Always park in J

 Every minute spent organizing is an hour earned 

- Benjamin Franklin

We probably all agree that being organized, having a plan, everyone being on the same page, working toward the same goal is the easiest way to complete tasks. 

Well, that's all well and good until something unexpected happens.

With potentially 51 guests in the building at any one time, something unexpected is to be expected. People do things differently. They use space differently. They use things and spaces - even after nearly 13 years - that we had not thought of or seen before.

Really odd stuff...like cooking rice in an electric jug. Boil rice in water - kind of makes sense.  We now provide rice cookers in our guest kitchen.

Planning the week ahead, revising the plan the day before, confirming the plan at morning team meetings...it's a constant and shifting plan to be organized. And then...the dryer stops working and the heavens open with a down pour! The plan changes. 

I asked my boys, 

'What is the most important thing you do to stay organized?'

Husband Gareth's tip is to:

 'Plan to over achieve'.

The old saying of shoot for the moon and hit the stars...or is it the other way around? It makes sense to strive for more, in every aspect of life.  

Jacob-son's tip is to:

 'Allow more time than you think you'll need'

Jacob discovered, just yesterday, that his morning routine of a gym session, breakfast and then off to work at the local cafe (shout out to The Bach cafe at Ocean Spa), takes longer than the 2 hours he had scheduled. So this morning he got up an hour earlier. What an over achiever he is at 16 years!

At Toadies our day is chunked up into Morning, Afternoon and Evening shifts. There are certain things that need to be done at particular times of the day. Breakfast, check-outs and the days payments and correspondence as well as housekeeping, all get done in the morning shift.

The afternoon is errand running, continuing with anything not completed in the morning, greeting arrivals and preparing breakfast for the next day. 

The evening is more arrivals, setting the hostel lights and curtains to evening mode and hosting folk or giving them the space to enjoy the house.

Our staff mantra 

Everything we do in this shift is for the benefit of staff and guests in the next shift.

So the boys tips are worthy. Doing more when you can so you get what needs to be done completed.

Allowing more time so you have a buffer supports the calm approach to a re-action if something unexpected happens.

When I answer my own question - 

'What is the most important thing you do to stay organized?'

Always park in J

I have a bad memory. I am a creature of habit. I rely on lists. The boys tease me about my 'Always park in J'. This came about while living on the Kapiti Coast. The big supermarket/shopping centre there has the parking aisles labeled with the alphabet. I always park in J - so I don't have to remember where I parked the car. It's in J and within 4 bays either side of the trolley return.

Turns out I use this strategy in most aspects of my life. I do things in a certain order. I keep things in certain places.  

My friends can help me prepare and serve a dinner party for 20 people almost silently as they know where I am up to by the pattern I keep. Jo and Franck are experts at seeing the pattern and knowing exactly how they can help. We run the kitchen like a well oiled machine! 

If you are lucky enough to be staying at Toadies on Dinner Night, you'll benefit from that well oiled machine. Gareth most probably has been fussing over the bar b q or smoker with a cut of meat and a new sauce recipe.  I'll have the kitchen benches busy with vege dishes and a new dessert to try. Jo and Franck will have the table sorted and the dish washer in hand. 

And when it goes wrong?....

I have been known to drive away. Not go to the supermarket if I can't park in J. We had corn on the cob for dinner because the duck didn't smoke in time. The laundry took 3 days to catch up on while the dryer waited for a technician.

Life gives us the un-expected and we roll with it. Running this business is a constant test of flexibility and resilience. 

Being as organized as possible is our first defense. 

Laughter is the second. 

'What is the most important thing you do to stay organized?'

Note: Jo and Franck are Toadies. Many events which guests enjoy here could not happen without their help. Both are skilled in the kitchen adding their own dishes to ours.  French Franck brings his knowledge of cheese to the platters and Jo has extensive knowledge which helps with developing gluten free and vegan dishes we can all enjoy.