organizing tip--use a TIMER

okay, i am going to try this...i can't "capture the button" from lysa's site...
she's having an idea swap--Swap & Hop...so since this is a hot issue for me, here goes...

i have been on a mission to reform my cluttering ways, it's going slowly, but baby steps are still progress.

the thing that helped the most is using a timer. i have a digital watch and i use that timer, i have one the kids carry around, i have one on the fridge (magnet) and i have the microwave (power level 0)--so NO EXCUSES.

if i have a chore i'm DREADING, i make myself deal with it for at least 15 minutes. usually i find it takes way less time that i thought. but if it is a BIG project, then i have already given myself permission to STOP at the buzz or beep. then i can tackle another 15 minutes later. when i have several projects that need my attention, i go from one to another 15 minutes at a time for 45 minutes and then give myself 15 minutes to look at a magazine or read or catch up on the blogs. setting the timer for fun stuff keeps me from zoning out. i reward the work with the fun stuff, but i set the timer.

my kids have also appreciated the timer--when i need them to give me a 5-minute clean up, which they know will end in FIVE minutes, they are more likely to comply than when they hear the ominous and who-knows-how-long-it-will-take "clean your room." (i heard someone say that for little ones, you can pick a song and then clean up while it's playing. same concept--give them a pre-designated amount of time.

so that's my tip. i'm going to tack on something if found on this topic from my old blog...i may even put the digital recording of the time i spoke at MOPS (january 2007)....we'll see how brave i get. :)

enjoy the ideas!


Thursday, August 03, 2006

lately, what is on my mind is a vision God had put in my heart to help women conquer the clutter that is keeping them from being the wives, mothers, friends that God wants them to be. i have learned so much in the last year or so about what stands in my way, about what has me in bondage, about what distracts me, about what PARALYZES me. i have tried to help a few friends–they have graciously accepted to guinea pigs for me as i develop a way to help them and hopefully others.

there are TONS of organizing and clutter-cutting books and tools out there right now–i thought i was just getting caught up in the fad, but lately i really started seeing all of this through a biblical perspective. and it has really impacted me and my desire to get rid of stuff and bring order to my life. i hope to document my journey as i move from a place where i am paralyzed by my inability to make decisions about the stuff–clutter is DELAYED DECISIONS–and my mistakenly placed faith in the creation instead of the CREATOR to a place where the things in my life are there to serve a purpose and enhance my life, a life that is free to serve when God calls.

i pray that this then equips me to encourage other women in a similar journey. i am excited to see where God takes me and how this will all look a year, five years, ten years from now.