procrastination

Success Breeds Success: Finish Something!

By Hazel Thornton | June 19, 2023 |

A senior coworker once gave me a great piece of advice early in my corporate career. I was feeling overwhelmed and whiny about all the projects I had been assigned. I was paralyzed with indecision about what to work on next. What was his advice? Finish something.        

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80/20 Rule

The 80/20 Rule is Your Friend

By Hazel Thornton | June 21, 2021 |

One of my favorite concepts in life is The 80/20 Rule. What is it? The 80/20 Rule, a.k.a. the Pareto principle, stems from observations made by Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto in 1906, including the fact that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population. Or, generalizing to other situations, roughly…

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Getting Things Done (GTD)

By Hazel Thornton | June 4, 2013 |

Have you ever procrastinated doing something because you were afraid it might take a long time,  or lead to even more work, or make your brain hurt? And then, when you finally did it, it was easier and faster than you thought it would be, and you wondered, “Why didn’t I do that sooner?” I…

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Why Am I Organized and You Aren’t?

By Hazel Thornton | May 8, 2013 |

The first thing you should know is that I am not a psychologist and this is not a scientific paper. I’m just a professional organizer sharing some personal observations. The second thing you should know is that I’m not organized in every possible way at all possible times! And my standards (what “organized” looks like,…

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Just 10 More Minutes

By Hazel Thornton | April 9, 2013 |

It’s really easy to say to oneself, at quitting time (or bed time), “I’ll just do this one last thing…just 10 more minutes.”  But it – whatever it is — never actually takes only 10 more minutes, does it? Sometimes it takes 15 minutes, or 37 minutes, or 2.5 more hours. And even then, usually,…

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How to Live and Work by Design, not by Default

By Hazel Thornton | January 14, 2013 |

Living and working BY DEFAULT means choosing the easiest path, either by unconsciously resorting to bad habits, or by maintaining the status quo. Sometimes we seek to avoid the conflict that can come with making a change. Sometimes we feel we have no choice in the matter. But I’m with Henry Ford, who said, “Whether you think…

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Does Progress Equal Happiness?

By Hazel Thornton | December 30, 2012 |

Last year I decided I wanted a mantra/slogan/motto/theme. Something that I could fall back on to keep me motivated and — dare I say it? — happy. As a fan of Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project (book and blog), I know that many things can contribute to one’s happiness, from kittens and rainbows and enjoyable…

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Plan, Don’t Procrastinate (Read This Now!)

By Hazel Thornton | March 8, 2012 |

Trust me, I can procrastinate with the best of you! Lately I’ve been tackling some tasks that I’ve put off for so long that, in the midst of doing them, I’ve actually exclaimed to myself, “I’m doing it! I’m really doing it!” It feels so good to finish something, doesn’t it? And it’s rarely as…

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How to Set S.M.A.R.T. Goals

By Hazel Thornton | December 16, 2011 |

S.M.A.R.T. is an acronym that’s often used in the corporate world (where I spent over 20 years) for business project management.  But you can use it too! 

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