Making the most of your time

Time. Sizzle talked about it yesterday, and it's crazy how quickly and how slowly it can go by at times. But that is what it is. Usually we all have millions of things to do, but either don't prioritize well or don't find the time.

I've recently just passed the hump of a busy, busy time for me. So today was my first day in a while where I haven't actually had things I NEEDED to accomplish. (There is however, lots I SHOULD accomplish.) But I took this day to relax a little (plus I'm sick :P) and read some magazines and such after work.

The April issue if Real Simple came in the mail and, guess what, this issue is all about TIME. So I'm sharing some of the time-saving tips they offered. Now when I finally get to hop into the world of getting things done again, I'll have tips to help me out.

Make a wish list. Write down all the activities that you long to do more of―whether they’re things that make you happy, relaxed, sane(r), or all three. Rank the items in order of importance to you, then pick one or two to focus on. (Once you get the hang of this system, you can address the rest.)

Schedule a quick and brainless task first. This lets you cross off something right away and start the day feeling accomplished.

Shortcuts for Everyday Tasks

Keep a Journal

If the last entry in your diary is a cryptic scribble from 2003, stop writing and start printing―e-mails, that is. Since you’re probably already summarizing your life in e-mails to your friends and family, print them out and paste them on the pages of a blank notebook, suggests Oriah Mountain Dreamer, author of What We Ache For: Creativity and the Unfolding of Your Soul (HarperOne, $22, amazon.com). “It’s like my yoga teacher once said about working out: ‘All you need to do is stretch for five minutes a day,’” Mountain Dreamer says. “Of course, once you get going, it feels so good, you’ll wind up doing more.”

Catch Up on Current Events

Nobody likes being out of the loop. Here's how the people who bring you the news get up to speed.

• I do a quick scan of CNN.com and AssignmentEditor.com, which allows you to access any newspaper in the country, and I read the Wall Street Journal's "What's News" section, says CNN's Paula Zahn.
• I put C-Span on in the background while I put away dishes or pay bills, says Mark Halperin, the political director of ABC News and the editor of The Note, on the network's website.

Beauty Shortcuts

Dry Nailpolish: Dunk your hands in a bowl of ice-cold water. "The cold water freeze-dries polish, sealing and hardening it quickly," says Belinda Rivera, a nail specialist in Austin, Texas. Allow nails to air-dry for two minutes, then submerge in ice-cold water for three minutes, which is enough time for the polish to harden completely.

Blow-dry hair from underneath, starting with the underlayers. "If you start drying your hair with the top layer, you end up scooping up wet hair from underneath and pulling it through the brush, rewetting the layers that are already dry," says Inez Gray, owner of the Habitude Salon and Spa, in Seattle.