Si-mpl-ify! As I say this it is going (mostly) to the beat of Elevation by U2. haha! That may be because my hubby has been listening to U2 a TON lately and started to play one of their songs on the piano. I seem to have them in my mind more. But, anyways…simplify! It’s time to lay out my plan for how I am going to simplify my house, head, and health.

I am very excited to get this started and also not excited at the same time. It will be so nice when I’m in a groove of this process but getting started… bla! This is the hard part and also where a nicely laid out plan will help tremendously. I recently posted my reasons why I wanted to start this journey and the three H’s (house, head, and health). Below I am going to outline the steps to take to help you get on your way to simplifying your life this year. Then I will write my plan for each step as an example. Good luck! You got this!

Step 1: Why do you want to do this?

If you don’t have a very good reason why you want to simplify your life then it might be harder to get yourself, let alone any one else, on board. Take a few minutes to really think about why this will be a good choice for you, write it down, visualize what it will look like during the process but also after, tell a friend your plan. You get the idea? Now take a few minutes to think of your why.

I want to simplify my life because if I don’t I might break. That’s my very good reason, a brutally honest reason. There is too much to do, to clean, keep organized, cook, think about, not think about, and it is TOO MUCH! I am doing this to make a happier me, a less stressed me, and hopefully a more laid back me.

Step 2: Write down your plan.

This step may take awhile but stick with it! Writing down your plan is going to take some time. You can break it up into sections. You can do it all at once. But make sure you complete this important part of this process. This is the time you need to really think about what you want to get out of simplifying your life. Do you want less stuff? Do you need to clear your head? Do you need to organize things in your house to makes more sense? Do you need to change the way to eat? Do you need more sleep? Do you need more time with your kids or by yourself?

Then think about how you can make those things happen. There is something about writing your plan down that makes it more likely to follow. If you tend to be more old school like me then grab a pen and start writing your plan. You can make a pretty printable or a word doc or go all out and make a vision board. Whatever you choose this is the time to try to think of all the steps and write it down.

You can choose to go in many different directions with this. You do what works best for YOU! This is how I am going to tackle this step.

1. I am going to make goals for what I want the end to look like and feel like.

2. Write those goals down. Keep them in a place where you can see them and read them often. You don’t want those goals to get lost, you want to be reminded of them on a daily basis. This will help keep you motivated and moving forward.

3. Write down your plan of attack. I am very much a list sort of girl. I LOVE crossing things off my lists when I get them done. It is exciting to look at my list to see what I need to do but also what I have accomplished. I am going to make three lists: one for house, one for head, and one for health. My house list will be broken up by room and list all the things I want to declutter, dejunk, and reorganize. My head list is more of a weekly to do list to help me keep track of all the things that need to get done, would like to get done, appointments, etc. And lastly my health list will consist of ways I can simplify my health, both mentally and physically.

4. Now that everything is laid out and written in an organized matter I am going to set date goals. It will be impossible to work on everything at the same time. One small thing at a time will make the big picture complete faster then if you try to do everything all at once. I recommend working on no more then 2-3 goals at a time. For me it may look something like this:

   1. House: I will declutter, dejunk, and reorganize the cupboard and drawers under the master bathroom sink by July 31, 2018.

   2. Head: Each Sunday I will write out my weekly to do lists, go over any appointments, and chat with Hubby about the week. This one may continue to look like this for each goal, at least for now.

   3. Health: I will create a new lifting program by July 29, 2018.

Step 3: Get to Work

Now that you have your master list of all the ways and areas you plan on simplifying, you have a few goals to work on, you are ready to rock and roll. How you get to work will depend on your personality, how much time you have, if you have kids, when your best productivity time is, and the list goes on. Here are some suggestions:

• Pick the same time each week to work on your goals- this is kind of like block time. Maybe give yourself 2 hours every Monday morning to work on as much as you can. You can schedule more days and times if it works and you are able to stick with it.
• Set a timer for 15 minutes and work until the timer goes off. This is good for those that need to start with small amounts of time. This would work well for a very small space or goal with the hope of it getting it done. Seeing instant progress will help light the fire. Do this a few times. Then gradually work your way up to 30 minutes or 60 minutes.
• If you have little kids running around making it hard for you to focus and complete a task, good luck! You might want to wait until they are in school or move out of the house… haha! NOT! You can totally do this! Have you heard of a wonderful little word called naps? 🙂 You can get up before them in the morning or work after they go to bed at night. You can set up a play date with friends and then switch with that mama to give them a mini break. Have your hubby, significant other, or grandparent take them somewhere while you work. Get them helping you! Teach them what you are doing, why you are doing it, and they can help you. You just might have to get a little more creative when you have little ones around. But you can totally still do this!
• You can add your goal in you weekly to do list. Get them done when time opens up. Work on them when you are feeling it. And then cross that baby off when you get it done. 🙂

For now I am going to add my goals in my weekly to do list. I plan to work on it when Hubby is home from work or when my kiddos are sleeping. Eventually I want my kiddos to help me with some of the simplifying. I first want them to see me doing these things. I want to talk with them about the changes I am making. I hope that they will start to notice a lighter and happier me. I truly believe for me to be successful with these changes they need to be family changes. Not just mom changes. This is going to be tough work. But, you guys, it will be SOOO worth it!

Once one goal had been completed you get to celebrate! Yay for you! Way to go! Then get right back to work by picking a new goal. Keep this going until your master list is completed. At this point hopefully you have made a good habit of things that will continue to keep your life simplified. This is going to be a work in progress. You might have to keep making goals to keep your house, head, or health simplified. It will be overwhelming. It will be frustrating. But it will also be rewarding, a breath of fresh air, and life changing.

I am so excited to have you come along with me on this journey of simplifying this year. I want to hear your plans. I want to see what you are doing. And I want to know of your success stories! Anyone want me to make some printables for them to write their plan and goals down? Let me know.

Good luck my fellow simplifying friends!

XOXO

Stephanie