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Letters To Jan
7 New Features in Time Timer iPhone App!
Seven new features will appear in the Time Timer iPhone App next week, giving fans of this visual timer new groundbreaking ways to manage and enjoy their time! See the Pinterest Preview. 
If you currently own the Time Timer iPhone or iPod Touch App, look for this free update in your iTunes soon. New users can download the $1.99 Time Timer App here.
Top New Feature
With this new update, you will be able to display up to four Time Timers at once, helping you visualize time for multiple projects, children or blocks of time simultaneously.
Check out the full new feature list below – features marked with a star * were suggested by Facebook Fans!
All New Features
1. *Name and customize your Timers.
2. *Save each Timer to use again.
3. Run up to four Timers at once.
4. View each Timer full-screen – or see up to four together on a single screen.
5. *Set by touch – or simply pick a number.
6. *Quickly pause, edit and restart your Timers.
7. *Awake Mode: make sure your iPhone doesn't fall asleep while Timers are running!
How It Works
1. From the "My Timers" screen, press "Add Timer."
2. Choose a Timer Mode: Original 60 Minutes, Custom or Clock.
3. Set the Duration, Number of Plays and Options. Save.
4. From any screen, tap the Home icon in the upper-left corner.
5. Select up to four Timers and press "Play Timers."
6. Tap "Play All!"
Check in tomorrow for more updates on the Time Timer iPhone App
Letters to Jan: Surgery, Sailors, ADHD and Autism!
Jan Rogers invented the Time Timer to help families like hers make every moment count. If you use your Time Timer in a clever or fun way, please email your Letter to Jan!
This month, we received one of our best-ever Letters to Jan. A man recovering from surgery wrote:
"I have to tell you my personal experience with your Time Timers. I developed a detached retina and went through surgery. As part of the recovery, I had to keep my head parallel to the floor 50 minutes of every hour of the day and sleep face down as well for two weeks. I sat in a massage chair, face down, most of the day. I got a 3-inch Time Timer and would set it for my 50 minutes and placed it on the floor where I could see it. Due to complications I ended up having 2 additional surgeries and each time had to repeat the process. My Time Timer was one of the few things that got me through it without going nuts." Wow!
Time Timer for – Sailing?
Here's a first! In March, we visited seaside Baltimore for the NSSEA Ed Expo. A family from the Bahamas visited our booth and imagined using the Time Timer for youth sailing competitions, timing how quickly they completed the course. Very cool! Click here to see the new Time Timer trade show booth!
More time in the morning!
This mom uses her Time Timer the same way Jan does – to help her get ready in the morning.
"I love using the Time Timer! It has helped my ADHD son learn how to pace himself in the morning so that he can get dressed for school and still have time for play. My Autistic son has learned better turn taking/sharing by having the timer count down how much time he has to play with the computer, or watch his favorite TV show. And I use it to keep track of how much time I have before I have to get out the door, so I can make better use out of my time, And it's incredibly durable! It stands up to the humidity of my sons' shower time, and has just survived a fall to my brick patio. Replaced the battery and it's still working and still accurate!"
Thank you for your sweet letter! Learn more about Time Timer for Special Needs >>
Mommy Shorts!
MommyShorts.com wrote a fun blog about setting time limits for her toddler, Mazzy:
"Mike and I are now on the same page because we can both use the clock for reference. He doesn't have to remember what limit I set for Mazzy because it's right there in front of him. And we are both less likely to go against the other's wishes by allowing Mazzy additional time.
In other words— the timer not only makes setting limits easier, it makes us more apt to stick to them." Read more from MommyShorts >>
Suburban Snapshots sums it up best: "I like (Time Timer) a lot better than my "It's about as long as one Dora" method." Haha!
Kate Varness Interview Part 2: Out of the Box Organization Questions
This week, Professional Organizer & Life Coach Kate Varness answers your questions from Facebook! Hope you enjoyed her time mangement tips interview last week.
You can ask Kate questions on her Facebook ~ or, if you're a NAPO member, you can meet her at this week's NAPO Conference in Baltimore.
Question #1: Dear Kate, To-Do Lists make me feel so exhausted/overwhelmed. Is there any other way to organize your projects?
1) When you wake up think of 3 things that must be accomplished that day to move a project forward or to do the whole project. These may be individual steps or multi-step tasks.
For example, today I will: 1) wash, dry, and put away my own laundry; 2) stop at the post office to mail a package I have prepared; 3) get my receipts for reimbursement in to my boss because today is the deadline. This last one is multi-step in that I need to locate the receipts, fill out the form, and scan the documents to submit electronically. The deadline has brought this last one up to high priority.
The second goal for the day represents the final step in a project that I have spaced out over several days. The first goal is something that is an ongoing chore that needs to get done. Figuring these out makes it really clear in the front of my mind what needs to be done.
2) Rather than wait until morning to set your day's top 3-5 priorities, decide on them the night before. Take a dry erase marker and write the to-dos on your bathroom mirror after you have brushed your teeth for the night. In the morning your goals will be right before your eyes!
3) Keep a notebook with you at all times and have the projects written out one per page. List each step for each project to keep all to-dos on your radar. Use different color highlighters to mark what you will do on Monday (yellow), Tuesday (pink), Wednesday (orange), Thursday (green), Friday (blue), and the weekend (red). Check things off as you go so you will see your progress and next steps.
Encourage yourself by writing a couple of things you have already accomplished so you can cross them off right away.
Question #2: Dear Kate, We try keeping everything by the door (bags, shoes, coats, keys) so it's easy to find when we leave ~ but now our small entrance area is a disaster zone. What's essential to keep by the door?
Keep those items by the door that will help you launch into your day, like bags, shoes, coats and keys. When you have a small space it is crucial to maximize vertical space with hooks and shelves going up the wall.
Don't bother with a fancy shoe storage seat. You won't take the time to open the lid. Instead use a laundry basket to corral shoes, use hooks on the back of the door or on the wall for coats, and a shelf on which to set your workbag and a bowl for keys or to temporarily handle those misc. items that are in your pockets.
Reserve the door handle for bagged items that need to be handled such as library books to return, dry cleaning to drop off, and purchases to take back to the store.
Make sure to account for the time it will take to do those errands. If it normally takes 15 minutes to get to work and you intend to drop the library books off, don't just leave at the usual time. Instead build in that extra task time by leaving earlier!
Thank you Kate! Have a wonderful week at the NAPO Conference!
