Why wait for January - get organized now!

This issue's theme sprung from necessity. I think it was the act of trying to find the time in our family schedule for my son's second weekly gymnastics practice that prompted me take a serious look at the way I get my work done both at home and at Reminder Publications. Figuring out how I could carve out an extra two hours a week plus the 40-minute round-trip to the gym (that's a total of five hours, 20 minutes just for gymnastics every week) and still accomplish all the other tasks involved in being a reporter/editor/mom/homemaker started to get me a bit panicky. This new wrinkle in our schedule means I'll have one less afternoon at home to do laundry or pick up around the house or plan meals while I'm monitoring homework or a playdate. Sure, I can take some things with me to the gym such as balancing the checkbook or making grocery lists or sorting mail or marking up copy for PRIME. But I'm going to have to make sure I leave good notes about starting dinner and finishing up the wash for my very helpful husband. And though I'm blessed (and cursed) by having a flexible part-time job with Reminder Publicaitons, more gymnastics means I can't decide to stay late or come back in the evening at the spur of the moment just because I'm on deadline. I also can't afford to waste time any more looking for missing story leads or copy. I now need those extra hours in my day and week that organizing experts promise people will discover they have once they streamline and organize their lives. If you take a look at the photo in the feature on page 5 of this issue (yes, that is my desk), you'll see I have my work cut out for me. And I know I won't have the new system completely in place by the time school starts which is the same day this issue will hit the street. But that doen't mean I haven't started down the road to finding more time in my day to do the things I now need to do to keep my work/life balance. I'm about to cross "write editor's note" off my to-do list for today one day earlier than I usually get this task done. (Most months I write it as we go to press). And I'll be writing tomorrow's to-do list before I leave tonight (after I spend 10 minutes cleaning out a file). It's a start. I'll keep you posted on my progress . And, feel free to join me in getting organized now! Debbie Gardner PRIME Editor 280 North Main St. East Longmeadow, MA 01028 dgardner@reminderpublications.com