Jenny never once claimed to be organized. She always relied on her ex-husband's natural planning skills to get them where they needed to go. Since her divorce, Jenny realized how much she and her ex had grown to depend upon and take for granted each other's areas of responsibilities, but no more. Feeling as though she was constantly running behind, Jenny decided she needed to learn how to organize her life better so she enlisted the help of two close friends who were strong where she was weak. Together, they mapped out a simple (even for the most disorganized individual) planning calendar for Jenny to test out. Give it a month, her friends told her, and if it doesn't help, we'll tweak and adjust until we find one that works.

• Take one area at a time. Decide which part of your life needs the fastest correction. Could be home/car maintenance; bill paying/budgeting; cleaning/cooking/grocery shopping/laundry; childcare/after school scheduling. Attack the single most frustrating chore and rework how you approach and handle it.
• Make use of daily, weekly, yearly calendars. Determine your family's highest priorities and categorize them in order of importance. Try utilizing the large erasable wall calendars for quick previews of the upcoming week/month. Remember that making long-term plans always minimizes indecision and tension when smaller, more insignificant choices have to be made. Anything that gets in the way of long-term goals can more easily be discarded.
• Set the routine. Adults and kids alike function better within the bounds of regular routines and schedules. Daily life will flow more smoothly when everyone knows what to expect within reason. Productivity and security will abound once everyone gets into (and gets behind) how family life can work on a day-to-day basis.

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