True Confessions Wednesday: End-of-Month Transitions

True Confession #46: I struggle with the transition from one month to the next.

I can hardly believe the end of October is almost upon us! At school, in particular, this gets my attention because this year, fall semester ends on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. It's been a challenging semester on many levels and compacting it has been one of those challenges. 

As someone with an I need to see it personal style, it's the flip of the calendar page that gets me. Yes, I am aware of how ridiculous that sounds coming from a full-grown woman but, somehow, a week that is split between one month and the next contributes to my losing track of time in a way I can't really explain.

Luckily, this month will not provide the same challenge since the last week in October had the courtesy to fill an entire row of block on my calendar page. But, since other months are less cooperative, I've come up with a few tips that help to keep the shock of "you mean that's next week?" at bay. They're not foolproof, but their consistent use has kept me from missing many important events and appointments.

Look ahead. Preparing for a transition makes it easier, and the simplest way for me to do this is to make it a habit to flip from one month to the next far enough ahead of time to wrap my brain around the wraparound of this month into next. Ten days to two weeks ahead of time is usually sufficient.

Create a sign post. Always meaning to look ahead but still getting caught by surprise? Jot important first-week-of-the-next-month tasks or appointments on a small, square sticky note and attach it to a calendar square in the last week of the month.

Do a weekly check-in. My family just loves this (yes, that's sarcasm), but it helps us to make sure that we align our calendars and don't miss appointments (plus my husband is better at the whole next-week-is-a-new-month thing than I am). When my daughter was growing up, we had our "calendar meeting" at dinner on Friday, but you can pencil in any time that works for your family. Once this becomes a habit, it's something you can accomplish in less than ten minutes.

Investing a little time in your calendar can make things run more smoothly every day of the month, even when the next one sneaks up on you.