I hate paper. And nowadays, the stuff that comes in the house can't just be sorted to be dealt with or thrown out, you have to SHRED a lot of the trash. Holy hell, what a pain THAT is. If you let any of it sit, you have a huge pile in no time. And online billpay is not really reducing any of this mess. In fact, I find that the mix of paper payments and online just makes a confused mess.

The author has sixty ideas to get organized. I've incorporated quite a few of them (pare down email is one: I now unsubscribe to anything I don't want to read regularly and another is pare down; 1 magazine subscription.) He suggests a calendar and how to organize your desk for action. All these things really work.

Excellent little book, no fluff.

Often times, the problem involving in getting organized is where
to start . . . you may be like me and have many projects going
at the same time, accompanied by even more pieces of paper.

So where do you begin? One approach is to get hold of Jeff
Davidson's book, THE 60 SECOND ORGANIZER . . . Davidson, an author and professional speaker,
presents many useful techniques--60 in all--that don't
take a lot of time to implement . . . but do pay powerful
dividends when utilized.

Many you've probably heard before . . . however, the problem
is that you may well never have put them into practice . . . the
author shows you how, for example, when he says:

* You can fight junk mail by saving all of it for weeks. Then
hire a high school student at minimum wage to send a
form letter to every party who has sent you mail more than
once. Explain carefully that you have no interest in their offer.

When it comes to seeking perfection in everything that you do,
I really liked this bit of advice:

* Studies show that the additional time you spend to take a
project from the 95 percent mark to the 100 percent mark
is, in most cases, not worth it. Striving for perfection, i.e.,
ensuring that the final 5 percent is correctly done, often
takes as much time as the initial 95 percent of effort
required! Gosh, no wonder it felt so difficult!

Lastly, when it comes to writing a book or completing some
other task that will take a good amount of time, Davidson
almost makes it easy when he advises how to do this:

* I have written 32 books, but I wouldn't have finished book #1
if I tried to "write an entire book." Rather, my goal in approaching
each book is to write one chapter at a time. Since most chapters
are made of two or three subsections, I simply aim to finish one
subsection, then another, then another until I finish a whole
chapter. The rest of the day seems like a vacation.

The next day, I go back and start another chapter, approaching
one subsection at a time. All the while, I acknowledge that I
have a contract to honor and that a publisher is breathlessly
waiting for my material. We pick a date in advance, and I agree
to turn in the manuscript no later than that day.

Now that I've finished THE 60 SECOND ORGANIZER, I'm all
set to read another book the author wrote: THE 60 SECOND
PROCRASTINATOR . . . all I have to do is stop procrastinating,
then I'll be ready to begin it.

Jeff Davidson is an achiever who writes from an authoritative stance. Anybody who has published more than 3,300 articles, been featured in 68 of the top 75 newspapers in the country, had his speeches published six times in "Vital Speeches of the Day", and has been a professional speaker to numerous well-known corporate clients definitely has something worth listening to.

This book is refreshing reading in that it brings you back to the basics of maintaining focus. In arguing that it's worth the effort to stay organized, Davidson notes, "If you think getting organized is time consuming, try disorganization."

By nature my tendency has been to be a saver, i.e., hold on to things because I may need them someday. Davidson and other writers are causing me to see it's time for a paradigm shift. In the information age, updates occur regularly and with the Internet such data can be acquired online. Collecting materials in this generation takes a new twist when the new realities are considered. Notice I'm cautious in the way I phrase this. I'm still a saver at heart, but I'm learning to eliminate clutter. I think the point is valid. It takes time to change.

This segues perfectly into his sixth point which discusses growing beyond what you've experienced in the past. Be open to possibilities you've never known before. Chapter seven examines the cliche "work smarter." He tells you how to do it. The discovery Vilfredo Pareto made in 1897 is the topic of point 8 in this book. I'm intentionally not revealing what it is to make you curious.

