Photo by Hannah Corbett
Life does get hectic when you least expect it to! In fact, that's why it took me so long to get this place up and running. Most people at some point or other feel like things are overwhelming them - we're given the idea that we should be able to manage everything at once - be it at work, at school, in the family, with friends, at home or in the shops. You end up feeling like you'll never get it all done, and in truth, if you allow yourself to be overwhelmed, then you may just be right.
It can be hard to prioritise at time and stay organised - especially if you're not the planning type. But setting yourself timetables and schedules can work wonders. The trick is not to be too hard on yourself. Set aside a particular time slot for doing one job, do all you can within that time slot, then forget about it. Take a break, move onto the next thing later. The clarity of mind achieved from doing so is pretty darn good!
So, a simple guide to helping yourself overcome the stresses of daily life.
1. Invest in a diary or calendar. There are some really cheap ones around at supermarkets and such, or if you've got a little bit of extra cash, go to a stationery store and get yourself a nice decorative one. Most mobile phones have calendar functions also. Got a Nintendo DS? Get a diary game for it! If you're really strapped for cash, you can make your own planner - design and print one off in Excel if you're good with computers, draw one up on paper for yourself if you're better at hand-drawing. Decorate it, make it colourful, put stickers on it, whatever! Make it something you'd like to look at - remember, this isn't a running commentary on how stressed you are, this is your way to get rid of that stress! Pin it up on your wall if it's a calendar or something big, carry it around with you if it's a notepad or diary. Whenever you're told or think of something else to do, write it down, put it on that planner.
2. Write in it! Make a list of all the things you normally do every week, and all the things you want to do this week in particular. Colour in all the spaces you'll need for school or work and have a look at what you have left. I like to keep a rule of three here - one part really important things (like homework, work projects, personal accounting), one part semi-important things (weekly food shopping, favours I've promised to friends, things without much of a time limit like tidying) and one part self-indulgence (watching TV, seeing friends, long baths). I also colour-code each one - important things are blue, semi-important is purple, and self-indulgence is pink. That way I can stand back and look at my planner and if I have too much of anything it'll stand out instantly. If you separate your to-do list into things for each category, you can begin to divide your time between each task. Try to have one day off every week - I like to call them pink days! Of course, this means you should have a lot more working in the week, and one or two days when you have a little more pink than usual. Break up your blues and purples, especially the blues. Never try to do everything at once - the lazier you can convince yourself you're being, the better! Even if all you do is stop for 10 minutes for a cup of coffee, make sure to take that break.
3. Have a weekly review. In fact, have a daily review too. Just 5 or 10 minutes will do for your daily one - a chance to cross things off your list when you've done them. For your weekly review, take as long as you need - set aside half an hour if you must. Take that list you've accumulated throughout the week in your notepad you now carry round with you (because you do, right?) and put it in the right places on your calendar for next week. Try not to fall into the trap of putting everything you didn't do this week into next week's schedule - say you decide to set aside an hour every week to tidy the living room, and didn't get round to it this week. Don't make it two hours next week! That'll only serve to take up more time and make you feel even more stressed. Just put that single hour in, but perhaps put it right after a coffee break with a friend so you'll be relaxed when you come to do it. If it's something important like a work project, you may just have to move the time forward from last week to next week. But if that's the case, take out something less important - if the living room really isn't too messy, leave that one. Try not to cut into your relaxation time - that's pretty important too.
4. Shake things up. As much as I hated school, I liked the variety in the schedule. You work hard for 6 weeks, then have a week off. Sometimes in that 6 weeks you work double hard, and sometimes you get 2 weeks off. Sometimes you're working on one subject, sometimes another, sometimes the holidays are just holidays and sometimes it's Christmas. Try to incorporate these things into your schedule, too - you may not be able to take a week off work, but you can with your personal projects. If you decide you want to sort out all those old boxes that have been gathering dust, do so. You may only be able to do an hour or two a week if you have other commitments - this means it'll take a while. But when you're done, you'll have a whole extra hour free every week! Have weeks when you focus more on studying or work, and weeks when you focus more on the home. Do this with your pink time too - get creative one week, be active the next, laze around after that. Routine is great and helps us stick to things, but we all need a little change. Try not to get stuck in a rut.
5. Stick to it! No slacking off! But that means each of the three categories - the important things need to be done for reasons you probably don't need telling, the semi-important things add up to more important things, and the lazy time will keep you sane enough to complete those tasks. You'll find if you stick to it that things get done much quicker, and that you feel much better and a lot more stress-free.
Give it a try! And on that note - the first ever Quote of the Article!
"Men, for the sake of getting a living, forget to live."
~ Margaret Fuller
Loves you muchly,
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