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Book Review: Take Back Your Time by Morgan Tyree

October 28, 2019 Leave a Comment

Do you like to find ways to be constantly improving? Are you certain that there has to be a better way to handle your time, your tasks, and your everything? Well, there just might be.

Book Review: Take Back Your Time by Morgan Tyree

About Morgan Tyree:

Morgan Tyree knows what it’s like to have to manage your time well. She earned her BS degree in business administration with an emphasis in small business and entrepreneurship from the University of Oregon, and has worked in the fields of marketing, management, and human resources. She blogs weekly at Morganize with Me (www.morganizewithme.com), and contributes monthly to the popular blog, Organizing Junkie (www.organizingjunkie.com). She and her husband, David, have three children and live in Fort Collins, Colorado.

About the Take Back Your Time:

We all get 24 hours in a day–but it never seems like quite enough time, does it? Morgan Tyree wants to help you take back your time with her proven time management system. With energy and enthusiasm, Morgan shows you how to organize and manage your time using her simple three-color time zone system of green, yellow, and red–moxie time, multitasking time, and me time. She shows you how to

– identify your most productive times each day
– regulate between essentials and nonessentials
– schedule your three time zones
– match your time zones with your capacities
– welcome the season of life you’re in
– set achievable goals that align with your values

If you’ve struggled to find balance and direction in your overloaded life, let Morgan’s system help you discover the freedom of less hustle and more harmony.

Buy Take Back Your Time on Amazon!

Cordially Barbara’s Review: Take Back Your Time

On a scale of cotton candy to Brussels sprouts, Take Back Your Time by Morgan Tyree is a tray of ice cubes. Whether just water or juice, each cube plunges a glass of liquid into a refreshing temperature.(Copy received. Opinions my own.)

Take Back Your Time breaks down how to identify priorities, decrease stress, and increase productivity. Morgan Tyree, in simple conversation form, offers a manageable way of taking stock of your life, work, and activities to make the most of your time. With simple questions, the author provides ways to determine your daily and weekly goals. The book also includes many worksheets and graphs for a foundation for your renewed productivity.

As a goal setter, I love the idea of a book that can help me become even more efficient in my time management. I’m always looking for ways to improve. What I like about Take Back Your Time is that Morgan Tyree gives us language for our different types of time management. While I already do much of what she shared already, I like the intentionality of the system with traffic light colors and a plan.
If you’re not much of a planner but you want to do better, Take Back Your Time is for you.

Choosing a Book Shelf

Since I was traveling through Southeast Asia while reading Take Back Your Time, it delighted me to find a home for the book on the shelf of my favorite cafe in Hanoi, Vietnam. An expat suggested that I check out The Eastern and Oriental Tea House and Coffee Parlour while I was visiting this beautiful city, and I’m so so so glad that I did.

Honestly, I allowed myself the pleasure of going to that cafe EVERY day that I was in Vietnam. So for the time being, Take Back Your Time sits on a bookshelf on their third floor!

Hanoi, Vietnam: Pull Up a Blue Plastic Chair

October 24, 2019 Leave a Comment

Never have I ever thought I’d end up in Vietnam. It just wasn’t a place on my mind, until I learned that Hanoi had a Temple of Literature. I was intrigued.

When I read Eating Vietnam by Graham Holliday, I was sold.
For me, he painted streets lined with blue plastic tables and stools, which present quite the awkward predicament for long-legged Westerners. It’s nearly impossible to fold your legs underneath the table comfortably.

But for the food, it’s worth it.

Hanoi, Vietnam: Pull Up a Blue Plastic Chair

When your nose leads you to a stall that smells delicious, you plop down at the table, and they’ll bring you their one dish. For less than a dollar, you are treated to a huge meal of Bun cha, Pho, or whatever that street food seller specializes in.

It’s a little intimidating to sit down and know that you stick out like a sore thumb…and to also realize that you (by you, i mean me) have no idea the correct way to eat the meal. Stealing glances at the people around you, hoping that no one catches you, just so you can hopefully look like you know what you’re doing.

I walk around with my eyes as big as saucers about 95% of the time. With my nose in the air, searching for the next street food.

Oh, but if you do decide to stop in a proper cafe, be sure to order the egg coffee. This dessert-level coffee reminds me of a toasted marshmallow pudding, and I’m not sure what could be better. Hot or cold, it’s next-level delicious.

While wandering through Hanoi, I looked down a street as the sun was setting, and aromatic smoke billowed up through lights that strung haphazardly between buildings. Motorcycles whizzed around me, and music bombarded me from all sides.

Curious, I walked down the street and discovered rows upon rows of vendors selling raw meat, live fish, and piles of squid. I purchased a stick of sizzling meat from one vendor, and the flavor of the fatty meat with spicy sauce had me in raptures as I tiptoed around uncertain liquids in the streets and tried not to gape at all the different meats. And it was magic.

One street vendor had live fish swimming in tubs of water, and another had some weird looking lumpy mud. Could it have been fish eggs? I had no idea, and I had no one to ask.

Completely enthralled, I gnawed at my stick of meat, contemplating the slabs of raw meat, tubs of worms, and the bowl of weird mud. When I glanced to my right, my gaze snagged on the grin of a young boy who was watching me taking it all in.

I bobbed my head in embarrassment, throwing a grin at him, before I walked further into the mayhem of meat, smoke, and roaring motorcycles.

Another day, I sought out lunch, thirsting for something truly Vietnamese. Not only did I want food, but I wanted experience.

