all my ducks in a row

One Year to an Organized Life by Regina Leeds

Thanks so much! I was super-excited to get this present in the mail last Sunday because when you told me about it Friday I was very eager to start.

In the intro, Miss Regina says that it is best to let her words percolate for a few days, but since I was already in agreement with her, I thought it was fine to just move on to Chapter One the next day. I think the most important thing I found in the intro was that "disorganized" people are actually already organized. They've just created a system and routine that works against them rather than for them.

So I'm sure you flipped through it enough to see that the first month focuses on learning time management and making your kitchen awesome. Which I am excited for since I love to cook.

The Habits of the Month (yes, I am using caps for these) are:
- Wash your dishes right after you use them (or at least once a day)
- Dry them and put them away immediately after washing
- Wipe off the counters and table after each use
- Once a day, take out the garbage

I think it is fucking hilarious that our culture has gotten to the point where we truly appreciate a book that is basically telling us to do our chores! But I am definitely gonna follow this. The rules for the Habits are that you have to do them everyday for at least 21 days. Then it should continue naturally. I also added one more unrelated Habit because it is a big problem for me:

- At the end of the day, throw my clothes in the hamper or hang them back up

I am very good at creating piles of fabric all over the house. Clean laundry taking up a chair. A pair of jeans that doesn't deserve the hamper yet goes on the floor by the bed instead and eventually gets mixed in with dirty socks until I just say screw it and have to wash everything. Or leave the whole mess on the floor for another couple of weeks. In short, this is awful!

Taking out the garbage once a day will help with our ant problem; we just need to bring in our smaller garbage can and use smaller bags.

Lastly, Week One Assignments:

A. Get acquainted with your organizing journal (which you are supposed to use throughout the year). Take 4 days out of this week to write about the following topics. Allot yourself only 10-30 minutes so you don't waste time going on an emotional writing spree (because we are supposed to be learning time management).
1. Think back to your childhood. What specific memories do you have about time and time management? Were your parents late or punctual? Did you ever procrastinate? Looking at old photos or talking with family can bring up memories.
2. How were you affected by parental dramas regarding time? How do you feel about your parents? Did you try to emulate them or rebel against them? Is this reflected in how you manage your time today?
3. Are you usually on-time or late? If you are late or procrastinate, did you used to be on-time until some event happened to change that (changing schools, accident, etc)?
4. Does being late bother you? Does being late make you feel special because everyone is waiting for you? What emotions do you have when you think about tardiness?
You may not have any emotional baggage related to time management, procrastination, and being on-time. Fabulous.

B. Set positive time management goals and write them in the present tense, like "I no longer lose important papers," and "I don't take on more than I can handle," and "I am always on-time for my appointments." Be ambitious but realistic. Of course as time goes on you can edit your goals.

C. Where does your time go? Make a list in your journal of things you spend your time on. Then write the percentage of your time that each activity takes up. Make a revised list that has what you want to spend your time doing and what percentage of your time you want to spend doing it. Decide what you really want out of life, and schedule it in. Eliminate what you think is wasting your time.

Awww, the last tip for Week One is to communicate with someone who has your best interest at heart and wants to see you succeed. Yeah, buddy!

ps sorry about the novel, but you said to share the info with you!