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Do you set goals in your business, for your family, or for personal accomplishments? Goals are a great way to move forward, provided you have supported the planning process with a specific action list, broken down into individual steps. An action planner is a great way to do this.

A good action plan will help you create SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-based) goals that can be broken down into bite-sized action items you can knock off one-by-one. It’s not only organized in a way that helps you keep track and make progress, but it also can be motivating because it allows you to build momentum. ...read more

The end of summer is near, and soon students will be heading back to the classroom. While they may be groaning all the way to the school bus, many parents are breathing a sigh of relief as the long days of “I’m bored” draw to a close. ...read more

With the start of the new school year just ahead of us this is a great time to get organized! Unfortunately, however, sometimes bound calendars aren’t set up for your working style. That’s when a blank calendar that can be printed at any time or by months or quarters (or whatever you prefer!) comes in handy. ...read more

Father’s Day is fast approaching and that means it’s time to start brainstorming new and exciting ideas to honor the special dads out there. Dads love to grill, but since it’s his day, why not let him hang up the tongs and relax? Instead, pull the kiddos together and start creating a day of backyard fun, complete with customized lawn games and a picnic. Read on for a few tips to get started…

Teacher Appreciation Week is coming, and we here at Out of Office are grateful for the teachers we had and those who are inspiring young minds now. To that end, we’ve pulled together some of our favorite projects for teacher appreciation gifts. We hope one of these ideas will be the perfect fit to honor your child’s special teacher for a year of fun and learning. And keep a look out for another great project coming your way next week from guest blogger Patricia! ...read more

There’s nothing worse than losing track of your drink at a party. It happens to me all the time, especially at family gatherings where everyone is milling about and engrossed in conversation. There’s the tried and true permanent marker method, where everyone writes their names or initials on their cup, but let’s be honest – it doesn’t look very polished and sometimes if you don’t have the right kind of marker it rubs right off.

Now that the holidays are over, we’re experiencing a different kind of season at our house – thank you note season! I know I was supposed to have those written and sent a couple of weeks ago, but better late than never, right? My mom (who I hope isn’t reading this) would disagree. I remember her hounding me as a kid after every gift giving occasion to get those thank you notes written and in the mailbox. ...read more

The holidays are in full swing and you know what that means – parties, parties and more parties! If you’re like me, you’re probably feeling the stress as you try to fill all those final wishes and still create some amazing, personalized details for your holiday gatherings. ...read more

Sometimes it seems that the excitement and anticipation that builds around Christmas gifts can be even better than the presents themselves, especially for kids! My husband and I have many little nieces and nephews who already can’t wait for Christmas morning, a feeling I’m sure our new baby will share when he’s old enough to know who Santa Claus is.

Writing a letter to Santa was always a big part of the holiday build-up in my house. Sometimes the list would be endless (much to my parents’ chagrin!). Other times it would only include one super-special item…you know, something totally unattainable like a pony or a puppy, causing my parents to raise their eyebrows even more than they did the Christmas before! Regardless of whether or not my Christmas wishes were fulfilled by Santa, it was always fun to participate in the age old traditions surrounding the annual wait for his arrival on Christmas Eve.
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If you’ve walked into a store lately, it certainly feels like the holidays are right around the corner – and this year’s promotions are in full swing. It seems like the ads for special seasonal offerings and the hottest toys start earlier and earlier each year. There are even entire days dedicated to saving money on holiday items – Black Friday and Cyber Monday! But how do small businesses stand out from the crowd during the holidays, especially with so much big competition? ...read more