Many years ago… far far away…I learnt something. And seems I’m on a posting roll and felt a Friday was a good time to share that tidbit.
I had gone to Vancouver for a weekend with some of my twisted sisters. We were there to attend a women’s conference There were probably a lot of really good speakers but only one whose message I remember and that has an impact in my daily life.
I have absolutely zero recall about what she looked like, her name or any other details about her. But her message really resonated with me and it was this.
She called it the OHIO principa which stands for Only Handle It Once. Imagine my surprise today when I Googled it and came across the above article talking about it being a good tip for those with ADHD. Her take on it was it made the day to day of modern life easier.
So in a nutshell it basically means if you can do it now do it and don’t put it aside for later. Which means you’ll be handling it twice or maybe a 3rd time if you set it in the wrong pile and don’t see it for a while.
Take for example my request for 5 minutes of my nursing classmates time. It’s a very simple form for updating our newsletter. Pictures and long form only if they desire. Out of 80 (or so) 7 returned it within a day. Two other one said pulling together photos first. The other 70 will require me to send 2 reminders and then one final notice.
I get it. Even retired people are busy. So are working people. This tip makes life easier. Don’t set aside the easy things. Open, sort and handle the mail and email. Clean the bathroom in the 5 minutes you’ve got instead of waiting 5 days. I know it doesn’t work for everything but it sure helps with the little things. It keeps the details of life in order.
And that’s it. My finish it – Friday edition. Finished the post up after I did the tomatoes and made marinara sauce. I wanted to sit and write while reading a beer and enjoying the sunset but first things first.
Of course I did walk the dogs and enjoyed the clouds and finding something pretty to look at. Those 30 minutes are called a gratitude break even with the thorns and cow plops.
Bernie
How weird — just discovered this is the draft file when I thought I hit post a week ago. Which means I’m filling up inboxes because I have a post I want to do for today as it’s Friday.
B
Equipoise Life 
I learned something similar to the Ohio principal about how to handle paper when I was working. 1) Handle it now 2) Diarize and file it 3) throw it out. Procrastination makes everything take longer. And yet, I still sometimes procrastinate. Cheers. Allan
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I definitely procrastinate over certain things but not usually paper work or mail. More like cleaning the bathroom or doing my weight program. Bernie
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OHIO served me well when I was working. Hard to incorporate in the middle of a move/renovation, but I’ll get back to it soon…thanks for the reminder, Bernie!
Deb
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I also have to remind myself regularly. I find it easier in semi retirement to loop off on some tangent. When I worked time was very full and things needed to be done asap. Good luck with the reno. Hope it’s done soon. Bernie
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I can still hear my grandma telling me to never walk past something that needs to be put away! I find myself following her advice more and more these days… she was a wise woman! First time hearing the OHIO but great advice from your “sister”!
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And by now the putting away is just a habit and a good one. My house might not always be super clean but it is always tidy. I am always a bit dismayed in that neither of our children picked up this trait. Bernie
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I remember that OHIO theory when I was working and it made a lot of sense… in theory. I tend to “handle” things multiple times, then put them back in a pile to handle again. My husband is more the OHIO type. Thank goodness one of us is 🙂
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My other half just leaves it in the se spot for a l o n g time before he handles it. Never moves it just doesn’t do it…. I like to keep things moving and ticking off the list so this really works for me. As you said good thing we all balance out!
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When I was juggling Pricipalship and Motherhood the OHIO Principle saved my sanity. Only handling tasks once whenever possible has been firmly ingrained
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I had never heard of it until I was 3/4 of the way through my working life. I kind of feel like I did some of it already but still it really resonated. Bernie
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