For the final episode in this series about the Education Friday Workbox®, I'm talking with Kate McDonnell. Kate is single and lives with her cat in Colorado. She has been a teacher for over 15 years. Her career started with teaching science but her background is in computer programming. She now teaches many different technology-related courses in different formats with a schedule that changes every week. Kate is also a certified organizer. You can find out more about working with her here. In this episode, Kate and I discuss the challenges of teaching and organizing so many different classes and then the administrative work that goes along with that. Kate loves using  the portable Sunday Basket® to carry her Slash pockets and papers with her to her various schools. We also talk a little about managing email. You know that I'm not your digital organizer, but I do have some tips for organizing email. (I share even more about email organization in the email course inside of The Productive Home Solution™.) Learn more about the Education Friday Workbox® here. Registration for Teacher Camp is now open. Click here to learn more and sign up.

Education Friday Workbox® with Kate McDonnell

Lisa Woodruff is a home organization expert, productivity specialist, and author of multiple books including The Paper Solution.

Lisa’s research-based teaching shines a light on the invisible work being done at home and in the workplace. Lisa’s sensible and doable organizing tasks appeal to multiple generations. Her candor and relatable style make you feel she is right there beside you, helping you get organized as you laugh and cry together.

Lisa believes organization is not a skill you are born with. It is a skill that is developed over time and changes with each season of life.  Lisa has helped thousands of women reclaim their homes and finally get organized with her practical tips, encouragement, and humor through her blog and podcast at Organize365.com.

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This is the recap of Day 1. I was driving to Jayme to teach the first workshop for her teachers about the Teacher Friday Workbox®. I’d been having conversations with other schools about implementing the Teacher Program in their schools. I was shocked by the one thing holding them back. The honest feedback I was receiving was that they were afraid they’d be shedding light on how overworked the teachers were and they knew the staff was resentful and considering quitting. They were afraid that making visible all of the invisible work they do would give them reason to submit their resignation!  You’re Not Alone And You’re Not Crazy I shared this feedback with Jayme who laughed. “They already know they are overworked!”  Jayme’s staff had two reactions to the Teacher Friday Workbox®. Some (especially new faculty) were afraid to do it wrong. Jayme assured them if they were just doing something they were doing it right. And the others had epiphanies saying, “I’m not crazy, and I’m not alone.” Those teachers discovered through the Teacher Friday Workbox® that other teachers felt the same as them. And it was cathartic to visualize all they really did and it was no longer a mystery why they felt overwhelmed. Jayme encourages other schools to understand that each teacher will embrace it at their own level and that’s ok. At one point too, Jayme did the time circles with the teachers once again reinforcing that their time was spread pretty thin.  The First Workshop There I was with Jayme the principal, the assistant superintendent, and a room full of teachers. I couldn’t wait to hear all their feedback and realizations. But something interesting happened. I encouraged them to bring to light any issue within the building. This was another time they realized they weren’t alone in noticing the same issues. They were learning from each other. “Do the best you can until you know better. Then, when you know better, do better.” Maya Angelou. We discussed the different colored slash pockets and their use in the Teacher Friday Workbox®. The mental wellness of the staff providing for the students is so important. Now teachers had a designated place to place important documents.    Red for behavioral matters like IEP’s, 504’s, things with possible legal implications   Orange for calendars and computers - maybe they wanted to print off something actionable from a parent   Yellow out of the classroom; like field trips or projects for parents who help   Green reimbursement but some use it for grading or lesson plans   Blue teams; grade level, building level, parent, IEP, meetings (record questions for next meeting)   Purple attendance   Pink THE TEACHER! PD, peer reviews, or maybe just happy mail to remind you that you are a good teacher and the kids love you.   Jayme noticed two awesome unexpected side effects. The teachers were now task stacking due to accomplishing tasks of the same color. And there was a trickle down of sorts where teachers could offer similar solutions to students to tackle their assignments.  I Almost Turned Around As I drove away recounting the workshop, all I could think of was the Special Education Team. They had no checklists and they were all new. They were new to the building, and most of them new to the Special Education Department. I knew they were going to need more support, so I arranged more time for the Special Education teachers. I do all of this in the name of teacher wellness, communication, and teacher retention! EPISODE RESOURCES:   Teacher Friday Workbox®   Sign Up for the Organize 365® Newsletter    On the Wednesday podcast, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365­® community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps and triumphs along their organizing journey. I am grateful that you are reaching out to share with me and with this community. You can see and hear transformation in action. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday. Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media!

