TIME IN, TIME OUT, TIME ENOUGH: A Time Management Guide for Women

Neat little tricks for getting house, office, and family firmly in tow--the sort of book that has a natural appeal to the Supermom set. But this one tries so hard to cover everything that it barely scratches the surface in some areas. Most useful, probably, are some of the general tips: set daily goals; plan to tackle top priority items first; but follow the rhythms of your ""natural energy"" cycle too--at peak times handle the most demanding tasks, at low ebb the most routine ones. (Flexibility, however, is the key: you might get more vacuuming done in one hour at peak than in three hours at low efficiency; so if it's better to get rid of the routine chore, perhaps you should promote it to peak time.) Other practical tips are more mundane: make large-quantity meals and freeze the leftovers to decrease food-preparation chores; expand closets with additional shelves, hooks, etc.; lower your standards when dad or kids try to help. Relatively little attention is devoted to time management in the office--mostly some of the better-known ploys for keeping telephone interruptions, social visits, and long meetings to a minimum, plus a plug for networking. It's all cheerful enough; but for genuine help around the home, try Stephanie Winston's Getting Organized (1978), and for assistance in the office, Dru Scott's How to Put More Time in Your Life (1980).