But you do.  We’ll help you! Let this season be one of joy and peace.  A time to laugh with friends and share precious moments with family.  A time to visit with clients and show your appreciation.  You can sing those carols, shop with ease, and most importantly relax.  Sound too good to be true.  Well, try a few of these holiday time management tips and see if they work for you.

1.  Plan ahead:  Who says you have to buy the holiday meal the week before.  Each time you go to the grocery store, pick up those extra cans of cranberry sauce or Jell-O and jot it down on a list. With your business, buy those 2008 calendars, Daytime Planner refills, client gifts, etc.  Keep a list and as you get things, mark it off.

2.  Gift Certificates:  This is magic to the ears of relatives who don’t know what to buy family members and for us with clients who we aren’t sure what to buy. Not only are they well received, but instead of paying $5.00 or more S&H, you pay 41 cents.  Best yet, you don’t have to worry about the cut-off date for getting it there on time for those out-of-state packages.

3.  Organize:  It’s crucial.  You don’t have the time to be looking for things.  If possible before the holidays, spend a day or two and totally organize your home and office.  What a tremendous feeling to go into the holidays feeling on top of things.  If that’s not possible, grab every spare minute you can, whether talking on the phone or waking up early.

For your holiday wrap, scissors, tape, find a place for it and be sure to put it back each time. Your holiday catalogs arrive daily; you are going to need a place for them as well.  Find the best place now and then always put them there.

For business, start the New Year out right.  Clean out those files and file the important papers away. Get the trash can out and with lots of courage, toss out those things that aren’t important.  Be brave!  If you haven’t used it in a couple of months, chances are you won’t miss it. Do it!!  Go ahead and while you are at it, set up your files for 2008.

4.  Schedule Your Time Well:  It’s a glorious time of year.  Church and kids plays, office parties, holiday shopping, friends, family, etc., etc., etc.  Yes, it’s overwhelming, but with the right scheduling, it can be tremendous fun.  Write everything down.  A calendar on the wall with family events is a must.  You don’t want to miss a thing.  Get the haircuts, the holiday dresses/suits, and the family portrait now.  Also, now is not the time to add on any extras. If it can wait until after the first of the year, let it. (Oh, and don’t forget to arrange for those babysitters.)

For business, this can be an extremely busy time of year for many.  Clients need to finish up yearly tasks and might be sending you a lot of work.  For the seasonal clients, it’s even busier.  Stay focused.  Don’t let your mind constantly drift to the night’s activities.  Use your Daytimer and schedule your day precisely.  Use e-mail instead of the phone whenever possible.   Concentrate!  You can do it!

5.  Delegate Tasks:  Your time is valuable.  Is there someone else who can do the job for you?  Let them.  You might find they actually enjoy helping and often can use the money.

6.  Break Tasks Down: For those of us in business, many tasks are doubled.  You have your gift giving, sending out cards, etc. Do a certain amount each night. You’ll enjoy it more and won’t rush to complete the task.

Group your errands, both business and pleasure.  Make every trip count.  You’d be amazed at how much time you can save by planning ahead.   When you think, gosh that would be perfect for so and so buy it.   Why wait and have to come back and worse yet, have to think about where you saw it.

7.  Learn to Say No: This is a good business and personal practice all the time, but around the holidays it’s essential.  This year, think of you and your family first.  What would bring them the greatest joy?  Do you really need to do it?

8.  Avoid the Rushes:  We work from home.  We don’t have to be at the post office or bank at noon or after hours.  Go at 10:30 a.m.

9.  Avoid Guilt:  It’s outta there!  No, your house isn’t the cleanest.  So what!  So you didn’t finish all the marketing you wanted.  Big Deal!   What you have is more precious.  If you can enjoy this holiday, even for yourself, isn’t it worth it!  Aren’t you worth it!  Plus, how much better will you be as a mom and businesswoman.

10.  And Finally ENJOY!!   Not just that one night or several days, but the whole holiday season. Too many plan for the main event, the holiday itself, but instead, this year enjoy the journey getting there too.

Tis The Season To Be Jolly –
Fa La La La La –
I FOUND THE TIME!!

Diana Ennen is the author of numerous books including Virtual Assistant - The Series: Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA and accompanying Workbook and Corel Word Perfect Virtual Assistant Solution Pack.  This year she celebrated her 23rd year in business as President of Virtual Word Publishing,  www.virtualwordpublishing.com.  She has been featured in numerous books and magazines including Readers Digest, Wall Street Journal, Entrepreneur Magazine, USA Today, Home Business Journal, Woman’s World, etc. One of her true passions is helping others start their own business and she remains extremely active online mentoring and providing expert advice on business start-ups.

Ventura, CA (October, 2007) What does having more balance in life mean to you? It differs for everyone. For some it’s being able to focus more and stay organized on tasks. For others it’s reducing stress and learning how to relax. Yet, for many facing learning and behavior challenges, it can be successfully living with ADD, ADHD or Autism. Wouldn’t it be great to learn how to achieve this in just a few days? You can at the upcoming Brain Gym 101 Seminar in West Palm Beach, Florida. February 1 - 4, 2008. Are you living the life of your dreams? Are you doing the work you love? Are you and your children excited about learning and achieving to your potential? All of this and more are available to you when you have the Brain Gym® Program working for you in your daily life.

If you’d like to discover an easy way to enhance your memory, organization, concentration and creativity, this workshop is for you. The Brain Gym 101 Seminar is an extensive 32-hour event presented by Dr. Paul Dennison, founder of the Brain Gym Program. The workshop is open to new students, Brain Gym 101 graduates, and those licensed Brain Gym instructors looking to further develop their Brain Gym skills. The course is centered on the simple, fast and fun 26-targeted movements that make up the Brain Gym Program. These movements consciously activate the mind/body system to release learning blocks and prepare your brain and entire nervous system for optimal learning. Participants are taken step by step through each movement with the detailed Brain Gym 101 Handbook as a guide.

The course promotes efficient communication between the brain and the rest of the body, increasing play and creativity and alleviating stress as it enhances performance, all ingredients for better balance in your life. The success of Brain Gym can be attributed to its effective movements, and balances, as well as to its addressing the physical skills of learning.

Since the 1980s the field of Educational Kinesiology, the study of movement and its relationship to learning, has touched people of all ages and cultures. Brain Gym has been introduced in homes, classrooms, businesses, and places of learning in more than 80 countries on all seven continents with rapid and often dramatic improvement in reading, writing, language and numerical skills. Many others use the work to profoundly enhance the quality of their attention and concentration, memory and organizational skills, athletic performance, and more. The popularity of brain exercises today supports the positive and dynamic effects of stimulating brain movements.

The workshop also explores the five learning principles central to Brain Gym Work. They include:

1) Draw Out: Intelligence is Inborn

2) Focus: Attention Follows Intention

3) Notice: We Learn What We Actively Experience

4) Move to Learn: Growth Is a Search for Balance, Imbalance a Search for Growth

5) Interconnect: Each of Us Is Affected by Each Other

Come and engage with others who believe movement is the key to whole brain learning and overall better health and well being. For more information please contact Dr. Patty Shackleford at 352.475.3311 or drpatty@pkconceptsinc.com. Stop by the Brain Gym site today to learn more about the Brain Gym Program, http://www.braingym.com. Dr. Dennison’s latest book, Brain Gym and Me: Reclaiming the Pleasure of Learning is available on Amazon and other leading bookstores.