Teacher Podcast #5 - Teacher Pilot Launch Day

“What do you wanna get mom?” Is this the question you are asking your siblings? Are you starting to plan to get something for your mom for Mother’s Day? You know I’m all about planning and I have a great idea that could be the perfect solution to your gift dilemma.  You’ll buy the $20 item…but will you gift yourself organization?  We moms are where the holidays come from, right? And while you are shopping for your mom (if you are lucky enough to still have your mom), you’ll probably pick up smaller priced items you want. I know this because I am a mom, too. But will you gift yourself organization? Probably not. We have discussed before that this is not a line item in the monthly budget. So now may be the perfect time to put a Sunday Basket® or The Productive Home Solution® on your wish list and start dropping hints. While you love the flowers, now may be the time to say “enough with the flowers, will you please put that money towards organization?” Organization leads to confidence. Confidence leads to believing in opportunity. You’ll have time to explore those opportunities when you become productive as a result of getting organized. Could there be a better gift? I mean actually? Mental sanity - I think most moms long for mental sanity.  And maybe you get it for your mom. There is no age where you are too old to start organizing. And really, it’s kind of a gift for you too. You know as well as I do, that at the end of the day you can gift her organization now or do it yourself when you settle that estate. You two could be getting organized together.  How will you tell your child’s teacher “Thank You” this year?  It’s also the time of year when the class goes in on a gift for the teacher. It’s possible their teacher may not know what it is at first. But once they realize the gift they have received??? Let me just tell you, on the Wednesday podcast there are some episodes coming up where once teachers got their hands on the Teacher Friday Workbox®, they actually ended up using it as a Sunday Basket® for home. Teacher’s value organization. Help your teachers to free up mental chaos at home this summer. Free up their time this summer so they can focus on their families and aspirations, and then they can return to the classroom refreshed. Who knows they may even grab the Teacher Friday Workbox® to stay organized at work, too!  Did you know that office supplies are a teachers’ love language?  What is included in The Productive Home Solution®?     The Productive Home Solution® Playbook   Online 52 Week Course with modules, worksheets, videos, and more   Online Community via our private app   The Productive Home Solution® Private Podcast   EPISODE RESOURCES:   Organize 365 Community App   The Sunday Basket®    The Productive Home Solution®   The Teacher Friday Workbox®   The Sunday Basket® Home Planning Day   Sign Up for the Organize 365® Newsletter     Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media!

Coffee Chat  - The GIFT of Organization - Teachers & Mothers

Well, let’s dive into our 40’s. What I’ve observed in these decades as you move through your 20’s, 30’s and 40’s to 50’s is if you can imagine driving a stick shift car where it doesn’t automatically cycle to the next gear, and you’re driving in second gear and you need to shift into third gear but you don’t and the car is whining. That’s kind of how we are at the end of every decade - we’re whining. We’re not ready to leave this decade because we don’t know the next decade and it makes us a little nervous and apprehensive.  For decades, 40 was midlife. That’s no longer true. Until your 40’s, the answer to every organizational productivity problem was buy something, acquire something. Acquire the knowledge, the physical thing, the person. In your 40’s, everything is about letting go. Letting go of what is no longer serving you, letting go of future hopes and dreams that maybe have not materialized. This decluttering happens in every single area of your life in your 40’s. The process of making the decisions about what is staying and what is going is where the new capacity is unlocked. Organize 365® is set up to walk alongside you, provide community, co-working, and all of the lessons that you ended in order to get your home organized because once you do that all the way through, we’ve touched all the stuff and made decisions - it is so cathartic. So in your 40’s, your organization is a lot about your mindset and making your physical space match the next decades of your life and the person who you want to be.  What is our purpose in our 40’s? We are surviving - surviving in carpooling and driving, with limited time and financial resources. The purpose is to really move from just being an individual contributor to society, to figuring out what is your family, your ideals, your values. What is our capacity in our 40’s? This is a decade of constraint, capacity is limited and that is great because it requires you to push forward. If you have children, you become insular because you have to. They are humans that are growing so fast and they are depending on you. How do we use the physical spaces in our home in our 40’s? You will probably remodel some spaces, maybe more than once if you plan on living in your home long term. You’ll do bigger renovations in your 40’s than you did in your 30’s. What scaffolding or support do we need to make this phase of life easier and more productive? You need to learn the skill of organization. That’s where The Productive Home Solution®, The Paper Solution®, and The Sunday Basket® come in. Those products were designed to teach you and walk beside you as you really embrace who you are and what you’re uniquely created to do, and how your house will be organized and function for you. The essential thing I want to add to this phase of life are the Planning Days. They are a key differentiator in your 40’s, because you are deciding, you are making decisions and there really is no one guiding your thought process through making these decisions. What  do  you  want  to  see  manifest  in  the  next  four  months  in  your  household?  How are you going to do that? Let's look at all the constraints on your time, on your money, on your business, let's look at the role that you're playing, how many people are in your family. Let's look at all your household responsibilities and your chores. What's your plan going to be for laundry and dishes and meal planning and cleaning?  There’s so much time on the other side of 40. If you can use the time in your 40’s to get yourself organized, then when you do have the time in your 50’s it’s amazing. Can’t wait to tell you about it next time.  EPISODE RESOURCES:   The Sunday Basket®   The Paper Solution®   The Productive Home Solution®   The Sunday Basket Home Planning Day   Home Planning Day Prep   Sign Up for the Organize 365® Newsletter    Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media!

