Tuesday, September 24, 2013

6 Time-Saving Tips for Busy Couples

By TNN
 
It is not just you; it’s become a common problem among couples. If you, like most, are looking for more time to spend with your partner, it’s time you reorganise your schedule. Here are a few time-saving tricks that will help you sail smoothly.
 
Pack in advance
If you find yourself running around like a headless chicken every morning and snapping at your partner, because he can’t find his socks, it’s a good idea to pack the previous night. Yes, the time saving technique you followed during your school days will help you avoid the morning clashes. So, whether it’s for work the next morning or the weekend trip, pack your things ahead of time. Preparing a list of what both of you need will also help. Sometimes, all it takes is a little organising.
 
Use the planner
Whether you share a calendar or make your individual calendars visible to one another, seeing what events each of you have planned separately and together will make things run smoother. There are tons of calendar applications on the Internet, so if what you have works for you, go for it. Knowing at a glance if you’re free or busy will save time and avoid the but-you-promised-we-would-do-this fights that are caused on account of being disorganised.
 
Same dry cleaning bag
So, you both have a habit of dumping your clothes in the laundry bag, but forget who’ll send the clothes for a wash. Try hanging a bag in the front closet to hold items that are ready to go to the cleaners. When the bag is full, hand it over to your house help, or deliver it on your way to work. Likewise, you can send the clothes for ironing all at one shot, instead of making several trips to the neighbourhood dhobi. To avoid tiffs, alternate the chores on a weekly basis.
 
Learn to prepare meals
You know why people buy so many packaged foods despite knowing their ill-effects? It is only to save time. Slow-food cooking is a time consuming activity, one that couples on the go hardly find feasible. Knowing how to make a few quick, nutritious meals will serve you well. Pitching in to cook up a meal will save the two of you a lot of time, and her some energy. If you plan in advance, it will not take much time to rustle up a healthy yet tasty meal like poha, upma, or a plate of fruits. Though it may not be the best option, cutting your vegetables in advance once in a while will also help you save time.
 
Automate your finances
There are many ways to handle finances in a relationship, and we are not going into them here. However, both of you can manage bills of the household by automating as many of them as possible. This will save you time each month, and avoid any missed payments, which can result in late fees or even service interruption to your utilities. You can pool finances or one of you can pay the other for your half of the bills. Most banks today provide the facility of automatic bill payments through Internet banking. All you have to do is fill up a form to link all your bills at one place, or call the customer care for help. This will help prevent unnecessary fights about money. One of the most common causes for friction in a relationship is finance.
 
Spend 10 minutes cleaning up
If you spend most of your weekends putting the house back together after a busy week, this tip is for you. Each weeknight, set a timer for 10 minutes and clean up. When it goes off, you’re done. If you both pitch in, that is 20 minutes of work, which will make a dramatic difference. And while the last thing most of us want to do on a work night is think about tidying up the house, the 10-minute goal makes it bearable. The payoff here is huge — you can stop spending your precious weekend hours on boring housework and utilise the time for movies, masti and recreation. Just 10 minutes a day will keep your house clutterfree, which means you spend less time looking for things that aren’t where they belong or tripping over crap.
 
 

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