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How to save time and streamline your day

How to save time and streamline your day

1. Send gift certificates and gift cards for gifts. Phone in the order: no purchases, no packaging, no changes. This option also helps reduce clutter because the gift recipient can buy exactly what they want, instead of receiving a gift that is never used but remains by obligation to the giver.

2. Buy salad greens and bagged rotisserie chickens, two pillars of fast and healthy dinners. Add shredded chicken to stews, salads, soups, and pastas. At my local grocery store, fresh hot rotisserie chickens are available twice a day.

3. Request the earliest appointment. The later in the day you book a doctor’s visit, haircut, or meeting, the more likely you are to be delayed.

4. Keep an all-purpose stock of birthday cards on hand, at home and in the office. If you have kids, chances are you got a birthday invite on Friday for a party on Saturday, so keep a stock of birthday gifts for girls and boys for those last-minute birthday invites. This strategy saved us a lot of time when my kids were younger.

5. Put a list of movies you want to rent and books you want to read in your wallet or smartphone. Better yet, buy an e-reader like Amazon’s Kindle Wireless e-Reader, where you can preview, download, and read books entirely in electronic format. For movies, supermarkets and McDonald’s in most big cities now have Red Box kiosks where you can get an overnight rental for $1.

6. Make kits containing supplies you use all the time (scissors, tape, reading glasses, cleaning supplies) and place them in strategic areas around the house (ie, next to a phone, on a desk, or on a nightstand). At the very least, place one kit on each floor of your home. This will prevent extra trips up and down the stairs for minor projects.

7. Order your car license tags online And if you live near toll roads, request an electronic tag to quickly navigate through tolls.

8. Invest in a portable wireless email device (like a BlackBerry). Stay in touch with friends during unexpected downtime.

9. Sign up for automatic bill pay on your bank’s website and buy postage stamps online. This is a huge time and money saver! I haven’t bought postage stamps, checks or envelopes in years!

10. Buy a box of your favorite olive oil, wine, or cute notepads. so you don’t have to make last minute trips for hostess or birthday gifts.

11. Buy movie tickets in advance in “Triple A” or using Moviefone or Fandango to avoid wasting time in lines.

12. Whenever possible, double a recipe. Eat half right away and freeze the rest for a future meal.

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