As a busy CPA, I was always looking for ways to save time. I would occasionally go to the library and scoop up an armful of time management books. I would take them back to the office and skim through them. They all kinda said the same thing. Make a list, prioritize it and put estimated times to complete by each item. Do the A’s first, then the B’s and then the C’s.
It was better than nothing. But it had holes in it. Under the C items was get new tires. But this never happened till a tire failed and I was stranded beside the road. Then that C became and A.
Back in the day, the ABC method worked. But today, you walk into work and your boss says, “Sam will not be able to give the sales pitch in New York tomorrow, he quit. You will have to be there to give the sales pitch. There goes your ABC system out the window. So what you need is to be ready for anything at a moment’s notice. You need to be 100% ready for whatever comes at you.
Keeping track of your to-do list in your mind takes up a lot of storage. “Gotta remember to get milk, gotta remember to call my sister back, gotta remember to return that library book.” So your mind is not like a placid lake. Your cache is full, it is not ready to process getting ready to go to New York tomorrow. Writing down everything clears that cache. Now it is like a placid lake. Ready for action. Like a martial artist, it assumes the position and is ready to go. This methodology contributes greatly to my preparedness.
I found a book that changed my life. It was Getting Things Done, by David Allen. He said that our minds are great at thinking up solutions for problems but terrible at remembering things. Thus, we go to Home Depot for a can of paint and forget the flashlight batteries.
David Allen said you’ve got to capture every “to-do” item. I do this through the monthly pocket Daytimer. This requires me to have pocket T-Shirts to carry it in, along with my reading glasses and a pen. Thus, I had to get rid of all of my T’s without pockets. Otherwise, when all of my pocket T’s got dirty, I would go to the non-pocket T’s and guess what, the Daytimer got left behind and its purpose failed. The whole system fell apart.
David Allen says that you don’t put the item to be accomplished, clean garage, you put down the next action, you must see if your brother-in-law wants the old fridge in the garage which is blocking cleaning the garage. Or, do you have it hauled off? You gotta get that fridge out of there first. So put down action steps, not broad goals. And the next action step. How do we eat an elephant, one bite at a time. The next bite is your action step.
So everything goes in the pocket Daytimer immediately. Every phone number, every part number, every item to buy. It gets captured. When I transfer the information to the next booklet at the end of the month, I go over everything I need to do, buy, follow up on.
I get my long tail pocket T’s from Duluth as they wear like iron. Then I have a big pocket put on the right side for my big cell phone. That way I do not have to wear my phone like a holster catching on stuff while I am fixing fences, etc.
I carry a Pilot G-2 05 pen because it is a fine point and I can click it open with one hand while the other has package or bag in it.
I get little reading glasses online. Just big enough to work. No case for them. Somehow, they do not get scratched.
The Daytimer goes in the original pocket T shirt. The Daytimers that I use are the item “96010 two-page per day original”. It costs around $50 a year for them and they go in a nice provided plastic storage bag. I write down every cent that I spend. That comes in very handy in tracking my movements and events. All my appointments are in there. I stick in a few little post-it notes for temporary lists or to give my phone number out to people.
I have Getting Things Done on Audible and listen to it in my car to get me motivated.
I have a closet in my house with supplies to save a trip to the store. Diet Coke, cans of soup, crackers, some toilet paper, a few Tylenol, some paper towels. This is my secret stash.
In my car, I carry a case of bottled water, bag of beef jerky and a jar of peanuts. Thus, no stopping for expensive drive-thru food. In my car I also carry a writing pad, envelopes, and stamps. I can fire off a letter if I am sitting and waiting for someone. I always carry a book to read in my car. This goes with me into doctors’ appointments. I read several books per year using this method.
Of course, I carry jumper cables, tire inflator, power pack, a can of fix-a-flat, several flashlights, toolkit, blanket, space blanket, boots and jeans, I carry a big knife, extra glasses, bear spray, a box of cartridges for my pistol, and a second cell phone. Also a cell phone charging battery with solar panels connected to it. A shovel, ax, some little bottles of Lucas injector cleaner to put in when I gas up. I carry an envelope of one-dollar bills and some twenties. I replenish them at the first of each month when my Social Security comes in. The ones come in handy for tipping. I can lay down a twenty and a couple of ones and scoot out of the restaurant while the other diners are fiddle-faddling around with their credit cards and the waitress.
I like to carry extra motor oil, brake fluid, power steering fluid, transmission fluid and 50/50 antifreeze. And I carry Dave Canterbury’s Canteen set up. I have big Post-it notes, extra pens, some scotch tape and a few paper clips. I carry extra handkerchiefs and of course my big first aid kit.
While watching a hobo video I learned the value of having a second cell phone in my car. For use if I lose my main phone, if its battery goes dead or if that network goes dead. Yeah, one phone is on ATT and the other on Verizon. And I have had each one go down.
I’m not telling you what to do, but just going over this list may trigger you to add an item or two that could really make your life easier as a road warrior.
Learn to reflexively say no, all the time. You can always change your mind, later. The first thing to do to get a hold of your time is to stop digging. So, get in the habit of saying no to everything.
Each night, I write down the three most important things to do that day. And then I do only them.
Finally, each morning I do something on the laundry chores. Load the washer, unload the dryer, something. Just 10 minutes. This keeps the clothes moving.
I take photos of cluttered corners and look at the items on my computer screen to end vagueness.
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