587 - Housework in Your 40s - Survival

By now I’m guessing most of you have heard the evolution of the Sunday Basket®. The Sunday Basket® organizes the invisible tasks of home life, right? And with a teaching background, I also know there is a lot of burnout. The Teacher Friday Workbox® is designed to organize the invisible tasks of teaching. So what if, just what if, an entire school would launch a pilot with Organize 365® and they could feel supported and organized? Jayme was the principal who raised her hand and said I want to try this with my building for my teachers.  A Spark of a Conversation Normally on the 4th of July people are spending time with their families and celebrating the holiday, right? Not go getters like Jayme and I; we were chatting about the opportunity of a Teacher Friday Workbox® pilot.  Much to my surprise when I proposed a call, Jayme agreed. Our excitement for this pilot was ignited and put into action immediately. Jayme showed up in her minivan and we loaded it with workboxes for her building. She had 13 teachers come immediately to pick them up. There were teachers who knew what Jayme had been doing with her Teacher Friday Workbox® so they knew it worked and wanted to get started. More grabbed their workboxes after a meeting, and then more after the first training.  Too Much New to NOT Do The Pilot Jayme was explaining to me some of the things she was expecting about the new school year which included new teachers (most of whom were new to special education), a new assistant principal, and more responsibility for her needing to be involved in student behavioral correction. I chuckled and knew with all that change and newness, the Teacher Friday Workbox® was going to save her 2023-2024 school year. Are Your Teachers Ducks?  Have you heard the analogy of ducks looking calm on top of the water, but paddling like crazy under? Think of your teachers. Most are doing the same and that’s what leads to burnout. They don’t want you to see they are paddling so fast under water. The real trouble is when you see it - they are headed for burnout for sure. These are teachers who do not have an organizational solution in place. It would be ideal that the teacher understood the Sunday Basket® before embarking on the Teacher Friday Workbox®. But this time, we had to light the fuse due to the time of year. We initially found some of the teachers were overwhelmed with being new to the Organize 365® ecosystem, making visible the administrative tasks of a teacher on index cards (or some did a hybrid with sticky notes), and learning how to color code their work. When you clean up their mental chaos - you get teachers that will stay in their positions longer.  We Owe It To Our Teachers I understand that the pressing question with all expenditures within the education budget boils down to “How does this affect the student?” Let me just say, a teacher with less anxiety, more mental bandwidth, and one that feels supported is best for the students! There is a school supply list for students; this should be on the school supply list for teachers. But there is no line item for organization, honestly, at home or in the workplace. I want to see all educators free up time and mental space for employment retention and a happy home life. EPISODE RESOURCES:   The Sunday Basket®   Teacher Friday Workbox®   Sign Up for the Organize 365® Newsletter   On the Wednesday podcast, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365­® community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps and triumphs along their organizing journey. I am grateful that you are reaching out to share with me and with this community. You can see and hear transformation in action. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday. Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media!

Teacher Podcast #4 - The Lawrenceburg Middle School Pilot - Getting Permission Our July 1 Conversation

You are all adults! Why am I trying to force a square peg into a round hole? There are people writing in saying “I am organized and I’d like to have a planning resource.” So here it is, all by its lonesome. I am breaking up The Productive Home Solution® for you more organized people. My school of thought was I originally wanted you to have all the “school supplies” to set you up for success. I realize you are adults and may want to have access to a planning resource without the resources to learn organization because you have already mastered it. Organize 365® continues to revamp and change. As a teacher, I am a lifelong learner and plan to reiterate as many times as needed to provide the best solutions for you! Planning Takes Back Your Mental Life Planning Day is open to everyone!  I’ve learned that planning is a higher level of executive function. It’s like building blocks and you can’t effectively plan until you have the basics down. Once you have the executive functions in place to organize, you can move on to planning. Planning makes room for productivity. Look at any productive person, that person that seems to have more hours in their day. At some point they have planned their time to have the outcome of so much productivity. There are plenty of decluttering challenges and productivity solutions, but Planning Day offers the actual skill of organizing life for productivity.  Planning Day Is Open To Everyone! I want you to start planning for longer chunks of time. I will show you how to plan further out than just tomorrow or this week. In Planning Day, we are going to think about summer - May, June, July, and August! In summer, we eat differently, play differently, work differently, and it feels good to have a plan in place for those different habits. In your Planning Day workbook, we are going to look at your current habits. But I will challenge you to think about changes you want to make. Maybe since the kids will be home for summer, you’ll want to workout before they get up - but you aren’t currently doing that. Also, you may discover you want to implement a new behavior. Do you know 45% of our life is habitual? I will help you decide what 1 or 2 new habits you want to focus on. Small changes over the course of time prevent overwhelm and result in productivity.  While you are registering for Planning Day, check out all the bundles and incentives we are currently offering. EPISODE RESOURCES:    Your Year of Transformation Bundle (with kids)    Your Year of Transformation Bundle (without kids)    Complete Home Organization Bundle    Home Planning Day Supplies Bundle - Deluxe    Home Planning Day Supplies Bundle - Essentials   CustomerService@organize365.com   Sign Up for the Organize 365® Newsletter    Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media

Education Friday Workbox® with Kate McDonnell

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