Through reminding us of the basics of getting organized, such as "divide and conquer" various tasks, we're encouraged that the goal is reachable. Overall this book is packed with solid insight that can be applied.

In the never-ending quest to be more personally productive and organized, I got the chance to read 60-second Organizer: Sixty Solid Techniques for Beating Chaos at Home and at Work by Jeff Davidson. For those who aren't ready to commit to a "system" of organization, this is a perfect place to start getting things done...

Contents:
Part 1 - Embracing Powerful Perspectives: Relax - Organizing Is Not So Bad; Learn Your ABCs; Capture Your Best Thoughts; Determine "Who Created That?"; Make Profound Choices; Live and Actually Learn; "Work Smarter" for Real; Heed Pareto and His Principle; Forget about the "Right Mood"; Reward Thyself
Part 2 - Enveloping Provocative Practices: Forsake Excuses for Not Becoming Organized; Defeat Perfectionism; Start Simply; Organize According to Your Milestones; Handle Tough Things First; Immerse Yourself for 60 Seconds; Ask Yourself "Will It Be Any Easier Later?"; Organize Based On Your Priorities; Stake Your Claim
Part 3 - Listing and Charting Your Way: Recognize Fallibilities; Mark Your Calendar; Separate Long-Term and Short-Term Tasks; Develop a Clarifying Checklist; Map It Out; Chart Your Path; Plot Your Way; Add Subtasks to Your Chart; Organize with Flow Charts; Track Your Progress
Part 4 - Reclaiming Your Places and Spaces: Start from Scratch; Conquer Your Desk; Make Your Shelves Work for You; Win the Paper Chase; Face Files with Smiles; Establish Rotating Tickler Files; Pile It High; Pare Down and Win; Reduce Junk Mail; Read with Aplomb
Part 5 - Organize Travel, Meetings, and Online Activities: Manage Your E-mail; Organize Online Research; Create More Organized Meeting, Really!; Maintain Effective Meetings, the Whole Way!; Meet to Achieve Results; Organize for the Road; Handle Commuting and Travel Contingencies; Be Productive on Public Transportation; Fly Friendlier Skies; Book Your Flight Right
Part 6 - Making Your Home Your Castle: Destroy Enemy Outposts; Pick a Regular Day and Time; Approach Spaces Strategically; Adopt a Replacement Policy; Improvise When Storage Space Is Limited; Organize Your Gift Shopping; Organize Your Purchases and Related Paperwork; File Taxes on Time and Without Grief; Hire an Organizing Professional; Divide, Literally, and Conquer
Summary; Bibliography; About the Author

It seems to be all the rage to follow an organizing system these days, a system that presents a complete package of how to get and stay organized. But realistically, it takes a lot of effort to overcome that inertia, and often the system ends up gathering dust on a shelf. Davidson's book is great in that it gives you a number of tips to get organized, and it's not an "all or nothing" thing. You can start in any area that is a problem in your life, such as your workspace or your storage/junk piles. The 10 tips in that particular area of the book are quick to read, easy to understand, and you can quickly try out the recommendation. For instance, if your filing system is broken (or nonexistent), Part 4 of the book gives you plenty of ideas on how to clean up the existing mess as well as keeping it cleaned up. Rotating tickler files, single location for file, and questions to ask before filing all help to keep the important stuff, throw out the trash, and keep the process going.

If you've read any books on organization before, you'll probably recognize some of the material presented here. But it never hurts to review great ideas, and what didn't strike you as important a year ago may be exactly what you need now. Well worth the time commitment to read and review...

In the never-ending quest to be more personally productive and organized, I got the chance to read 60-second Organizer: Sixty Solid Techniques for Beating Chaos at Home and at Work by Jeff Davidson. For those who aren't ready to commit to a "system" of organization, this is a perfect place to start getting things done...

