How do you all manage your time?

[poppy_lillysmum]

I know how you feel. I don't have a lot of time. But I work part-time for my mum, doing her accounts, which she is always saying she is grateful for and go to college and have two monsters as well, as chickens, a massive veg garden, and a massive landscaped garden and huge pond to contend with, so because my mum is so grateful for me doing her accounts, she comes round every saturday and sunday, and depending on the weather, we will both work in the garden, or she does the housework and ironing, while i'm in the garden. and if she comes round off an evening, she cracks straight on with the dishwasher.. etc
But now it's getting lighter in the evenings i am in the garden till about 6.30pm after getting the kids home from school so it's a few extra hours, and dinner is late!!!
Right off to put spuds in and weed the flower beds else i'll be here all day. Good luck
poppy_lillysmum

[DaveInBraknell]

Take a look at the half hour allotment book it has some great tips in it.

Other than that I spend about an hour or two at weekends on my plot, weeding quite hard, now it is lighter I may go over in the evenings and spend 20min just weeding and making sure everything is ok.

Should be able to do most maint type jobs in 30min, little and often I suppose would be the way to do it.

I also work full time and have a 5yr old who likes, fortunately, getting dirty planting potatos..

Dave

[Eyren]

Notice that I have hardly mentioned housework?? It only really gets done when the weather is rubbish, when it's dark or when we reach critical mass of mess/clutter/stuff in the house.

*lol* That sounds just like me

I'm spring-cleaning this week because a) we are having a new mattress delivered tomorrow so I have to clear the hall, stairs and bedroom for the delivery men, and b) I'm having a bunch of girlfriends round on Sunday and I don't want the place to look like a complete tip!

I've found "Getting Things Done", by David Allen, to be really useful for self-organisation. If you're the sort of person who enjoys making lists and you feel the need for a major sort-out, I would recommend giving it a try. It was originally designed for business use, but the book includes plenty of examples of how to adapt the techniques to your domestic routine. I now have a mini Filofax that I take almost everywhere - despite being a bit of gadget nut in most respects, I somehow prefer paper organisers. Ticking things off the list, and tearing up the list when finished, is very satisfying!

[snakeshack]

I tell the kids they can do the housework or come and dig over a couple of raised beds and do the weeding.
they pick the housework every time.
I go down the lottie,put the kettle on chew the fat with whoever is down there hoe a couple of beds have another cuppa, go back home & say how knackered I am from all that digging & weeding and get in the bath while someone else cooks the dinner.

It's all about managing your time(and theirs)
My lot believe what they want to believe so I let them talk themselves into the housework
Eg anyone buy bottled water because its better for them?.............Try spelling evian backwards there is a hidden message there

[maytreefrannie]

I am retired but what don't get done today might get done tomorow or the day after it is no use rushing and worrying all that bring's is ulcer's .
My take on life is as i tell plenty of people that are complaining about being late or have not got time is when you are sat down eating your evening meal you will have caught up so don't worry....jacob

I love your philosophy, JM - I'm going to remind myself of your words whenever I get frazzled.

For the rest, I'm amazed at some of the posts - you people get loads done!
Big up to you all.

[allotmentlady]

Well I tend to go up there and make a list of what needs to be done, then I go everyday and do around and hour or 2. I always do housework and shopping etc first........sometimes its easier to do little jobs the night b4. I like to go at the weekends with the kids as they enjoy growing veges too.

My philosophy is dont rush, just relax and enjoy your plot cos it aint going anywhere!

