4 Ways to Make Your Resolution Stick

/1 Comment/in , , , , , , , , , , , /by

luigi diamanti / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

It happens every year – you make a New Year’s resolution and by February you’ve forgotten about it. It happens to the best of us – but it doesn’t have to be that way. It’s the way that you’re making your resolutions that is probably setting you up for failure. So here’s a checklist to make sure that you stick with your New Year’s resolution this year:

1. Make It Attainable: If you make your goals too unrealistic or broad you will never reach them and you’ll be disappointed. For instance – don’t say you want to run 10,000 miles this year if you don’t have the time or resources to do it. Instead vow to run two miles a day, five times a week – this is much more attainable and you’ll feel satisfied when you’re able to reach that goal. Read more

Lists of Things You Can Control

/0 Comments/in , , , , , , , , , , , , , , /by

I will make a list about anything! Colors I like, restaurants I want to try, changes I want to make to my apartment, things I need to do, etc. President Ronald Reagan was the same way and so are a lot of people. But if you’re scratching your head and don’t know what to list about — here’s some inspiration from Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D. She’s hosting my upcoming teleseminar “Compulsive List Making: The How’s and the Why’s.” I hope you’ll sign up!

Making Lists About Things You Can Control

by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D.

Part of being productive is taking control over those areas where you can exert some control and making lists lets you take some control. Hooray!

Now here’s a key idea: We need to focus our attention, energy, and lists ONLY on those areas where we have some control. Here’s a list of six areas where you do:

1. What you wear. I’m assuming that if you are reading this that you are an adult. So you get to choose what you wear. Choose wisely and well. If your clothes are uncomfortable or your feet hurt or you’re fussing with your scarf all day, you’re less productive. Make lists related to what you wear. Read more

Grocery Lists Save Time and Money

/14 Comments/in , , , , , , , , , , /by

Every Sunday my husband and I go grocery shopping. We don’t even think about going without a list so we can get in and out of the store as quickly as possible.

Every week we have these same staples on our list:

  1. Milk
  2. Bread
  3. English Muffins
  4. Strawberries
  5. Bananas
  6. Blueberries
  7. Raspberries
  8. Salad
  9. Cranberry juice
  10. Tomatoes

Every week without fail – these foods make the list. So why do we write them down? So we don’t have to remember to remember them. It’s a no-brainer. If you go grocery shopping without a plan – you will definitely spend more time and money. Read more

Checklist for the Perfect Pet

/2 Comments/in , , , , , , , , , , , , /by

I’ll never forget when I was in third grade and we got a puppy for Christmas! I had basically been asking for one everyday for over a year. Finally my parents gave in and surprised me — it was one of the best holiday gifts I’ve ever gotten (aside from my engagement ring 🙂 ) Buttons was my best friend and partner in crime for sure!

But not everyone should become puppy parents over the holidays — it’s a stressful time and because a pet is going to become a member of your family…it’s an important decision. I’ve asked Aaron Hill, a certified professional animal trainer and the owner of Pets in the City, to give us some tips on picking the perfect pet. For my own personal choice, I’d highly recommend using a dog walking service. When I was in Seattle, I used PugetPets as a way to make sure my doggie got some much-needed exercise each and everyday. Read more

Be Less Overwhelmed by Email

/3 Comments/in , , , , , , , , /by

There are days when I’m drowning in email. I get tons of pitches at work for health segments ranging from fitness classes to surgeries. Then my personal emails from friends and family pile up and of course there are messages about ListProducer.com. Here are some amazing websites to help you come up for air when you’re over your head in emails:

1. NudgeMail.com: This website will remind you of important emails you need to respond to. You simply forward the email to an address they give you and then when you’d like to be reminded about it — and you’ll get a follow up email about it. Brilliant and free!

2. Followup.cc: Here you can also forward an email or blind carbon copy (bcc) an address given to you by followup.cc. If you write “1day@followup.com” then you’ll be reminded in 1 day. You can also email yourself reminders by emailing a specific time like “6pm@followup.com” and you can write an email to tell you to do a task you need to do then. You can even snooze the reminder if want to.

3. Boomerang for Gmail: You need to have gmail email set up to use this one. This will allow you to follow up with people who haven’t written you back. So if you send an email to someone on Tuesday — you have the email sent back to you in any time you specify if that person hasn’t written you back. Yes — it seems like a good nagging tool but it’s also a good “on top of your game” tool. You can also schedule emails to go out at a certain time with this service.

Everyone can use a little help managing overflowing in-boxes — but you can also make a difference by being mindful of the amount of email you send. You don’t always need to write back. Before you hit “send” on your next message — think about if it really needs to be sent or if it will just clog up someone else’s in-box. Good email karma is a wonderful thing! (so is email etiquette)

Still feeling overwhelmed by your email? Check out my course Take Back Your Inbox.