Contents:
Part 1 - Embracing Powerful Perspectives: Relax - Organizing Is Not So Bad; Learn Your ABCs; Capture Your Best Thoughts; Determine "Who Created That?"; Make Profound Choices; Live and Actually Learn; "Work Smarter" for Real; Heed Pareto and His Principle; Forget about the "Right Mood"; Reward Thyself
Part 2 - Enveloping Provocative Practices: Forsake Excuses for Not Becoming Organized; Defeat Perfectionism; Start Simply; Organize According to Your Milestones; Handle Tough Things First; Immerse Yourself for 60 Seconds; Ask Yourself "Will It Be Any Easier Later?"; Organize Based On Your Priorities; Stake Your Claim
Part 3 - Listing and Charting Your Way: Recognize Fallibilities; Mark Your Calendar; Separate Long-Term and Short-Term Tasks; Develop a Clarifying Checklist; Map It Out; Chart Your Path; Plot Your Way; Add Subtasks to Your Chart; Organize with Flow Charts; Track Your Progress
Part 4 - Reclaiming Your Places and Spaces: Start from Scratch; Conquer Your Desk; Make Your Shelves Work for You; Win the Paper Chase; Face Files with Smiles; Establish Rotating Tickler Files; Pile It High; Pare Down and Win; Reduce Junk Mail; Read with Aplomb
Part 5 - Organize Travel, Meetings, and Online Activities: Manage Your E-mail; Organize Online Research; Create More Organized Meeting, Really!; Maintain Effective Meetings, the Whole Way!; Meet to Achieve Results; Organize for the Road; Handle Commuting and Travel Contingencies; Be Productive on Public Transportation; Fly Friendlier Skies; Book Your Flight Right
Part 6 - Making Your Home Your Castle: Destroy Enemy Outposts; Pick a Regular Day and Time; Approach Spaces Strategically; Adopt a Replacement Policy; Improvise When Storage Space Is Limited; Organize Your Gift Shopping; Organize Your Purchases and Related Paperwork; File Taxes on Time and Without Grief; Hire an Organizing Professional; Divide, Literally, and Conquer
Summary; Bibliography; About the Author

It seems to be all the rage to follow an organizing system these days, a system that presents a complete package of how to get and stay organized. But realistically, it takes a lot of effort to overcome that inertia, and often the system ends up gathering dust on a shelf. Davidson's book is great in that it gives you a number of tips to get organized, and it's not an "all or nothing" thing. You can start in any area that is a problem in your life, such as your workspace or your storage/junk piles. The 10 tips in that particular area of the book are quick to read, easy to understand, and you can quickly try out the recommendation. For instance, if your filing system is broken (or nonexistent), Part 4 of the book gives you plenty of ideas on how to clean up the existing mess as well as keeping it cleaned up. Rotating tickler files, single location for file, and questions to ask before filing all help to keep the important stuff, throw out the trash, and keep the process going.

If you've read any books on organization before, you'll probably recognize some of the material presented here. But it never hurts to review great ideas, and what didn't strike you as important a year ago may be exactly what you need now. Well worth the time commitment to read and review...

This is one of two "60 Second" booklets written by Jeff Davidson that I recently read, the other being The 60 Second Procrastinator. With all due respect to how much can be accomplished in one minute, most (if not all) of those who need to get organized are procrastinators and most (if not all) procrastinators need to organized. In my opinion, few (if any) of them will read books such as these and then apply - and (key point) continue to apply -- what they have learned from them. (Davidson is also the author of more than a dozen other books, including seven Complete Idiot's Guides.) He may not share this opinion. However, here's another opinion with which he presumably agrees: On occasion, a single insight ("tip," "secret," "key," etc.) can help to elevate one's standard of living and/or improve one's quality of life.

In this volume as in the other 60 Second booklet, Davidson offers "sixty solid techniques" for "beating chaos at home and at work." They comprise a series of thought-provoking statements and direct questions that can help many readers to gain new perspectives on the micro and macro dimensions of their lives.

