Life Admin Hacks: The step-by-step guide to saving time and money, reducing the mental load and streamlining your life AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS BOOK AWARDS 2022 FINALIST

When our kids were smaller, I tried to keep things simple by organising catch-ups in the park or inviting people over for afternoon tea.

I’m a big fan of straight-out asking parents what their child would like for a gift. I also take that route for my family members’ birthdays, but with enough lead time so that they’ve totally forgotten about the conversation by the time their birthday rolls around.

With repetition, these traditions have become effortless to organise, and I look forward to them each year.

Fire off a bunch of emails, texts or phone calls with suggestions to fill your month ahead with the right amount of activity for you. Be specific with your idea, date, time and venue, rather than offering a vague suggestion for a catch-up – people appreciate the thought and detail. Batching this task means you can set your schedule and enjoy the re

At various times, I’ve locked in dates for a monthly midweek movie night and regular weekend hiking sessions with friends, or monthly dinners and quarterly brunches with various groups of girlfriends. It’s comforting to have these fixtures in the calendar to look forward to, but as friendship dynamics change and our lives get more hectic, the regul

however, having people over is what I actually prefer. I like the cosiness and the fact that shoes are optional. Having people over used to mean a monthly dinner party or BBQ but now, ordering takeaway, cracking a bottle of red and chatting while the kids play is more my speed.

I had a monthly babysitter booked a year ahead so my partner and I could plan things and make bookings well in advance. This was incredibly convenient, both for us and the babysitter.

Maintaining a nourishing social life is an aspect of life admin that takes conscious planning. The key is working out what you need from your social life and engineering something that sustains rather than depletes you.

We use a local garden service to do a major garden prune twice a year. This means we don’t have to invest in a ladder and the other equipment required, and I don’t have to hold the ladder and worry about my husband breaking bones or butchering our trees.