Ten on Tuesday - 10 Ways to Simplify Your Life

Thirty Days of Thankfulness

Day 2:  I am thankful for people willing to run for political offices.  Being a leader in the government is not a job I would want to have.  I'm not always happy with the job they do and I'm really glad the phone calls and junk mail will stop now that it's Election Day, but I am thankful there are people willing to serve our communities.

Ten on Tuesday:  10 Ways to Simplify Your Life

If I knew how to do this, I would.  Today will be a day that I learn a lot from reading others' blogs!!!  Here's what I think would help me simplify but I can't always seem to make it happen.

1.  Clean as you go:  This makes a lot of sense but many times I'm in a hurry to get to the next thing.  My in-laws have a decoration hanging on their wall that says something like "The meal is not complete until the kitchen is neat."  That's just not in my nature though I love having the kitchen clean.

2.  Learn how to make decisions:  I seriously think this is the root of many of my problems.  It's hard for me to decide if I'll need a phone number, take out menu, etc. so things pile up.

3.  Set aside specific tasks for specific days:  When I can make myself do this, it works so well!  Yesterday's chores were to do laundry, clean out the fridge, get the trash to the curb, etc.

4.  Learn to say "No.":  Huge.  This one is huge.  My life would be way more calm right now if I was better at saying this little yet powerful word.

5.  Throw things out:  Sure, you might wish you had something later but then again you might not.  Still working on this one, too.

6.  Keep a list of errands that need to be run:  I'm always saying "Oh, I should have bought 'xyz' while I was out today!"  If I had a list I would be more productive.

7.  Put like things together and put them where you use them:  I took a large shoe box (boot size) and put all of our lunch supplies in there: fruit cups, peanut butter crackers, etc.  This makes it easy to grab stuff for packing lunches.  The Nester even does this in her fridge - great idea!

8.  Make meals ahead:  It's so nice to have dinner in the freezer.  Earlier this week we heated up slices of meatloaf and tonight dinner went together very quickly with the spaghetti sauce we had in the freezer.

9.  Take time for Bible study and prayer:  Many people I know call this their quiet time.  My days seem less frazzled when I start them by studying God's word.

10.  Get up early:  My days also go better when I get up early.  Sometimes I can get several things done by 7:00 or 8:00 and that feels so good!

Head over to Carole's blog to read about how other people simplify their lives.  While you're there, sign up to get email updates for Ten on Tuesday.  

Comments

[erin]

Yes, I try to do everything on your list except no.8 :) Frozen meals are just not done here. Maybe because eating out can be done quite cheaply.

[lydia]

great list-i've gotten a handle on the meal thing-learned to pack and plan dinners really well when i spent many years at the baseball field when both boys played ball, combined with my refusal to eat concession stand food-or "breeze" through the drive-thru-IMO it's more expensive and bad for you. i could do sooo much better with #9-i'm a bit of a fiend when it comes to keeping things "picked up" and throwing out-sorta goes along with cutting your knitting-i have no problem with that!

[Robin]

We've been concentrating on #5 throwing things out/giving them away recently. "Sentimental value" just isn't a priority in our lives any longer.

The one thing I would add is "stop watching TV." We did this seven years ago and it freed up an amazing amount of time. I hadn't realized what a time waster and drain on relationships it had become.

[Carole]

Excellent list! Paring down and making lists are the keys for me.

[Jennifer]

Great life lessons!

[vanessa]

Re #1 - now I know what to get my hubby for Christmas! (the wall hanging); #8 is definitely making my life easier; and #9 is so important for me as well.

And so thankful the barrage of phone calls has ended!!!

[Geraldine]

This is a great list Beth. I so agree, re: getting up early, works for me too.

I haven't stopped in for a while, your blog is looking great!

[Mary]

great list! and great comments... this topic really resonated with everyone, didn't it? let's help each other with the Just Say No thing, and I'm looking forward to doing more of #3 now that my work schedule is more regular.

[Seanna Lea]

When I cook dinners (especially in the crock pot), I try to make the meal large enough that I can set up a second dinner's worth to freeze for in a week or two. It's great because it takes something that can be time consuming to make (stuffed shells or lasagne) and makes it do extra work. It also prevents us from having so much leftover that it goes bad before we can eat it all.