Obviously, there are many reasons why people have problems completing getting and then staying organized, and those reasons vary from one individual to the next. That said, self-improvement initiatives must be anchored in a strong faith in what can be accomplished. Henry Ford was right: "Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right." It would be a fool's errand to attempt to act upon, immediately, all of Davidson's sound advice. He correctly suggests selecting a few especially troublesome areas and concentrate on them. In this context, my metaphor of preference is locating and then picking "low-hanging fruit."

Of course this booklet could conceivably be helpful to almost anyone but I think it can be especially valuable to those now enrolled in schools, colleges, and universities as well as to those who have only recently begun a career. Davidson thinks clearly, writes well, and is by nature a pragmatist rather than a theorist. How to rate it? I realize that there are dozens (hundreds?) of other sources that provide more fully developed ideas about how to avoid or overcome procrastination. However, for chronically disorganized people, any advice given is probably best presented as clearly and as simply as possible, and I do not damn Davidson's booklet with faint praise when saying that. His is not a definitive source nor does he make any such claim. If each reader finds only one suggestion that helps her or him to become - and then remain - better-organized, Davidson will have achieved his primary and indeed worthy objective.

This book fell upon my desk at an advantageous time. If I been busier, it may have gotten lost in the clutter.

Instead, I read it. In fact, I was inspired. Jeff Davidson did me a huge favor writing it. Easy to read; hard to forget; easy to implement, his 60 ideas for eliminating clutter and chaos from your life provided me with a motivational jumpstart to re-organizing my office.

I have read many books on organization. Davidson's included several ideas that were new to me. Several, I had never considered or even contemplated. The book is worth every penny you will pay for it.

But beware, if you are like me, you will find yourself at your local home improvement store spending many multiples more than its cover price on book shelves and other organizational tools.

I found this book very helpfull. The tips really helped me out when I was stuck.

Sometimes, when I am trying to concentrate on a project, out of the
corner of my eye, I notice something on my desk related to another project.
I start dwelling on this other task and I get distracted from my work. As
Jeff Davidson will explain, it is not the other task that creates the delay,
but the meandering and lack of focus that steers me away. Lack of
organization costs me time and mental energy.
Reading the 60 Second Organizer reorganized my mind in preparation
for cleaning up my desk. The time I spent reading Jeff's advice prepared my
mind for reorganizing in the same way that stretching prepares my body for
tennis. This is the way Jeff approaches organizing - as an exercise in
control, efficiency, and peace of mind.
When you read the 60 Second Organizer, you'll learn how each of the
60 tips -- one for each second in the minute -- can help you restore order
to any area of your life whether, it be your desk, car, or kitchen table.
If one tip can't get you moving, you can easily and quickly flip to one that
will. In seconds, you'll pick up a nugget or two and find yourself on the
path to reclaiming your life.

Sometimes, when I am trying to concentrate on a project, out of the
corner of my eye, I notice something on my desk related to another project.
I start dwelling on this other task and I get distracted from my work. As
Jeff Davidson will explain, it is not the other task that creates the delay,
but the meandering and lack of focus that steers me away. Lack of
organization costs me time and mental energy.
Reading the 60 Second Organizer reorganized my mind in preparation
for cleaning up my desk. The time I spent reading Jeff's advice prepared my
mind for reorganizing in the same way that stretching prepares my body for
tennis. This is the way Jeff approaches organizing - as an exercise in
control, efficiency, and peace of mind.
When you read the 60 Second Organizer, you'll learn how each of the
60 tips -- one for each second in the minute -- can help you restore order
to any area of your life whether, it be your desk, car, or kitchen table.
If one tip can't get you moving, you can easily and quickly flip to one that
will. In seconds, you'll pick up a nugget or two and find yourself on the
path to reclaiming your life.

Becoming and staying organized takes effort and thought, but it saves time and offers peace of mind. The not-so-great paradox is that you expend time to save time. If it's helpful, think of getting organized as preparation "to respond to life."

