What to do next? Questions, Questions, Questions.

So what information or details would you like to see on this blog spot?

* Would you like further home-made personal treats?

* Or would you like information on Reiki?
* How about specific properties of your favourite crystals?

* Have the organisational blogs sparked your enthusiasm?
* What has been your favourite blog so far?
* Do you want to know more about chakras?
* How about VLOG's (video blogs)
* Or even competitions?

As always, thank you so much for reading and please let me know what you would like to see more of.

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How is your 2012 organisation going?

Returning to the subject of organisation (as we are a few weeks into the NewYear) how is your 2012 so far? Have you missed any appointments or birthdays? Can you tell at a glance what plans you have for the next week or month? When shopping do you have a list of what you require or do you grab your purse and hope?

For me, 2012 has been a success so far. I don’t believe I missed any birthdays or appointments. My family can quickly tell who is meant to be where and at what time by a variety of means. I’ve even changed phone and although I’ve had a slight change around (my old phone linked directly to Outlook and I manually entered data in a Yahoo calendar whereas now I link my IPhone to Google which then syncs to Outlook) I think I’m still on track.

However, I still use my Filofax’s to help organise everything. So below, may I introduce you to my (very cute) mini Filofax. I love the mini size as it’s easy to slip into almost any handbag but still retains its functionality. This blog could be photo heavy so please bear with me (although I’m sure my Filofax friends won’t moan too much):-

With ruler to show just how small it is.

The inside has two card slots (ideal for business cards or credit cards) and a secretarial pocket (is that the correct term?)

There is a full length pocket ideal for paper money:-

This shows my tab labels. I always like a map of the world with me as my geography is shockingly poor. A shopping list, segregated by which shop I want to go to (so encompasses a wish list too)

I try to keep a Week on two pages for the coming month and then Month on Two pages for the next 12 months. These are only basic appts and don’t take too long on a Sunday evening to copy across from my A5 main Filofax.

Showing my home-made Today marker (using re-cycled plastic from one of the boys Xmas toys)

The back has a zip suitable for coins, stamps, receipts etc








So what do you think to my mini Filofax? How do you (or do you) organise your time? As always, please do not hesitate to ask me questions or add comments below. Thank you for reading

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Why a Filofax

My main Filofax is an A5 Finsbury in Raspberry. I would love a lilac coloured, luxury feel A5 Filofax with good interior pockets but have yet to find one.

As a busy working Mum who is also trying to run a business from home, I find a Filofax invaluable for staying organised. As some of you know, I am also a gadget geek. I love the latest, fastest and shiniest smart phones. However, I just cannot see at a glance, other than on paper, where my family’s commitments are for the week. I need either my kitchen calendar (not good when I’m out and about) or a WO2P (Week on 2 pages). I do tend to either be sitting at a desk or near my car so carrying my A5 Filofax is not a problem.

I still love my gadgets and 99% of the time, carry my smartphone with me. I’m currently using a Windows Mobile phone and love the integration of Outlook from my smart-phone to my laptop. How does this affect your Filofax I hear you ask? Thanks to the wonderful contributors at www.Philofaxy.com, who have the most amazing knowledge I learnt I could print and punch Outlook pages into my Filofax. This way, I can quickly check on my phone for appointments and update where necessary. The beautify of an A5 Filofax means I can then print my Outlook calendar out onto A5 plain paper and put into my Filofax – bliss. I usually have WO2P printed for a couple of weeks in advance and then a MO2P (Month on 2 pages) for future 12 months.

To take my visual ability a little further, using the labels and categories feature in Outlook, each member of the family has their own colour code so when the calendar is printed, I can see immediately who is where. Organisational nirvana for me!

Birthdays, annual events, holidays are all carried forward automatically (also colour coded). For any changes to my schedule after it has been printed, I use matching coloured coded Frixion pens. Erasable, coloured ink – another blog topic!

Organisation tips (especially for busy Mums like me)

Ok I realise my topics vary like the weather in England but it’s topics that are hugely relevant to me and I’m sure will help others. You see before children I was very disorganised and late for everything. My turning point was when another parent commented how I was always late for everything. I blushed and promised myself I could do better. So here are some tips to start with:-

1. Have a To-Do list. I don’t mind if you have an electronic gadget or write it on a piece of paper, have a To Do list and take pleasure in marking off what you’ve completed. Personally I loose scrappy bits of To Do Lists so I now swear by my Filofax(s) but that’s a whole (several) new blog post(s).

2. For busy families, I love these style of family planners. We have one column per person and the spare column shows birthday, anniversaries etc. My wonderful Mum buys me one every year for Christmas as a stocking filler. Before 1st January I write in all birthdays, anniversarys, school holidays and annual events (ie MOT needs renewing, pet inoculations) It then hangs in a prominent place where all members of the family can check it. PS I know there are plenty of electronic apps which can also do this but my kids are too young for electronic devices just yet.

3. The next step is to empty school book bags as soon as your kids walk through the door. Any diary dates are immediately added to the Family Calendar, replies sorted immediately and put straight back into the book bag. Any letters for future reference are stuck to our fridge door with alphabet magnets (not the minimalist look!)

4. I set my clocks and watches 5 minutes fast and have learnt to allocate double my original estimate of time where kids are involved.

5. Keep a constant shopping list. Add the weekly always need items at the top and then as items get used up, add them to the shopping list. Teach everyone in your family to do the same. Hopefully you’ll no longer get “Mum where’s the tomato ketchup” because you’ll be able to reply “did you put it on the shopping list”.

I’d love to hear your organisational tips too, please leave them in the comments below.