Even more about Swiss Cheese

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Today’s post starts with a caveat about Swiss Cheese—not the kind of cheese you see on the party platter, but the time management method of using small amounts of empty time to complete tasks.  

The caveat: beware of using the Swiss Cheese time management method to an extreme. A few years ago my husband Terry and I discovered that we were both “doing one more thing” while we were waiting for the other person. However, it was easy to solve the problem with clear communication. Today if I am emptying the dishwasher and he is sorting the mail when it is almost time to head out the door, I simply ask him, “Are we each doing one more thing while we wait for each other?”

Problem solved.

Another less often used description of the SwissCheese time management method is just as helpful as the one I described in the December 2016 post.  In his book, Doing it Now, Edwin Bliss describes the Swiss Cheese Method as “Make yourself do any small thing toward completing your task. ‘Poke holes in the task’ until it doesn’t seem like such a big deal to finish it.” 

Whether the task is to write a paper for school or create a proposal for a workgroup, start poking holes. The first hole to poke might just be to list all the details that will make up the task.

One hole for the school project might be to gather resources—that’s all, just do a quick internet search. Another hole might be to narrow the resources into the best five or ten by title. Another hole might be to skim one of the resources—you get the picture.

One hole for the work project might be to list what you already know. Another hole might be to list what you need to find out. Another hole might be to list people in the industry who could give good advice—again you get the picture.

Using the mindset of poking holes in a project until it seems manageable takes away any feelings of being overwhelmed and indeed makes the project manageable.

This Swiss Cheese method takes starting well ahead of the deadline and meshes well with the other Swiss Cheese method of using small amounts of free time.

By the time I write another post, another year will have started and I will adopt my annual anchor word. I am using some Swiss Cheese time to mull over what the 2017 anchor will be and have almost made my final decision. 

Consider what you will emphasize for yourself in the coming year. Leave a comment if you wish. 

Prioritize, focus, beat the clock—even if it means cutting the cheese

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Last post we discussed three surprising tips that connect decluttering to reaching success.  Today let’s focus on two more practices for de-cluttering and using time wisely and that are particularly useful during this busy, busy holiday season.

1.       Beat the Clock

I call the first time management practice “beat the clock” because it actually involves using a timer. The strategy combines prioritizing and focusing when I de-clutter and/or clean my house. First I determine how much time I have to complete the cleaning job that particular day and divide the time by the number of rooms I must clean to see how much time I can spend on each room. For instance, if I have eight rooms to clean in four hours (240 minutes), I can spend 30 minutes in each room. Second I prioritize the rooms in order of needing to be cleaned.
I start with the room that needs cleaning the most and actually set the kitchen timer for the allotted time. I find I am very focused on the job since I am trying to "beat the clock." If I do not finish that room before the buzzer goes off, I still must move on to the next room. If I finish any room before the buzzer goes off, I can go back to a room I did not finish earlier until the buzzer does sound. When the buzzer sounds, I move to the next uncleaned room.

Now, I know that cleaning house is not altogether like completing a school or job-related project, but might this system of prioritizing, focusing, and beating the clock have some carry-over to managing time while completing any project? How might you see yourself using this practice?

2.       Swiss Cheese

The other particularly useful practice of time management in this busy, busy season is the Swiss Cheese method. The Swiss Cheese method is most often described as using any little amount of free time to accomplish something. (Picture small holes in a wedge of cheese.) For instance, if you just have three minutes in a chunk of time, fold a dryer load of towels or order a party platter for your holiday open house or answer one review question at the end of a chapter. Where do these little holes of free time come from? Some ideas might include waiting for your tablet to boot up, standing in line at the grocery store, waiting for the rest of your family to get in the car.

Using small amounts of empty time to complete tasks sets a tone of accomplishment and spurs you on to more accomplishments.

In the next post we'll discuss a less often used description of the Swiss Cheese time management method.