[snohare]

I would guess that my style of time management is pretty different to most folks, although not so rare as you might think. I have chronic fatigue syndrome, and basically about half of the time I don't have any idea what I am going to be fit to do until an hour or two after I get up. Sometimes I know I will have oomph for the next hour or two, sometimes I know I will be fine the whole day, and maybe even for a day or two after that...but I absolutely do not dare to overdo things, as that sets me back for days if not weeks. I have become a master of logistics, my entire life is a logistical exercise, I cannot even eat normal food so must always have food ready for eating on the move. To be without food for even a few hours can mean instant starvation, with the resulting lack of energy and work output !
So what I do is sort out tasks into vital, and opportunistic. Vital tasks such as setting up infrastructure I spend my spare (ie low energy) time planning in such a way as to be minimal maintenance and done as fast and efficiently as possible. I always have a Plan B. (And often, if more than one thing can go wrong, a C, D, E...)
Vital jobs get done ASAP, but often must wait months for health, wealth or weather. Opportunistic jobs happen when something like a chance to take cuttings or achieve a long term goal comes along, and I make sure that I have the option of doing as many of these tasks at home as possible, before transferring them piecemeal to the plot.
As everything in my life that is deferred gets scrunched up into a sometimes insanely busy pell-mell rush when my energy levels improve in summer, I spend a lot of time juggling priorities, changing my plans at the last minute to take advantage of whatever transport, money, conditions I can.
The most important thing I have found, is to be focussed on what your core aims are. It might be something fuzzy like having a wildlife area, or somewhere nice to spend time in where you have food at the end of it; or clearcut, like saving money on potatoes and fruit, with only 3 hours work a week.
Know what order your different priorities are in, set immediate, deferred and long term deadlines for doing the different things, and you will generally find that priorities will gradually sort themselves out, simply because you are focussing on getting the tasks done so much, and when they need to be done by. Make a list of goals, keep it somewhere like on the back of a calendar, and when you look at it months later you will be pleasantly surprised at what you have achieved.
Don't forget to take time to relax along the way ! (And when people talk enviously of your leisure time, try not to grind your teeth too much.)

[Eyren]

The most important thing I have found, is to be focussed on what your core aims are. It might be something fuzzy like having a wildlife area, or somewhere nice to spend time in where you have food at the end of it; or clearcut, like saving money on potatoes and fruit, with only 3 hours work a week.
Know what order your different priorities are in, set immediate, deferred and long term deadlines for doing the different things, and you will generally find that priorities will gradually sort themselves out, simply because you are focussing on getting the tasks done so much, and when they need to be done by. Make a list of goals, keep it somewhere like on the back of a calendar, and when you look at it months later you will be pleasantly surprised at what you have achieved.

All good advice, Snohare! I like to have short-term goals (things I need to sow/plant this month in order to have something to harvest) and longer term ones (things I'd like to do this year if time/money allows). That way I don't stress about everything at once!

I forgot to mention earlier that I garden by the moon, which means that my time is automatically organised for me. I have a page per month in my gardening folder, with the dates of each moon phase (copied out of my diary) and a list of appropriate jobs for each phase, and my seed box also has dividers for the three planting phases (new moon, first quarter and full moon).

So, my March page looks something like this (only much less neat, since it's handwritten, with crossings-out where I changed my mind!):

1st Quarter (Weds 4th - Tues 10th)
* Tomatoes, peppers, chillies - sow in modules
* Cauli and calabrese - ditto
* Broad beans - second sowing

Full Moon (Thurs 12th - Tues 17th)
* Garlic - plant Solent Wight in raised bed
* Shallots - plant in Bed 8
* Parsnips - sow in loo rolls

3rd Quarter (Thurs 19th - Weds 25th)
* Dig new herb bed
* Strim grass on lottie
* Build compost bin (postponed)

New Moon (Fri 27th - Thurs 2nd April)
* Harvest last of leeks and clear bed ready for beetroot and spinach
* Spinach, chard and lettuce - plant out
* Coriander and parsley - ditto
* Sow other leafy herbs (dill, sorrel, etc)

I also take a week off work around this time of year, so I can either catch up on the allotment (if the weather is good enough), or catch up on other chores so that my weekends are freer. It's the only way I can find the time and energy to keep on top of things!