Thankful Thursday -FlyLady
How do you eat a whole elephant? (Personally, I think the question should be, "why would anyone want to eat a whole elephant?" but that is neither here nor there.) The answer is "one bit at a time." The the task of decluttering is the elephant I must eat.
Over the five years I have lived there stuff, things, and boxes filled with stuff and things have piled up in every corner. The mess, clutter, and lack of organization drives me crazy. I am miserable at home and avoid my place as much as possible. I have been overwhelmed and discouraged for awhile.The mess paralyzes me to the point that any time I try to "make a change" I don't know where or how to begin and I feel defeated before I start.
In the past I have done a massive crisis clean when things got "really bad" or company was coming. Only I didn't have good habits to maintain the clean space for more than a few days. (It just dawned on me, my cleaning/decluttering "style" is "yo-yo dieting" cycle only for the house.) Even "30-Day" challenges which I normally enjoy don't help. I was lamenting last week to my walking partner about how hopeless I felt and she suggested this week's "person".
I realize it has only been five days. The potential is there for me to still give up but I don't think I will. I feel and am even think differently about the beginner's 31-baby steps. The daily tasks are manageable and builds on the day before. I am loving the confidence it is building in me to keep at it. These are the specific things I appreciate the FlyLady's site/method:
If you are interested in joining me, it's not too late, you are not behind. Just start today with the first step. This is where I am at:
Day 1: success with shinning sink (plus extra clean kitchen floor)
Day 2: sucess with being ready to face the day from head to two (it really does affect how i carry myself throughout the day) + sink was shined again
Day 3: success at keeping on doing what I had started...and the sink shone not just because I hadn't used it dishes were washed then it was re-shined
Day 4: success with make reminders. I didn't use post-it notes because they don't stay on the walls but I had made a chart that is keeping me focused
Day 5: going home do finish now!
Over the five years I have lived there stuff, things, and boxes filled with stuff and things have piled up in every corner. The mess, clutter, and lack of organization drives me crazy. I am miserable at home and avoid my place as much as possible. I have been overwhelmed and discouraged for awhile.The mess paralyzes me to the point that any time I try to "make a change" I don't know where or how to begin and I feel defeated before I start.
In the past I have done a massive crisis clean when things got "really bad" or company was coming. Only I didn't have good habits to maintain the clean space for more than a few days. (It just dawned on me, my cleaning/decluttering "style" is "yo-yo dieting" cycle only for the house.) Even "30-Day" challenges which I normally enjoy don't help. I was lamenting last week to my walking partner about how hopeless I felt and she suggested this week's "person".
I am thankful for...
The FlyLady
The FlyLadyI realize it has only been five days. The potential is there for me to still give up but I don't think I will. I feel and am even think differently about the beginner's 31-baby steps. The daily tasks are manageable and builds on the day before. I am loving the confidence it is building in me to keep at it. These are the specific things I appreciate the FlyLady's site/method:
- This is more that just a 31-day challenge. Clean, organized homes don't happen overnight (and if they do they don't stay that way long) when I am done the baby steps there are more ways to continue from daily emails, challenges, weekly zones, and special missions.
- Creating habits and routines that will allow for a fuller life is the focus not just "decluttering"
- All the tasks and emails are full of encouragement and positive reminders the two that I find most helpful are 1) this doesn't need to be perfect it just needs to be done and 2) I am not behind I don't have to stress to "catch up"
If you are interested in joining me, it's not too late, you are not behind. Just start today with the first step. This is where I am at:
Day 1: success with shinning sink (plus extra clean kitchen floor)
Day 2: sucess with being ready to face the day from head to two (it really does affect how i carry myself throughout the day) + sink was shined again
Day 3: success at keeping on doing what I had started...and the sink shone not just because I hadn't used it dishes were washed then it was re-shined
Day 4: success with make reminders. I didn't use post-it notes because they don't stay on the walls but I had made a chart that is keeping me focused
Day 5: going home do finish now!
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