Do you ever find yourself feeling overwhelmed?
I do. Sometimes, I feel like I have at least a hundred things going on. Work, family, my social life, my daily responsibilities, goals, blogging- it’s easy to start feeling like there aren’t enough hours in the day to do it all. Next thing I know, the mail is piling up because I was distracted when I got home and instead of putting it away, I just threw it on my kitchen counter, I have at least 10 emails to reply to, laundry to do and two blog posts to write. It’s easy to start feeling overwhelmed.
I never considered myself a very organized person. I do love to clean, de-clutter and organize, but I always felt like things went back to being messy in no time. This is something that I’ve been working very hard on changing. I refuse to believe that I can’t do it all- I think that by simplifying my life a little and staying organized I can have it all.
CLEAN AS YOU GO
Wash your mug right after you finish your coffee- don’t let the dishes pile up. Do your bed right after you get up in the morning. Open the mail as soon as you get home. If you do these things “as you go” you will notice that you won’t have to spend a lot of time constantly cleaning.
RE-EVALUATE YOUR RELATIONSHIPS
Don’t waste your time for people who aren’t good for you. Don’t be afraid to cut ties if you feel that the relationship is toxic. Your time is precious, make sure to spend it with those you care about- not those you don’t.
I have a tendency to immediately subscribe to blogs and websites, if I happen to like them at a first glance. Truth is, there are very few of those newsletter emails that I actually read. I recently unsubscribed from a whole bunch of them and now my inbox is much neater and a lot pleasant to browse through.
DE-CLUTTER
Get rid of old things like clothes, dishes, electronics, magazines, furniture- donate what you can. I bought a pair of very expensive flares about nine years a go and they still have a tag on (I kid you not) and a place in my closet as I’m hoping they’ll come back in style and I’ll get to wear them. Guess what I’m getting rid of this weekend?
WRITE DOWN YOUR DAILY GOALS
I’m talking about small goals like getting your workout in, finishing reading that book, organizing your pantry, etc. Writing things down always helps to get them done- nothing quite compares to finally crossing something off your to-do list.
REPLY TO EMAILS, RIGHT AWAY
If possible, that is. Sometimes I get blog-related emails when I’m at the office, and of course I wouldn’t stop what I’m doing to answer them (unless I’m a on a break) but I always leave myself notes that remind me to reply to those emails as soon as I get home. This is something that I have yet to master, but I’m definitely making progress.
FORGET MULTITASKING
It’s stressful and most of the time you’re not as productive as you would be, if you were to focus on a single task.
morning rituals
CREATE A MORNING ROUTINE
This can be life changing. If you find yourself rushing out the door every morning, being in a hurry, getting an early start can give you more time to do things like sitting down and writing down your to-do list, preparing lunch and getting ready for the day.
RE-EVALUATE YOUR COMMITMENTS
Out of all your responsibilities and hobbies, which ones are of most importance to you? Home life, social life, work, side-work, family, any pastime activities- if there’s something that you don’t love doing or it doesn’t give you value, give it up- if you can. Pay close attention to what you do with your time.
SAY NO
Don’t feel obligated to say “yes” to things you don’t feel like doing. Don’t feel the need to explain yourself- if you don’t want to do it, just say no.
CLEAN UP YOUR COMPUTER
Decluttering is also important when it comes to your digital life. Delete any apps you don’t use, any documents you don’t need, close those tabs. I recently did this on my laptop and I was shocked to see that I still had some college research and papers stored on my laptop. If you store anything important on your laptop, transfer it to an external drive.
STAY ORGANIZED
Have a place for everything, and put everything back where it belongs. This will make your life much easier.
PLAN YOUR DAY AHEAD
Know what to expect, plan ahead and you will feel more organized and will find time to do everything. Write to do- lists and set yourself small, daily goals.
affirmations-for-when-you-feel-down
We live in times, where we’re constantly connected, we constantly have something to do and it’s important to know how to slow down. It’s important that you value your time and spend it doing things you need to get done and doing things you love doing. De-cluttering, getting rid of anything that doesn’t serve you will help you simplify your life and feel more at peace.
Any other ideas on how to simplify your life? Do you ever find yourself feeling overwhelmed?
ARYAN'S BLOG 