Next to a burger place with tables seated with white people, I saw a dimly lit space with the infamous blue plastic stool-chairs spread out onto the sidewalk. Cringingly and a bit apologetically, I walked toward a Vietnamese woman who sat ripping stems from spinach leaves. She grinned toothily at me and called to a younger woman who was deeper in the depths of the stall.

Somehow I ordered. I rubbed my stomach. She said “fried rice…noodles” and I said “noodles.”

The toothily-grinning and spinach-wielding lady pointed to the table next to her, and I folded my long legs underneath the metal table, settling onto a plastic stool. This is what I came for. But I felt so so so awkward and out of place.

But then, a piping hot bowl of noodles was placed before me. And through mimicked movements, the women instructed me what to add to my soup. Within the next 10-15 minutes, more Vietnamese crowded into the table with me. And across the way, the burger place held separated and regulated tables of white people.

Sweat dripped down my elbows, and I watched desperately. How did one pay here? And how much to pay?

When done, other stall patrons stood, leaving their bowls behind and proffered money to the young woman who’d brought the bowls. Monkey see, monkey do.

Every day, I’m reminded by how little I know and how humbling it is to not speak a language. While I’m surrounded by people and the streets are crowded with cars, motorcycles, bicycles, and walkers, I feel like a giant stone in the middle of river rapids. I’m a part of it, and yet not.

Guest Post: 5 Places to Visit in Germany This Autumn by Daniela McVicker

October 21, 2019 2 Comments

Autumn is one of the best seasons to go on a city break. The high temperatures of summer are gone, and the golden colors make any place look fabulous. Plus, there are many places which are less crowded in autumn. While you can curl in your bed and read a book during rainy autumn days, you can also use your free time to explore new places.

5 Places to Visit in Germany This Autumn

Germany is one of the countries which looks impressive in the “autumn coat.” If you think of the biggest beer festival, Oktoberfest, then you shouldn’t think twice when selecting Germany as an exciting place to visit during fall. So, keep reading this article and prepare your itinerary for this autumn.

Munich

When you think of fall and Germany, you instantly think of Oktoberfest. The world’s famous beer festival takes place between mid-September until the beginning of October. Oktoberfest doesn’t mean only beer, but it also brings a lot of fun in the city. Apart from having the opportunity to taste some of the best beers in the world, you will also get to know the local culture better.

If you don’t plan to visit Oktoberfest, then you should avoid the city during this period as you will feel suffocated by tourists. Munich is a great autumn destination for many other reasons. You can enjoy a relaxing walk in the English Garden. You can also rent a car and explore the areas outside Munich. The castles and the lakes of Bavaria should find their place on your list.

Neuschwanstein Castle

If you like Disney cartoons and you fell in love with Sleeping Beauty when you were a little child, then you shouldn’t miss Neuschwanstein Castle. When you first see it, you will feel breathless. This castle’s beauty inspired the famous Walt Disney to create the Sleeping Beauty story. Autumn is an extraordinary season to visit this castle as it is less crowded.

You can easily reach this magnificent place from Munich or Innsbruck. You won’t be allowed to take photos inside. Thus, you should open your eyes wide and listen carefully to the stories that your guide tells you. You will keep the image of this fantastic place in your heart, and you will remember it whenever you feel the fall chill wind blowing your hair.

The Black Forest

Germany’s famous forest is an amazing place to visit during any period of the year. However, autumn has a unique vibe and beauty. The golden leaves change the wood so much that it becomes a festival of colors and smells. The Black Forest is located at the border between Germany and France, near the Rhine river. Apart from the panoramic views, you can also take the opportunity to take a walk in the traditional villages.

Once you take your first step in town, you will feel that you’ve entered a fairy-tale. You will discover unique designs in the traditional houses which change every season. For example, the local people use mainly wood to build their homes and all the decorations are painted by hand. So, this is a place where you can take some of the most memorable photos.

Potsdam

There are many reasons why this city is part of UNESCO’s heritage. It used to be the place where the Prussian Kings enjoyed spending their time. Therefore, you will discover that Potsdam has various castles, royal gardens, and many other buildings with a strong history. There is no castle which is less interesting to visit. Each place has its own story, and you will immediately be captivated by what your guide will tell you.

Sanssouci or the Neues Palais are some examples that will amaze you without a doubt. These palaces were created based on Frederick the Great’s vision, who wanted to show off his wealth and demonstrate to the world how powerful he was.

Lüneburg Nature Park

As one of the oldest parks in Germany, Lüneburg Nature Park was established in 1921, occupying around 100 square miles. Since then, this nature reserve has been expanded four times, making this park a breathtaking place to visit. Traveling in a group or solo, you should still visit the park. You can connect with nature, enjoy nature’s colors, and spend a bit of time with yourself as well as putting your thoughts in order.

Germany tastes delicious in autumn…

After a long walk on Germany’s streets, visiting castles and royal gardens, you need a hearty dish to fuel you with energy. The traditional German food contains a lot of meat and potatoes, as well as cabbage. The food is covered with many sauces and gravies. Even though your stomach is full, you shouldn’t forget about desserts. Germany offers you fantastic sweet products like cakes and tortes. Therefore, you can quickly warm up after a tiring day spent in the cold.

Visiting Germany in autumn is one of the best decisions you can take to spend a perfect vacation. There many places during this period which are less crowded. The temperatures are also comfortable enough to make you sweat less and enjoy the surroundings more. The country is full of green spaces, spectacular castles, and quaint villages. You can go to any part of the country and discover places full of history and fantastic architecture.

About the Author

Daniela McVicker is a freelance writer, blogger, and contributor to TopWritersReview. She graduated from Durham University and has an MA in psychological science. Her passion is traveling and finding ways to enrich students’ learning experiences.