Getting Your Life in Order

The days were short and the free hours were minimal. I would get up around 6 am, get ready and run out the door toast in one hand and backpack in the other. I would be at college classes until around noon. I would then either go home for a few minutes or head directly to work. I would get off around 10 pm and try and get some school work done. Then the next morning, start over. This happened throughout much of college. The experience taught me a lot. One trait I wish I would have implemented during this time was better organizational skills.

I have to admit that I have not always been the best organizer. Through those college years, my life was determined by two things: School schedule and work schedule. I just tried to survive the other minute amount of time not spent at school or work. This led to a life of chaos, worry and unproductivity. By getting my life in order on a daily basis since college, I have been able to have more structure while maintaining my sanity.
In one of my recent blogs titled Healthy Lives Start Early, I discussed waking early as a way to be ahead of your daily ‘requirements’ in life. Well, a great point was made in the comments. Brad Chaffee of Enemy of Debt wrote that children have changed his ability to rise early and waking early would be a tall task. I hadn’t thought much about others perspective when writing that blog post. I focused on my life, which, for the most part, has very few commitments to others and lots of time to adjust accordingly. Then I thought back to when my ‘children’ were school and work and I believed there was little I could do to implement new modes of a lifestyle. However, I was wrong. I needed to create more time for myself, but I wasn’t willing to sacrifice in other aspects of my life to do so. Now I am not saying, Brad or you should reduce time with your kids to have better management skills. What I am saying is that we need to take a look at all of our actions and see if managing different aspects of our life better will create more time and better productivity in others.

I know how all of you love lists, so let me provide you with one that may help you focus on your organizational skills:

• Get up 5 minutes early. By getting up 5 minutes early, you can sit for that time and write out your day’s schedule. You can adjust where needed. By having your schedule written out, you should be able to stick with it better while scratching off the not-so-important items.

• Ask for help. The toughest thing to do for many men, like myself, is to ask for help. But, I have come to realize that asking for help only makes my life better. Ask family and friends if they can knock a task out for you. This may free up some time to breathe.

• Keep your home orderly. If you live in a mess, your life schedule will be a mess. Try to keep your home in order and you will not be searching for stuff. P.S. The LESS stuff the MORE organized.

• Set easy goals. Say to yourself, “I am going to organize my desk today.” Put it on the daily schedule list and get it done. You will be happy that you have achieved a goal and are now more organized for the next day.

• Stay calm. I know too many people who become flustered when they are off their daily schedule. Life happens so adjust accordingly. Don’t let one unorganized time of the day ruin the entire day.

If you implement these habits, I feel that you will be best suited for having an organized lifestyle. There are many other’s I could suggest, but by implementing these, I have found a life in my schedule.

What’s your best way to stay or become organized? Let me know by clicking here to comment.

Thanks for reading and have a glorious day!!!

Dave
LifeExcursion