Mission: Organization

Do you know how hard it is to get your hands on an accordion file folder at this time of year?  I mean, what the heck?  I just wanted a file sorter to keep my stuff organized.

I did find a pretty cool organizer though.

 

What I like about this is that it's only 8 pockets but each pocket doubles as an envelope section to hold smaller things. My front pocket, for example, is for miscellaneous information with the pocket envelope at the bottom holds my thank you cards to be sent out.  Then I've got a folder for Powder Blue stuff, Zumba stuff, Shakeology stuff, BeachBody stuff, Push challenge material and bills and personal documents.

It was starting to get cumbersome hauling around random pieces of paper to various places.  I can just toss this in to my bag and pull out my cheat sheets for Hustle, my new Zumba choreography cheat sheets, information for people interested in Shakeology or BeachBody challenges and not be searching through random stuff to get what I need. 

I also spent some time organizing more stuff in my workout central.  I threw out documentation I didn't need, found some additional documentation to go with my taxes (I had the amounts from my check book but now I have the formal receipts) and threw away some extrameous packing materials that were hanging around.  

All in all, not a bad days work for trying to get organized.  Tonight, after I teach Hustle at the Y, I'm going to finish going through all the stuff in the drawers next to my side of the bed and try to come up with an organizational structure for my gym bag as well.  It's so hard because I need a lot of space for clothes when I do double or triple classes in a day but I also hate lugging around my large duffel bag.  Ugh!

I also need to buy a new purse for all the stuff I need to carry.  Currently my bag isn't big enough to even hold my calendar.  I'll find something, I'm sure.

Today I also started reading Chalene Johnson's new book PUSH.  It's a lot like the 30 Day Challenge I did last October but a little different and a bit more focused and I'm excited about it.  Today I did my priority worksheet and I went back and compared to the last challenge and wow have things changed in just that time! I'm excited to see what new stuff I learn about myself this time around!

This week could not POSSIBLY get better...

This week has been sufficiently insane and I couldn't love it more. Here's the skinny on what's been going on this week.

Monday: Work was incredibly busy, fulfilling and made me kind of high on the rush of deadlines.  I had a fantastic class at my senior center location.  A new student showed up who wound up being an old friend from my previous job! We had lost touch when she left about a year before I was laid off.  It was really exciting to see her and catch up a bit! This class planted the seeds of fun for Tuesday!

Tuesday: Run, run, run! Work was a whirlwild of getting ready for this meeting next Monday in Winston.  My eyes were about to BLEED from staring at PowerPoint all day.  Zumba double class fun ensued after work.  After class on Tuesday someone commented that she wished we did Shake Senora at the start of class rather than at the end.  I asked why and she said it helped to make her feel more comfortable.  It's a silly dance and makes you face your class mates so I can see her thought process.

So we tried it! It really did change the energy of the class.  Normally the first 2-3 songs are warm up.  I tossed Shake in as the end of warm up.  It's silly but it's still a good cardio song so it fit in the flow.  It was really cool everyone was off to the races with laughing and joking and just giving it their all.  It worked out well in both classes and tonight I'm going to try it with Big and Chunky or Drop it Low which are two of our other fun songs.

Wednesday: This day shall be known as the day of incredible awesome.  First off - my month end weigh in.  Down to 328.  Huzzah! Progressive weight loss! The scale keeps moving downward in a slow, but mostly steady, pattern. This starts my day off on a happy note.

I had an awesome meeting with the team for the Monday meeting in Winston.  The PowerPoint was well received and the edits were minimal.  Then I had a good talk with my boss about some other job related stuff and I'm really excited for things yet to come.

After work one of the temps on my team said something that just made my heart break that we're losing most of them at the start of the new year.  I love working with all of them and I really wish we could hire them all on permanently.

Then dinner with Marshall and his folks for his birthday.  My beloved turned 32 yesterday and we had a tasty meal out at Ruby Tuesday.  Nice and calming.

Later in the evening I taught at the YMCA and class was incredible.  Firstly, it was my first 20+ student class at the Y on my own.  Very cool.  Secondly, using Shake Senora at the start helped to bring in new folks and let them just have fun and not feel so nervous.  Thirdly, I got an amazing compliment after class.  One of the new students caught me after class and told me she loved class, said it was a fun and joyful class, she loved it and she would be back. She also honked and told me I rocked as I walked to my car. 

