MARTINEAU
Winning is the science of being totally prepared.
—GRACIE ALLEN
Preparation, I have often said, is rightly two-thirds of any venture.
—AMELIA EARHART
Dream On!
Fantasies are more than substitutes for unpleasant reality; they are also dress rehearsals, plans. All acts performed in the world begin in the imagination.
—BARBARA GRIZZUTI HARRISON
What the world really needs is more love and less paperwork.
—PEARL BAILEY
If we would only give, just once, the same amount of reflection to what we want to get out of life that we give to the question of what to do with a two weeks’ vacation, we would be startled at the aimless procession of our busy days.
—DOROTHY CANFIELD FISHER
I want to so order my life that its impression, its impact, might always be positive and spiritually constructive.
—DOROTHY BROWN
For the happiest life, days should be rigorously planned, nights left open to chance.
—MIGNON MCLAUGHLIN
To stay ahead, you must have your next idea waiting in the wings.
—ROSABETH MOSS KANTER
All the flowers of all the tomorrows are in the seeds of today.
—PROVERB
Make big plans; aim high in hope and work, remembering that a noble and logical plan never dies, but long after we are gone will be a living thing.
—LITA BANE
It’s never too late—in fiction or in life—to revise.
—NANCY THAYER
Take Your Life in
Your Own Hands
It’s true that life’s gifts come with responsibilities. When I don’t feel like cleaning up my desk or my car or my house or my general existence, I try to remember the people who would be desperate to have all the things I take for granted.
—RACHEL CLARKSON
You take your life in your own hands, and what happens? A terrible thing: no one to blame.
—ERICA JONG
Make decisions in a timely fashion—rarely does waiting improve the quality of the decision.
—ODETTE POLLAR
This is a wonderful world for women. The richness, the hope, the promise of life today…are exciting beyond belief. Nonetheless, we need stout hearts and strong characters; we need knowledge and training; we need organized effort to meet the future.
—BELLE S. SPAFFORD
When planning for a year, plant corn.
When planning for a decade, plant trees.
When planning for life, train and educate people.
—CHINESE PROVERB
I don’t know that there are any shortcuts to doing a good job.
—SANDRA DAY O’CONNOR
I was taught the way of progress is neither swift nor easy.
—MARIE CURIE
Some Helpful How-Tos
I must govern the clock, not be governed by it.
—GOLDA MEIR
If only everything were as easily organized as, say, my shoe collection. And even that can sometimes be a losing battle.
—SASHA MORROW
There are so many options, so much to do, so many demands on women. There is no point in taking one hour to do a ten-minute task, nor should we slap together an hour-worthy project in ten minutes.
—ELAINE CANNON
Arrange whatever pieces come your way.
—VIRGINIA WOOLF
A team is more than a collection of people. It is a process of give and take.
—BARBARA GLACEL
Effective teamwork is all about making a good, well-balanced salad, not whipping individuals into a single batch of V8.
—SANDRA RICHARDSON
Take just a few minutes each day to sort through any miscellaneous papers on your desk at home or the office, rather than letting unorganized piles multiply and grow.
—GLADYS MORISSON
To achieve your dreams, remember your ABC’s: Avoid negative sources, people, places, things, and habits. Believe in yourself.Consider things from every angle.
—WANDA HOPE CARTER
Keep things as simple as possible…nobody wants to reorganize their system of reorganization!
—CASSIE LAWRENCE
If a problem has no solution, it’s not a problem, just a fact.
—BJ GALLAGHER
There are two ways of meeting difficulties. You alter the difficulties or you alter yourself to meet them.
—PHYLLIS BOTTOMED
Adopt the highly effective SAW inbox system: [“S” for] STAT (as in a hospital emergency room) means “do it now!” and is for urgent tasks with a deadline of today. “A” stands for “as soon as possible” and goes on your to-do list with doable deadlines. “W” stands for “whenever” and is only for ideas and wishes for the future.
—ROBERTA LEFFLER
I always say don’t make plans, make options.
—JENNIFER ANISTON
Get a three-ring binder with pocketed dividers for receipts and user manuals, and organize by need such as “birthdays,” “utility bills,” “credit cards and reports,” “computer info,” and most importantly, “taxes”!
—NINA LESOWITZ
One way to keep control over the paper in your life is to get it back in circulation. Do you have a stack of magazines that you are almost done with? Take a few moments to go through them, and then pass them on to friends, a library, a school, a hospital, or a charity thrift
