There are days that I feel so overwhelmed with EVERYTHING I have to do, that I dont know what to do first. I know that having an ordered house will help get me on the right path, but who has time!?
Frankly, most of us dont have alot to time, so what we have we need to use the right way!
One of my FAVORITE destressing tool is my TIMER!
I have to give full credit to Flylady who taught me how to use it. I have adapted her suggestions to meet the needs of my house and I have to say it makes my efforts to destress more effective.
For me, setting a timer for even the most simple chores focuses my mind and body. It is AMAZING how much can get accomplished with a little focused energy.
This can be anything from things I want to do (bible reading, pick up the house, take a walk), to things I dont want to do (too much time on the computer, cleaning up the office or laundry), to things that need doing but I feel too busy to do (checkbook, grocery list), or things that my family needs that I feel distracted from (focused playing with the kids, sit down time with Adrian).
I dont think that every minute should be constricted by a timer..dont get me wrong. But, for those days when there seems to be so much to do, and so little time to get it done..its a great help.
It is a way to make 10 minutes productive ones, and if you are blessed enough to have more than that you can get alot done! :)
One of my favorite uses of the timer is for what Flylady calls "Crisis Clean"
Its one of those handy things you can do when the house is out of control and you need to get it picked up quickly for one reason or another. I have adapted it, and now use it everyday to pick up before Adrian gets home.
I start in the back of my house, and depending on how much time I have I set my timer for 5, 10, or 15 minute increments. My blessed hours of production are during Canon's naptime. Ty is ready to be still for a while and watches cartoons, and I can get something done for a little bit.
So, I start in the back of the house with the laundry - I spend 10 minutes doing whatever I need to do to get the laundry caught up. Then, I move on when the timer goes off (This one I will come back to after a few timer cycles to keep the momentum going).
THAT is the key. Stopping, and moving on when the timer goes off. Knowing you have ONLY that amount of time is helpful, and it keeps you focused.
Then onto the office - the timer is great in there because I HATE cleaning the office. So, the timer gives me some time, but not forever and by the time its done I get to stop. But, I have put 10 minutes worth of time in and it already is better organized and decluttered. I can also use this time to catch up the budget, checkbook, etc.
I move through the hallway/hall bathroom ..maybe just 5 minutes each for those.
Then to my bedroom and master bath for 10 minutes each. While I am in the bathroom I wipe it down, swipe the toilet and declutter. Bed gets made in the BR and clothes and stuff picked up.
Then to the LR and Kitchen. These usually take longer, but when they are done the house is finished being picked up.
This works for me, because I can set the timer, get the work done. Then, go check on Ty for a few minutes then start my next thing.
Also, a word on timers. I have found the $5 one from Walmart that is the turn and ding is great. That is because its not incessently going off if my time is up but I am in the other room, OR if I set it for the kids or something and I dont want to stop what I am doing to go turn it off.
Thing that is hard for me is that every area may not be perfect, but its that many minutes better than it was before.
Like Elizabeth George says in our current bible study for Ladies Class, "Something is better than nothing, and ALWAYS aim for more."
Also, take a look at Flylady's "Weekly Home Blessing" - this is a great tool for taking care of alot of those little things you need to do every week in an hour or in several 10 minute increments.
I took this directly from her site,
This takes approximately one hour; some tasks take less than 10 minutes.
So, set your priorities and then your timer..and be less stressed today! :)
2 comments:
You are awesome! Thanks for the encouragement. I'm going to try a couple of these things but i'm a little scared. I'm writing my list as we speak of all the things I need to get done today. I need this ten minute thing. So today its going into practice. AAHHH!!!
I need to do the timer thing again...
But what works best on Olivia is to play her favorite CD and then I assign her jobs to get done while the music is playing. If they are done when the song is over (I am ususally doing a separate room) then she gets the tiniest piece of chocolate... We are usually done in less than 30 minutes.
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