Sometimes in the middle of my busy I will have a friend or fellow ministers wife say.. “How do you get it all done?” My response is usually shocking, I calmly respond, “I don’t!” Then, I laugh a low key, I’m not totally crazy giggle, lol. But, it’s true! I don’t get it all done. But, I do get it all done! Eventually! But seriously, “getting it all done” is just a little overrated. I mean, we are human and we really need to develop a healthier sense of well being when we approach our to do lists. The truth is, I don’t get it ‘all done’ but, I do get a lot done! And I have learned in my life quest of mothering and managing that I must look at my life, tasks and responsibilities in a different light. Not the “I have to” but the “I can”!
Recently, I visited my 23 year old daughter, in her home. She is the Supermommy of our first Grand, AJ, and he is so precious! I digress(smiling). Back to “getting it all done”. First, In my opinion, she surpassed the expectations of what a 23 year old wife and mommy would have accomplished by 4:30pm on Saturday evening. We were meeting them at their little fixer-upper home, to travel together to a wedding of a family friend. The three of them were in full on finalizing of their wedding wear. There were a few dishes in the sink and some towels were spinning in the dryer. Normal. The living room was clean, cozy and their dog Rocco was dragging some poor tattered stuffed animal around. Normal. The baby was half dressed and mad lol, but his bedroom, was in order just fully lived in with books and cars placed appropriately throughout the room, 2 year old style. Extremely normal. Our son-in-love was dressed all but a tie, I’m thinking he was waiting for approval on that selection. And, my daughter was in her master bath finalizing her perfect make-up and after a side hug said “you may not want to look in our room Mom.” Normal. I had to chuckle. She then directed us to the guest room/office. This is where it gets good. It was so cute, organized and on her desk, a to do list. While in I can’t take all the credit for how amazing this gal of mine, has organized her little life and “new zoo”. I recognized something about the execution of her busyness. I’m thinking she picked up, from her ole momma. Wink.
Over time I have developed these three habits that I believe have kept me on track to productivity and getting things done! These are simple and from these three things I feel you can build some incredible routines that will help you. I want you to know that you will be just fine in the grand scheme of all things busy!
Number One. Make lists. Grab a notebook, journal or a blank page in your day planner and make a master list of everything on your mind and responsibilities you need to accomplish. From that list divide those items into categories. Example, household, errands, ministry, or work related. once you get everything out of your head and onto paper, then you can plan forward from there and not feel so overwhelmed.
Number two. Keep up with your calendar. Don’t you hate forgetting someone’s Birthday, a Dentist appointment or family member stopping by for a visit? We must use calendars or day planners! I prefer digital, just my basic IPhone calendar. I share my calendar with my husband digitally, so when a date is booked, it goes to his phone too! This has made the hugest difference in marital unity lol. But seriously, take time to put all important dates on your calendar and live by it. If your finding that life is constantly running and you can’t keep up with all that is going on, church activities, children’s sporting events etc, that means that your not living by a calendar, but that the calendar is living without you. Try different methods, digital, paper day planners or a wall calendar. There is no right or wrong way, just find what works best for you!
Number three. Become a student. If you are the kinda gal(or guy) that is seeking self improvement and daily working to “get it all done”. Remember this one thing, ‘being a student makes you smart!’ Early on as a working mommy, ministers wife and home CEO, I used to beat myself over the head-all the time, when I felt like I did not accomplish or hit the mark. I discovered that my daily quest for improvement was key to my development of routines, habits and life hacks. These things are so important to making my life easier and insuring I didn’t (and don’t) drive my hubby crazy. For 25 years I have been reading books, magazines, exploring websites, trying new day planners and listening to podcasts to help me “get it all done”. And you know what? It worked! Self improvement is so good! And your likely to learn something about yourself in the process too!
To encourage, I want to leave you with this final thought. There are 24 hours in a day, 6-8 of those hours are intended for sleeping, the rest of the time, we care for our bodies and our family. We work our jobs or serve in ministry. We manage our personal time to accomplish our goals and help others. Everyday is a gift. It does need to be used to its fullest potential, but, somewhere on those to do lists and calendared days, ad in some self care, reading time and prayer. Build your priority lists around what is important to you.. and I promise, you too will get it ALL DONE! ~Be Encouraged
"May the God of all hope, fill you.." Romans 15:13 