It’s a new year, and you’re probably trying to start new habits. One great way to make time for new pursuits and healthy habits is by simply managing your time well so that you have the extra time to go to the gym or make a healthy dinner. We’ve got you covered with six top tips for managing time in the new year.

The new year is almost here, and that means it’s time for an updated planner. I live and die by my Google Calendar; in fact, right out of college I moved straight to a Palm Pilot device (it was like an electronic planner that synched with Outlook), and I was smug when a colleague lost her planner and she lost all track of her meetings and appointments.

But the reality is, there’s something about writing down goals, appointments and tasks that helps me filter and prioritize. The essentials will always live on Google, but my planner is the go-to source.

Everyone has their method for getting organized in the holiday season,  and many of you might already be finished. For the rest of us,  I’d like to offer a hack.

Over the next2 weeks, you might find yourself with just 20 minutes—before the bus arrives, before you need to go to sleep, before work. Instead of spending the time checking social media or just thinking about being busy, set a Time Timer ®  for 20 minutes or less, and try one of these organizing activities. 

Yet gratitude is good for you and the people to whom you show it, but it doesn’t have to take much time or planning to make an impact. Here are easy ways to show gratitude and being grateful in five minutes or less this holiday.

The new Time Timer ®  20 MIN has generated a lot of buzz since its release—it even won a Mom’s Choice Award ®! Parents, teachers, and business professionals are loving this easy-to-read visual timer that keeps everyone on track and on time. Here are 20 ways to use your Time Timer 20 MIN:

All it takes is a quick twist to set the new Time Timer TWIST ®!  Portable, magnetic and sporting a digital display, this new update on the classic Time Timer is great for kids and adults. Just turn the outer ring to set your desired time, and then push the play button—it’s that simple. The easy-to-read digital display shows at a glance how much time remains, as the digital tick marks disappear.

The 90-minute duration is perfect for school, home, or office, and the magnetic back makes the Time Timer TWIST easy to display—it sticks on everything from refrigerators to file cabinets to white boards. Like all Time Timer devices, it’s silent and unobtrusive, with an alert sound when time is up. And at just over 3 inches in diameter, it’s extremely portable and easy to take anywhere you go!

Use it in the classroom to time tests, group activities, and turn-taking exercises, or help keep students with special needs on task. Use it in the office to keep track of presentations and team-building exercises. At home, keep morning and bedtime routines on track, or time homework and instrument practice. The Time Timer TWIST even makes a great kitchen timer!

You’ve trusted the original Time Timer to help keep you on track and on time. Now the Time Timer TWIST provides a new way to enjoy the same reliable visual time management resource. And the low price means you can keep more than one on hand, for any time you need to make everyday tasks easier and more productive.

Happy New Year!

The holiday parties are over, and the slate is clean. It’s time to get back to your routine, and that means a chance to get back on track with home organization. The energy you spent on cards and parties last month you can put into getting your home in order now.

If you’re in the same hemisphere as we are here at Time Timer, it’s probably COLD. Wouldn’t you rather get things organized now, before school ends, the pool opens up, the summer concert series begins and your gardening is calling your name? If you’re lucky enough to live where it’s warm right now, lucky you. It’s probably time to tackle the after-holiday organizing, though, right?

We’re here to help, with these five steps to jumpstart your home organization process.

1. Make a plan and stick to it. Remember that you can’t change your habits overnight, and to make organizational systems last, they must become a habit. Try this 52-week plan to tackle your home room by room, clutter zone by clutter zone.

2. Try a timer, like this Time Timer Watch Plus. You can set multiple, recurring timers, and you don’t have to worry about taking it with you. So, if you’re organizing the basement, and going up and down the stairs with your trash and donate items, you won’t lose track. Not only that, but you can also get an idea of how much time you’ve spent at a glance. I love timers because they give me a goal--and a deadline. If I can make it 30 minutes cleaning, I can quit. Once I convince myself to start, I can go longer. But setting a manageable time on my Time Timer Watch Plus gives me the momentum I need.

