The Last Of The Guests Have Gone.

That's right, the last of the guests have gone and I've just spent the morning clearing up. It's been quite the party. No regrets though, it's been a blast. Now I can get back to some normality, relatively speaking, of course.

I had to check back through my notes and see what I had been planning to post about, before the doorbell rang, what's seems like an age ago. I think it was going to be about not putting things off.

Steve (Exgrosteve) did a post the other day, where he mentioned about taking the word 'excuse' out of his vocabulary. No more excuses, just getting on and doing stuff. Since I read that, I have been trying to follow the same path. It's not easy.

It becomes easier if you set realistic targets though. Knowing that whatever goes on your list needs to be attended to, no excuses, makes a difference in planning.

Not letting things build up and dealing with them, in a prompt manner, has to be the best policy.

One way of helping in this area is to have a routine. Many of you probably do already and I sort of have one. Life doesn't always 'play ball'l though. When that happens, that list of small jobs can soon turn into a pile of big ones. I am attempting to rectify this myself. Not having the luxury of excuses is really helping.

Like today, usually at this time I have finished a post and might be adding images, ready for publishing. Due to a few 'Puppy sitting' issues, this was not the case. Less said about that, the better.

In an ideal world, I try to attend to all my WA things in the morning. The afternoon is for everything else. Evenings, after meal and bath time, is more WA.

I try to deal with all notifications on the same day. Due to the different time zones, I can go to bed with a clear inbox and wake up with a few dozen notifications. Replying to comments in chronological order is how I like to address them, though this isn't always possible.

What is impossible, is trying to read every single post that comes through. If you are struggling to get through them, to the detriment of your own work, then you might have to let some of them go. Yes, it might make you feel crummy but that's because you're a nice person and probably feel guilty. We all do but I think we all accept that it's just the way it is.

You could always leave them in your inbox and read them when you get a spare few minutes. A comment a day or so later, will still be appreciated.

Replying to those that have 'followed' me is one of the areas that I 'need to do better' at. I tend to let it build up. When I get round to it, there's quite a few, not just a couple. Everyone gets a reply unless we've met in comments. Doing this on a daily basis will keep that list in the single figures. Replying is important, at least to me. It's a chance to engage and that initial 'meet and greet' can blossom. Even just reading that short excerpt of their 'Bio' can be very enlightening.

Creating a routine is a good thing, it doesn't mean it has to be set in stone. If you can stick to it then your time will be better spent and used far more efficiently. The more efficient you are, the more you can achieve.

Being more clinical in your approach to what needs to be done, will allow you the opportunity to do the things you'd like to do. Try not to let things build up.

There now, back to normal.

Have a thorough Thursday.

Twack Romero.