I really appreciate all the comments and tips on yesterday's post. They have certainly got me thinking! I think I'm coming to understand that delcuttering is going to be an ongoing process with me. If I work at it, keeping plodding forward, I can get where I'd like things to be.
Following on from yesterday's post and my lack of progress in the decluttering arena, I started thinking about time management. I'm not good at it. Very blunt. Very honest. I tend to either get stuck on one thing so much that I hyper-focus on it, or I end up getting totally distracted from what I was supposed to be doing and go off on a tangent.
How do you manage time? How do you balance the things you want to do and the things you have to do? How do you stick to getting things done?
I know that I need to do lists. They help. I just tend to get distracted from even making them! I've thought about allowing myself x amount of time to do something I enjoy and then x amount of time getting something done I'd rather not do. Does that work for anyone?
I did go out by myself for a walk today. It was rather peaceful, until it wasn't. Must have been the day for all the seniors (high school students) to have their yearbook photos done. It's a thing here in America. Each year high schools have a yearbook. Students submit photos of themselves usually ones they've had done for them. I counted four separate lots of student/parent/photographer groups, one family group having photos taken and a girl playing a guitar while having a video taken! I decided it was time to go home then.
It was rather chilly this morning. I think we've seen the last of the warmer temps for a while. I had hoped to see a sunrise, but it wasn't to be, though the sun did briefly make an appearance. It cast a weird light over the top of the treetops.
Hope everyone is having a good weekend. Be kind to yourself!
What works for me is setting a timer and alternating between things I want to do (eg catch up on blogs/play a PC game/read) and things that need to be done like housework. Set timer for 20 or 30 minutes and start the housework. Finish as soon as practical after the timer goes off and then have a breather/quick sit/glass of water. After that, reset the timer and away you go for another 20 or 30 doing something you enjoy. Rinse and repeat. Take a longer break for a cuppa or lunch when desired.
ReplyDeleteI find it remarkably efficient at getting through an amazing amount of work without it seeming like drudgery. Loosely based on the Pomodoro Technique.
Oh, wow! Those trees look like they are on fire! What a striking photo!
ReplyDeleteHa! Time management! Yet another are I struggle with! I am a procrastinator. I usually wait until the last minute to do something and then, I panic! I always tell myself that I won't wait until the last minute, next time, but, I get busy doing other things! Avoidance behavior, I think! When I first started decluttering and organizing, I was told to set myself a timer for 15 minutes (or, even 10, if that's all the time you can handle). Do the cleaning or the decluttering for those 15 minutes and when the time is up, reward yourself with an activity you enjoy for another 15 minutes. Then, get back to cleaning, etc., for another 15 minutes. Or, set yourself one task - clean one shelf or one drawer and then, consider it done for the day. Baby steps, it's called. It takes longer, but, it works for me.
Oh, it is an ongoing process, for sure. AT least, that's my understanding anyway.
ReplyDeleteI have another major one coming up when the garden room is finished and am quite looking forward to it. Hopefully, it will be done by Christmas, fingers crossed. xx