November, 2012 | List Producer

Founder of “Bootights” Relies on To-Do Lists

November 27, 2012/in Benefits of List Making, Decision Making, Fellow List Producers, Guest Posts, Increase Productivity, Learning With a List, Oprah, Saving Money, Saving Time, School, Tool for Success/by Paula Rizzo

I love clever stuff. Those things that make you go “why didn’t I think of that?” That’s how I feel about Bootights! You know how you have to wear socks inside your boots even when you’re wearing tights? Just so you don’t destroy the tights or your feet don’t freeze? Well Bootights are tights that are especially designed to wear with boots! Yep — brilliant, right?

The founder Shelby Mason is a list maker just like us! So naturally, she’s my featured list producer: Read more

3 Ways to Be Less Stressed for the Holidays

November 25, 2012/in Holidays, Increase Productivity, Learning With a List, Reduce Stress, Saving Money, Saving Time, Tool for Success/by Paula Rizzo

christmas 2007 (Photo credit: paparutzi)

It’s pretty much impossible to not feel the heat when the holidays arrive. Gift giving, traveling, entertaining, cooking, parties, expenses, family — the list of stressers go on and on! For the past few years I’ve been making a conscious effort to go easy on myself. Here’s some of the ways I combat holiday stress:

1. Start holiday shopping early: Don’t wait til the last second! It will only stress you out. You have more than enough time to get gifts for everyone on your list without doing the crazy person dash on Christmas Eve. Online shopping is pretty much the best invention ever. Use it to your advantage! Lots of retailers offer free shipping too. Read more

Planning the Perfect Vacation With a List

November 8, 2012/in Benefits of List Making, Decision Making, Learning With a List, Reduce Stress, Saving Money, Saving Time, Travel/by Paula Rizzo

Picture it: You and your favorite person sipping cocktails poolside, warm sunshine, the scent of suntan lotion wafting through the air, fabulous music courtesy of a steel drum band, your to-do list consists of “relax,” “sleep late” and “eat out.”

You’re far far away from reality — you’re on vacation!

Makes you want to plan a vacation, doesn’t it? Me too! That’s where I’me headed next week so I figured I’ll leave you with my list for planning a vacation: Read more

6 Tips for Working Through Distractions

November 6, 2012/in Benefits of List Making, Increase Productivity, Tool for Success/by Paula Rizzo

Nutdanai Apikhomboonwaroot : FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Being back to work after Hurricane Sandy with my whole team has been a great morale booster. So happy everyone made it in and I could see all their familiar faces — it’s one more sign that life is returning back to normal.

But it’s easy to get distracted with all the war stories being tossed around. Plus — many people have to deal with insurance claims (myself mostly) and worries of childcare, heat, hot water and power at home. So getting actual work done is quite a challenge. Here’s some tips:

1. Tune out: I’ve gotten very good at this over the years from working in busy news rooms but it does take some practice. Engage for a bit and listen to all the stories from your coworkers but then at some point you have to mentally check out. This will allow you to focus on tasks in front of you. Sometimes headphones will help — I suggest blasting Dave Matthews Band or your favorite to drown out sounds around you. Read more

Post Hurricane Sandy List

November 4, 2012/in Benefits of List Making/by Paula Rizzo

Hurricane Sandy Flooding Avenue C 2012 (Photo credit: david_shankbone)

Remember me? I have to admit that I do feel very guilty for not updating this blog for over a week. But as a resident of New York City – Hurricane Sandy pretty much took over my life for a bit.

Here are a few updates on that front:

1. We just recently got power back to our building but still don’t have hot water or heat, which makes for pretty chilly nights! I have a hood pulled up over my head as I write this?

2. I was able to snag a hotel close to my job for a few days so I didn’t have to miss work and got a hot shower. But I know others weren’t as lucky because everyone and their mother (literary) has been looking for a room in NYC with power.

3. Our poor Mazda 3 was lost in the storm. We parked it in a garage in our neighborhood in the East Village and it was completely flooded. We haven’t been able to see the car yet because the garage is still flooded and dangerous because there is oil and gas in the water. But we heard at one point there was over 4 feet of water in the garage. The car wasn’t the only loss, though. My hubby’s golf clubs were in there too – guess I know what I’m getting him for the holidays!

4. Twitter is an amazing tool! I’ve been using it to stay posted on everything hurricane and restoration related. If you aren’t a Twitter user — you have to start. You can make lists of people to follow for different topics. For example — I have a Hurricane Sandy list with the Governor, Mayor, MTA, etc in there. So every time they tweet an update I can get it on that list. This is instead of wading through everyone’s tweets.

5. We are lucky that aside from the car and throwing out a fridge full of food – we didn’t have any other heartaches. Compared to the people in Breezy Point, NY and the Jersey Shore who lost everything – we are doing just fine! The amount of people from all over the country who called and emailed to check on us and/or offered a place to stay is really overwhelming. Thank you!

6. I’ll be back in business this week – because I was list making like crazy during the storm. I’ll let you know what worked and what didn’t!