Carolina Pad

By Carson Tate
http://www.livingsimply.net/

Hangovers - the result of too much fun or the result of just too much? After the holidays, we are too full – of food, stuff, to do lists - life has begun to hang over us. We crave a fresh start in the New Year, free of hangovers, but what can we do? 

 

How can we free ourselves from yet another life hangover? Let’s focus on simply living.

 

Streamline - Streamline your routine.

 

What can you do to reduce the number of steps you take each morning to get dressed? Can you pack all of your children’s lunches for the week on Sunday evening? Can you pay all of your bills on-line? Streamline. Make it easy.

 

Information – Manage the flow of information in your life. 

 

Turn off your cell phone for uninterrupted time. Get off of mailing lists – credit card solicitations, catalogs, etc. Screen your calls. Determine when you will return calls each day. Do not begin your workday with email. Check your email at regular intervals during the day. Begin choosing when, where and how you will respond to the incessant clamoring for your attention and time.

 

Maintenance – Do tasks not jobs.

 

It is much easier to quickly walk through the house and pick up a few stray items, a task, versus overhauling your entire home in a weekend long clean-up session. By putting away items when you get them out, filing each week instead of each quarter, and hanging up clothes after they are worn you are able to easily maintain a home or an office.

Who wants to spend a weekend cleaning up and organizing? Do tasks not jobs.

 

Plan – Plan and prepare.

 

Try looking at your calendar a month at a time instead of a day or a week at a time. Is there an upcoming event or events you can prepare for now? Think about buying bulk birthday presents for all of your child’s birthday parties. Keep extra greeting cards on hand. Prepare soup, casseroles, etc. and freeze them. Lay out your clothes the night before.

All of these tips allow you to prepare for an event versus always reacting to events. It is the constant reaction that increases stress and wastes your time and money.

 

Location – Find a home for everything.

 

Being organized is not about how a space looks but rather how it functions. It is about finding what you want when you want it. Look at your home and think about it as a space in which certain activities take place - eating, sleeping, and dressing. Then put every item you need to complete that activity in the space where the activity is performed. Now, when you want an item you’ll know where to find it – every time.

Find a location for everything.