, to others who say we can have it all but maybe not all at the same time, I felt this week’s blog really needed to address this topic.

Sherri Sue Fisher, author or TimerDiet and recently published TimerOrganizer

www.timerorganizer.com

 

Under Promise Over Deliver

Under Promise Over Deliver

If you are in business you have probably heard this mantra and especially when it comes to sales. So what does it mean? When you are dealing with someone (presumably a business associate) you don’t want to promise too much, but you want to always give more than you promised.

Why is it a Mantra?

You may be wondering if you have not heard this saying before why it is a mantra and even more so why do people have a problem not doing this in the first place.  Perhaps you’re not the one who has said, “I’ll call you,” when you knew the date did not go well. Or the one who said, “I would love to help you with your –project, charity, problem – or whatever the case may be," only to realize you are so busy that you have no idea how you are going to fulfill your promise. But, if you are you know what it’s like to want to ease the silence, make someone happy or at the very least not disappointment them. This is why it is a mantra…we want to promise so much…

How to Avoid the Over Promise

Many times there is silence that causes us to make promises. The awkward goodbye, the other person looking at you as to say, “what?” There are the other times when we are asked a question and we want to say anything but, “No”.  No, seems so harsh and impolite. So how to avoid these two common scenarios? First be okay with silence. In negotiations they also say, he who speaks first loses. I don’t know if that is always true, but the premise is to be okay with silence. Sometimes a smile can break the silence in a positive way without needing to say something you may otherwise regret. The other option is the request, if you are just not comfortable saying, “No thank you, but I appreciate you asking,” then you need to ask for time to think it over. Make this your mantra. “I’m not sure let me -- think about it, look into my schedule, ask my spouse, kids, or pet." Whatever you can think of to buy more time!!

 Under Deliver Really Shouldn’t be a Problem but What if It IS?

Hopefully when we make a promise we can make good on it, but what if we can’t? What do you do? Let the other person know as soon as possible. In the unfortunate case that you told someone that you would call them, I say go ahead and call them, but don’t make any plans unless the call seems to go better than you expected. If you made a commitment to be on a committee and you realized as soon as you got home you can’t do it, call the person right away and say that you are so sorry but you just can’t. In other words get it over with right away if you can’t do it. Why? Because it will make you feel better. The unknown of how the person will react can stress you out, so the best thing to do is expect the worst and get it over with. Besides, once it is over it really is on them not you to react with graciousness that you have a situation that you just cannot make good on.

So here is to UNDER promising and OVER delivering!! If you can do this your life will be so much easier!!

Sherri Sue Fisher, author of TimerDiet and now TimerOrganizer

Get your copy now at Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=timerorganizer