Secret #1 Write in the morning.
Julia Cameron, best-selling author, has a great suggestion with how to start every morning. She explains, “‘Morning Pages’ are three pages of longhand, stream-of-consciousness writing, done first thing in the morning. There is no wrong way to do Morning Pages—they are not high art.
They are not even “writing.” They are about anything and everything that crosses your mind—and they are for your eyes only. Morning Pages provoke, clarify, comfort, cajole, prioritize and synchronize the day at hand. Do not over-think Morning Pages: just put three pages of anything on the page…and then do three more pages tomorrow.”
This free-hand writing in the morning can allow cloudy thoughts to clear up and out to allow for more brain-space in the rest of your day.
Secret #2 Organize your space.
Trying to find that one pair of shoes in a massive pile of everyone else’s shoes can waste hours of your life. This also applies to the three minutes spent in the shower trying to place all the shampoo bottles carefully back on the shelf so they don’t get knocked over again.
Giving your belongings a good organizing from time-to-time can be a gift to yourself and those around you. You may find you really do have time to read your children those three extra books at bedtime.Take a couple days to just notice all the little things in your space that bother you. Make a list and then take action on them! (Pro-tip: Pinterest always has great ideas for home-organization tips and tricks.)
Secret #3 Delegate it.
Take a lesson from the best entrepreneurs out there. Delegate it. (But don’t abdicate!) As a mom, it’s often possible for me to delegate house chores, scheduling and even finances! Here are a few online apps that can help get you started.
Delegate the Chores!
My Job Chart & ChoreMonster are two great online app support tools for parents to delegate managing household chores, track rewards, and even parental follow-through on reward delivery!
Delegate the scheduling and to-do list management!
Every family has different needs. Google Calendars work for some. Paper calendars work for others. Maybe even Cozi.com would be a good place for you to start.
Delegate the babysitting and start a babysitting co-op!
Get a small network of other parents and start sharing the childcare. You could create a shared Google Doc, start a Facebook group, or create an account on Sit4Sit. If you recruit enough families to your network, finding a babysitter could be a cinch.
Wisebread.com also has a great list of ideas and resources in their article, “How to Save on Babysitting Without Ending Up in the Local News.“
Whatever method you choose, make sure it’s working for you and not the other way around.
That’s the big secret really. (and it’s not even a secret!)
Tricia Goyer has written more than 35 books, including both novels that delight and entertain readers and nonfiction titles that offer encouragement and hope. She has also published more than 500 articles in national publications such as Guideposts, Thriving Family, Proverbs 31 and HomeLife Magazine.
