Tagged: time management

Planning is making time for things that matter.

Year-End Review, New Year Planning

December is the month when my planning instinct kicks into overdrive. I flip the calendar page on the first, and it’s as if I’ve opened a new channel in my brain. All the while I’m enjoying holiday preparations and wondering...

Deep Work by Cal Newport review

Deep Work by Cal Newport: A Review in Visual Notes

I enjoy books on time management, life balance, and purpose, but I’ve read so many that it’s rare that one stands out. Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport definitely stood out. Moving past elementary...

Year-end planning and a printable monthly calendar for your planner.

Year-End Planning and 2016 Planner Calendar

A Simple Year-End Planning Routine Each year at this time, I try to spend at least an hour each day planning, organizing, and tidying. A tidying of my physical space helps to organize my mind and heart for the new year, but I’ve discovered that year-end planning works...

Keep homeschooling simple with simple routines and records.

Keeping it Simple in the New Homeschool Year

Love it or hate it, it’s time for a new school year. It may seem absurd to think about simplifying now, just as you are faced with crisp new notebooks, sharp pencils, and delectable stacks of books, but the first month...

“Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of.” Benjamin Franklin

Big-Rock Planning

Big-Rock Planning for Life Whether you are planning a homeschool year or just mapping out a routine for life, don’t forget to start planning with the big rocks—the things that matter most. Big-rock planning works in every area of life. I’ve written about it...

The Scream by Edvard Munch, 1893

Time Management for Busy Times

What to do when you can’t do everything It’s almost the end of the year, so I am thinking more about time management than usual. December is always full—in addition to the holidays, we have family birthdays, our anniversary, volunteer activities, whatever business project is...

Time management tips from Benjamin Franklin

Create A Simple Schedule Like Benjamin Franklin

Time management and simple scheduling can help you accomplish the things that matter most in life. I’ve made schedules for every stage in my life, and one mistake I consistently made in the early years was to try to shoehorn in too many...

You need focus in order to accomplish big things.

Just Say No to Desktop Notifications & Other Dings and Beeps

I receive e-mail through a Google apps interface that provides a calendar and docs, and handles mail in Gmail style. Every time I’ve logged in recently, a banner over my inbox has invited me to receive desktop notifications of new e-mail as...

Streamline life with habits and routines.

Streamline Your Life with Habits

Charlotte Mason believed that a habit is “ten natures,” and she was right. Habits can make life smoother by automating repetitive tasks. By simply thinking through the things you do each day, and figuring out how to do them most...

Every Monday is a new beginning: The joy of daily and weekly routines.

Every Monday is a New Beginning

I love Monday — it’s my favorite day of the week!* From the pinnacle of Monday morning, there stretches before me a string of four perfect days at home. From now until Friday, I’m able to focus on home and to be...

Purposeful Planning: A Review

It’s back-to-school planning time! Summer’s winding down, and we’re already preparing to head back into the school year (it’s almost too hot to think of!). Even though the boys are finished with homeschooling, there’s still plenty of schoolwork happening with...