Considering the sea of material goods, constant information, and endless communications that bombards everyone daily, remaining organized is a growing problem for you, and you are probably retaining too many items--you have over collected and over-filed.

No one is born with organizing skills and everybody has to learn them along the way. When you attempt to get organized, however, do you quit after a while, believing it's hopeless? The key to getting and remaining organized is recognizing it's value and then making the effort.

How organized are you? If you answer "yes" to any of the following, well, The 60 Second Organizer if for you!

* Do you spend five minutes or more looking for a letter or document? 45 to 75 seconds is all it needs to take. More than that and you're wasting everyone's time.
* Are week-old papers on your desk? A desk is not a filing cabinet (Tip #32).
* Do you have trouble finding a particular item in your desk that you use frequently? Maybe it's best left on your desk.
* Do you feel that you could be organized if you only had more space? More space is seldom the answer; filing or chucking the nonessential is the answer. (Tip #31).
* Do you have piles of newspapers and magazines you haven't gotten around to reading? If you're thinking of reading these issues cover to cover, good luck.
* Did you ever find something at the bottom of a pile that you didn't know was there? You're liable to lose anything! Break up your piles now (Tip #35).

If none of the above quiz questions applied to you, congratulations! Still, I believe you'll find great benefit in reading this book.

I like this book more than some others that I've read on the topic of organization because it's short, it's not loaded up with a lot of text, and you can get answers in a hurry. I have trouble all the time with things stacking up and then all of them becoming more of a burden than they had been individually. This books shows you how to break up piles and break through logjams of all kinds of stuff you have to do. I think this would make a good gift book as well.

I like this book more than some others that I've read on the topic of organization because it's short, it's not loaded up with a lot of text, and you can get answers in a hurry. I have trouble all the time with things stacking up and then all of them becoming more of a burden than they had been individually. This books shows you how to break up piles and break through logjams of all kinds of stuff you have to do. I think this would make a good gift book as well.

I like this book for a lot of reasons, but the major one is that it's short and to the point. Who's got time these days to wade through these gigantic books written by PhDs explaining all kinds of stuff you don't need to know, when in fact all you really want is a way to break through the logjam that is facing you, that usually you created yourself. This book has bits of humor sprinkled throughout which keeps the text lively. The tips themselves are all pretty short, so there's no real work in having to get through any
one of them. The important thing is, the book accomplishes what it promises: it serves as a springboard for helping you to get organized when you otherwise might've just continue to sit there.

I like this book for a lot of reasons, but the major one is that it's short and to the point. Who's got time these days to wade through these gigantic books written by PhDs explaining all kinds of stuff you don't need to know, when in fact all you really want is a way to break through the logjam that is facing you, that usually you created yourself. This book has bits of humor sprinkled throughout which keeps the text lively. The tips themselves are all pretty short, so there's no real work in having to get through any
one of them. The important thing is, the book accomplishes what it promises: it serves as a springboard for helping you to get organized when you otherwise might've just continue to sit there.

I read The Sixty Second Organizer and my advice is: get this book! It's cute, it's clever, and best of all, it's short. You can read the whole thing in about an hour, maybe ninety minutes if you're a slow reader. Like the title says, there are sixty tips in all. They're arranged in six different categories, although it seems like some could fit into other categories. Anyway, the tips are pretty good. I have tried several, and surprised myself by discovering that I am able to move forward. I guess that's all you want out of any self-help book, to be able help yourself.

I read The Sixty Second Organizer and my advice is: get this book! It's cute, it's clever, and best of all, it's short. You can read the whole thing in about an hour, maybe ninety minutes if you're a slow reader. Like the title says, there are sixty tips in all. They're arranged in six different categories, although it seems like some could fit into other categories. Anyway, the tips are pretty good. I have tried several, and surprised myself by discovering that I am able to move forward. I guess that's all you want out of any self-help book, to be able help yourself.