At this point the outside was suffering from a sudden dust storm.. because that's the only excuse for my eyes getting so watery.  I rarely get compliments so three big ones in a day is like hitting the lottery for me.  I felt so loved, so appreciated and so grateful.

After class the lovely Miss Sarah surprised me with a very thoughtful gift - a "Christmas bonus" of sorts - for all the help I give her.  It was completely unexpected and incredibly sweet. She is so awesome and never fails to remind me how much she appreciates my help.

Then we met Marshall and Matt for a birthday drink at the local bar.  It was a perfect ending to a perfect day.


Thursday:  Already a great day.  Lots of good news all around. Marshall should be finishing up this thesis defense shortly so hopefully more awesome to come!

Simply Restful...

That's what today was and dear goodness was it needed!

Yesterday, after the Zumbathon, I knew I needed a good day of doing nothing and I finally got it.  Last night I went to bed a bit before midnight because I was lost in reading A Game of Thrones.  I had planned a much earlier bed time to start my day of nothing early. Oh well!

Could you say no to these two cuties?

I slept in until around 10 am and woke up to a snuggly Robin and Napoleon demanding my attention. 

I took half a shower and changed into fresh pajamas for a day of pure indulgence. My goal for the day?  To do my best impersonation of the kitties - lounge, eat, get someone to pay attention to me and more sleep.

It was a splendid day but I am just not built for being a lay about anymore.  I kept thinking "You should do a pilates workout! Get those muscles working so you can try Pi-Yo"  or "You should work on refreshing Footloose! The studio crew really wants to do it!" or "Those dishes aren't going to wash them selves."  I fought the urges though and was successful at embodying sloth as much as it was possible!

Things I did do today include;

• eating pizza
• eating a giant Reese's cookie
• going to Big Lots for candy for trick or treat
• met up with Sarah and grabbed Moe's for dinner
• bought way too many songs on iTunes
• playlists! playlists galore!

I was music buying crazy person earlier this evening.  Sarah and I both love to use random pop, R&B, or rock songs that were favorites of ours as cool downs in class and I found some awesome ones on the cheap today! The ones I'm excited to do the most?  Motownphilly and Faded.  Been listening to them on repeat all afternoon.  They're still upbeat but you can groove to half time moves and sing along while you stretch.  So fun!

I've got playlists for this entire week 95% done.  I've got a core of 8 songs on each and am still playing with the 8 others and warm up/cool downs on the lists for later this week but that's one less thing on my plate this week.

It's been a good, restful, relaxing day.  I'm not quite ready to go back to work tomorrow. I'd much rather be at home, on the couch, with the kitties!

Simplifying Office Space

I'm almost finished with the Chalene Johnson 30 Day Challenge. I'm loving the tips and tricks I'm learning for managing my to-do lists, my goals, my priorities and getting my life in order.  Her challenge is one of the things that actually gave me the nerve to start this blog.  

The challenge for Sunday was to work on organization in a space that will aide in moving me towards my goals.

I picked the space in my office because I've noticed that I've been spaced out and distracted by people walking back and forth past my office door a lot lately.  The lack of concentration has impacted how quickly I complete my tasks and has often led me to feeling rushed to meet deadlines.  So I did it! I moved furniture, reorganized and made my office a better environment for reaching my professional goals.

 Before:
 




After:

It's amazing how much moving my furniture around and finding new places for supplies has done for my state of mind.  I did the rearrangement on Monday and between yesterday and today I have completed 3 major projects that I had been working on off and on for a few weeks.  All 3 of them are now off my desk and no longer weighing on my mind.

I still have a few things I need to do like get a new vase for my bamboo and new pots for the tiny plants on my window sill.

I love the new set up! Facing the wall keeps me from being distracted by people going back and forth to the printer.  I love being able to look out the window when I'm thinking and I love that the natural light helps my eyes hurt less from the monitor and the lights above me.

It also is a more welcoming office.  I can talk to people without peeking over my monitors.  I can sit and have an actual conversation with people sitting in the chairs in my office now.

I also spent a good amount of time cleaning out my drawers and making sure everything is filed away correctly.

Little changes. Major impact!