Wishing you a life in order!

Robin

In This Issue:

Do I have ADD or Don't I?  That's the Question!
Computer Quick Tips: Easy Shortcut Keys in Word
Ten Rules of Email "Netiquette"
Upcoming Workshops

 

Do I have ADD or Don't I?  That's the Question!
(New York Daily News)

Over the past year, I have noticed an increase in the number of clients who suspect they may have ADD - Attention Deficit Disorder. Although some have been officially diagnosed with this disorder by a medical professional, I suspect that others have read about ADD and identify with one of the key symptoms: difficulty maintaining focus. I believe this is due in large part to the fact that we have so much stimulation around us that it becomes difficult not to get distracted. I’ve questioned at times whether I might have ADD! But maybe it’s just that we lose focus because we’re just overloaded and pulled in too many different directions.

Bonnie Mincu of Thrive With ADD offers a list of traits at her very informative website if you think you may be affected by ADD. Just click here for a list of traits. Contact her for a free 30 minute phone consultation on the benefits of ADD coaching. – just mention RealTime Solutions. I’ve included an interesting article from her website called It Doesn’t ADD Up: Do You Have Attention Deficit Disorder or Are You Simply Overworked? which explores the "modern life" problem – the consequences of over stimulation, overload and overwhelm.

Computer Quick Tips: Easy Shortcut Keys in Word
 

Just Start Somewhere: Real Time Organizing Solutions to Set You F.R.E.E.! Take a Peek! Do you want to live your best life right now? Eliminate the physical and mental clutter in your life, and watch your energy and creativity soar! This easy-to-read manual can help you go from chaos to carefree with simple, effective organizing solutions for every room in your home! Just Start Somewhere ebook: $8.95 (PDF format)

You can activate a command in Word by using shortcut keys. A shortcut key is usually the Ctrl key and a letter, although some advanced shortcut keys also include the shift key. To use, simply hold down the Ctrl key (and Shift key if required) and press the letter for the command. You'll find that shortcut keys will increase your productivity, since you don’t take your fingers off the keyboard to use the mouse. Some frequently used shortcut keys:

• Crtl+N  Creates a new blank document.
• Crtl+O  Opens a saved document.
• Ctrl+S  Saves the current document.
• Ctrl+P  Prints the current page.
• Ctrl+Z  Cancels the last change to the document.
• Ctrl+C  Copies the selected text to the clipboard.
• Ctrl+V  Pastes the cut or copied section.
• Ctrl+X  Removed the selection and places it on the clipboard.
• Ctrl+F  Finds text within the document.
• F1  Opens Word's help center.

If you’ve ever been bothered by annoying or rude emails, or if you’ve ever thought about what you can do to spruce up your own email “netiquette”, these tips can help. I found them at About.com, a great resource for ideas, tips, and articles for everything from home to business, personal development, computers, health, finances – you name it

1. Use email the way you want everybody to use it.
   You have the future, and the present of humankind in your hands — even when you just write an email.

 
2. Take another look before you send a message.
   Don't send anything you don't want to send.
   
 
3. Quote original messages properly in replies.
   Make your email replies easy to read and understand by quoting in a smart and useful manner.
    
4. Be careful with irony in emails.
   No, really! I mean it. Honestly!

 
5. Clean up emails before forwarding them.
   Forwarding emails is a great way of sharing ideas, but make sure the original idea is not hidden in obfuscation. Cleaning up such a mess can be cumbersome, but keeping an email clean that you forward initially is easy.
   First, make sure you're sharing the email, not the addresses in it by removing all addresses from the forwarded message. Of course, there are exceptions. In particular, when the list of who participated in a discussion is an important part of the information you are forwarding, it makes no sense to remove the addresses. Then, clean up the message itself if it contains unnecessary '>' characters. Email cleanup utilities like Eclean2000 and Quote Stripper will help you clean up emails quickly and easily.

 
6. When in doubt, Send plain text email, not HTML.
   Not everybody can receive your fancily formatted emails. Some may even react furious. To be safe rather than sorry, send plain text emails only when in doubt.

 
7. Writing in all caps is like shouting.
   Don't shout in your emails (and all caps are so difficult to read).

 
8. Ask before you send huge attachments.
   Don't clog email systems without permission.

 
9. Smileys should ring an alarm.
   Don't use smileys to say something you should not (and don't intend to) say in emails.

 
10. Avoid "me too" messages.
    "Me too" is not enough content, but too much annoyance. It quotes some opinion that has been posted to a mailing list, only to support it with the mere words: "Me too!!" You too, have you seen it? Please avoid them. There's really little new information and no contribution to the discussion, but a lot of annoyance in them. You should only support another message when you also have something new to contribute to the discussion.

Upcoming Workshops

I’ve got lots of great workshops planned for 2005.  I am partnering with longtime friend and business associate, Chef Corinne Kocher of www.chefcorinne.com for a workshop entitled How To Plan the Perfect Kitchen & Pantry. We’ll be organizing, cooking gourmet food from the pantry, and sharing tips on planning a new kitchen or remodel. We will also have this available on CD sometime in March.

Also in the works:

• Putting the Rocks in First: Getting What You Really Want Up Front
• Chaos to Carefree: Organizing at Work
• Just Start Somewhere

If you would like to schedule a workshop for a personal or community group, or for business, please contact me.

Wondering about your organizing skills? Take my personal or professional assessment and find out!

Contact me for a free evaluation and consultation.