3. Start with small steps, like setting up a paper recycling station near the door, so you can handle all of the bills, flyers, and school papers before they take over your home. My recycling bin is in my garage, so most of the paper clutter never makes it inside. I also really like this idea for using plastic bins as pull-out drawers in your kitchen cabinets.

4. Tackle one big project you can feel good about. What’s driving you crazy? Is your refrigerator a hot spot after the holidays? Try these hints for organizing the fridge. Is the paper clutter out of control for the mail you need to keep? Set up a household filing system, and be sure you are using the same naming conventions. Do your auto insurance bills go under “Car” or “Insurance?” Be consistent--and label.

5. Reward yourself for a job well done! Buy some fun file folders, or something totally unrelated to your organizing project, like a movie night or a new pair of shoes. I’d suggest small rewards along the way, with a big reward (weekend away?) to look forward to at the end.

We recently returned from MOMCON in Milwaukee, where we shared the Time Timer ® with moms from the MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) International.

Jan Rogers struggled to help her daughter, Loran, keep track of time. She wasn’t old enough to read clocks and often missed the bus. So, mom Jan invented Time Timer, which features a patented red disk that shows elapsed time.

Five Ways A Timer Can Hack your Spring Cleaning

Spring cleaning is a ritual for many, a way to welcome the warmer weather by purging our households of dirt and clutter. But while the end result—a sparkling, clean home—is enjoyable, the process of cleaning may be anything but fun. Here are five ways using a timer can help you with your spring cleaning tasks.

1. Get The Kids to Help by Making It A Game

Spring cleaning is a great time to teach your children responsibility for their own spaces by having them clean their rooms. You can make it a game by setting a timer (like the Time Timer ® ) for an appropriate amount of time and encouraging them to have their entire room cleaned up before time runs out. Reward them with a treat, such as 30 minutes of screen time, when they complete the task.

 2. Keep track of your cleaning process.

Have a cleaner, such as a soap scum remover, that needs to set for 10-15 minutes before you can start scrubbing? Use a timer to help you keep track of the time, and get the best results from all of your cleaning products.

 3. Break up the day by timing each activity.

Set the timer for the amount of time it should take you to complete each activity—30 minutes for dusting, 20 for vacuuming, etc. Are you the competitive type? See if you can even beat the clock if you need a challenge.

4. Give yourself a break!

After you’ve spent an hour working, take a short break. Set the timer, grab a drink and a snack, check Facebook, relax. Or, just make sure your kids are still alive.

5. Maintain your newly clean house with weekly cleaning.

Each week after spring cleaning, set the timer for one hour, and have the whole family pitch in to clean the house. Even young kids can sort socks, or empty trash cans. Divide up the tasks, and make it a true team effort.

Need the timer to get through your spring cleaning? The Time Timer MOD is the perfect fit—available in new colors at here.

Dr Darnita L. Payden, aka "Dr DClutter™," is a gifted Life Management Specialist. 

You may have seen her on Hoarders, The Diane Rehm Show or Costco Connection Magazine.
With a PhD in counseling psychology, Dr Payden helps clients understand the "how" and "why" of their own unique organizational struggles as they begin to create sustainable change. 

Read Dr. Payden's story and try her Ten-Minute Tidy™ with your Time Timer at home!

By Dr. Darnita L. Payden: 

Say goodbye to stopwatches and kitchen timers -- and hello the Time Timer! What an awesome, deceptively simple time management tool. I've been using two different sizes ~ the 3" and the 12".

Because I always use a product before I ask my clients to trust me about its usefulness or effectiveness, I spent three months discovering how many ways I could use the Time Timer in my professional and personal daily life.

Professionally, I use the 3" and 12" Time Timer for:

• Timing my free telephone consultations with prospective clients.
• Helping me stay on track in meetings.
• Delivering presentations.  It sure beats a sign held up in the back of the room with a minute countdown!
• It's great in helping manage my time on the computer, especially while checking and responding to emails and checking social media. Set it for 30 minutes and go!!