Declutter and feel liberated

Liberate yourself from stuff

Over the last few weeks, I tackled a number of smaller projects. Going through my paper folders and shredding those no longer needed.  Sorting my electronic pictures. Clearing the fancy dress outfits. Decluttering and organising my things created such a liberated feeling!

Do you want to get on a natural high? Declutter and you’ll get this feeling of being liberated! Just follow these simple steps:

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Stop the flood of emails

Don’t be controlled by your emails!

Over the last two weeks, I had a number of clients and readers asking me a VIQ, a very important question: how do you stop the email madness? They’re bombarded with emails and their inbox is taking on a life of its own. One of my clients was happy to share her story of how we got her to become the master of her emails, rather than email dedicating her life.

Let me introduce you to Amanda*. She is leading a service team based over 3 different continents and due to the time zones, the team has to operate via email as one communication channel. Very often, the team copied Amanda into the email as an FYI. With over 12,000 emails just in the inbox, more in the subfolders, there was a lot of information sitting around – often doing nothing.

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How to have more time this weekend

Time seems to fly in Dubai. How can it be that we’re almost in April while we just celebrated New Year’s Eve? They say time flies if you’re having fun. Generally, that seems to be true and like you, I don’t want to stop having a good time. And yet, I know that we can’t always have fun and live carelessly in the day. Often, the weekend is filled with errands, boring tasks which were ignored during the week and some fun activities. How can you make your time work for you and enjoy your weekends even more?

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Stay cool in times of stress

Last week, a member of the project team had a crisis. Everything was becoming too much for and she had to step out to regain her cool. It’s an all too common situation for a lot of teams and individuals these days. Deadlines are shorter, workloads are increasing and with smart phones, we’re constantly connected. Recharging our batteries becomes more challenging.

Here are 15 top tips to stay cool when you’re experiencing stress:

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Choices – You always got them!

Every day, we’re making hundreds and thousands of decisions. To get out of bed or lie in? What to have for breakfast? Who do I call first? Do I need to attend that meeting? Gym or TV after work?

While we may not always realise it, these decisions are actually choices. Think back of the film “Dangerous Minds” from the mid-90s. The teacher is having a discussion with her students about their choices. They don’t see any of them in their desperate situations. And there you have a teacher who made the choice to care about her students. If you haven’t seen the film, read the full passage here.

We always have a choice. Just how do we choose? Follow our heart? Our mind?

Mandela choice

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National procrastination week – I procrastinated…

Isn’t it ironic to write about national procrastination week a week after it took place? It amuses me as, like most of us, I can also procrastinate certain tasks and am actually quite good at that at times. Even now, I’m procrastinating. Being home alone, I can watch “The Peanuts Movie”. Yes, I hear you. I should either watch the film or write the post. Focusing on one thing is quicker than working on 2 activities at the same time. Sometime, I too have to revert to doing two things at once. And so procrastination starts.

Why do we procrastinate?

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No shopping for one month

I’ve read a number of articles where folks experimented how long they’d last not buying something. Often, shopping has a very calming effect. In the short-run, it gives you that pleasant feeling. Almost like a reward. You’ve made it through another tough day at work. Treat yourself to that nice handbag, that lipstick or that dress. You are worth it. It will make you feel so much better!

Yet, shortly afterwards, this positive feeling changes into guilty. Did I really need that handbag? How can I justify spending so much on a lipstick? Is that dress really looking that good on me?

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Do I need to develop myself?

“How do I find time for my own personal development?” That was a question a client asked me recently and it sparked an interesting conversation. Do you find time or do you make time?

Fed up by her company deciding on her next role, she wanted to take matters into her own hands. Her focus was her own career progression within the same organisation. She realised that there was no question about finding or making time. Making time was her only option if she wanted to determine her future herself.

Michael Moran, the CEO/Founder of 10Eighty, once suggested that we’d plan our careers like our holidays. It’s only January and my team and I had probably 12 chats about the places we wanted to visit this year. There weren’t 12 conversations about how we’d like to develop ourselves career-wise in 1, 2 or 5 years. Do you have these in your team?

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How to get the most out of your time

I was really excited to give a presentation on time management to Middlesex University Dubai students this week. Managing the reading assignments, course work and holding a full-time job is a true challenge. No wonder they wanted to learn how to maximise the 24 hours we all have available.

This presentation came at the righttime. My own week has been a crazy busy and crazy good week for me. My team at work is entering its hot period and there’s still so much to prepare. Sometimes, I wish I could work more but that’d be at the cost of my private life. And I love my private life.

Over the last few days, I helped my neighbour prepare for her job assessment. Hearing how well she did was a fabulous reward for the time we worked on various excel spreadsheets. A client is looking for some additional help on one of his organising projects and this morning, Tony Buzan presented his mind mapping methodology at a breakfast meeting. After tomorrow’s Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon, well, 10k for us, I’ll call the spot on the couch to crash.

I’m sure you’ve jam packed weeks. Maybe not just once in a while but for you, it may have become a regular occurrence. How’re you coping with the constant adrenaline rush? And the feeling of stress? While I don’t believe you can have it all like SJP showed in the movie, how come some people seem to manage their maxed out calendars better than others.

They all are clear about what they want and what’s important to them.

What’s your goal?

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