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As I write this, it is one day after returning from a family vacation to California. We spent two days driving (one there, one back), one day at California Adventure, one day at the beach, one day having devotional and seeing local sites, and another at Disneyland. The last was New Year's Eve. We left home at 6:55 am and returned at 1:30 am, with ten people in tow.
It was a quest for fun.
In stark contrast, my pioneer ancestors spent most of the day just surviving. Farming or hunting, preparing food, making clothes, keeping clean. Spending a week being amused wasn't really part of the plan. Life was simple in the sense that there were not a lot of options and not a lot of free time.
Today life is incredibly complex. As providing sustenance has become easier, the expectations of what can and should be done rise ever higher. Instead of having a workday set of clothes and a Sunday best, we have a closetful of outfits for every occasion and season that we need to update, coordinate, clean, and maintain. Oh, and fit into. Instead of a two room cabin with a dirt floor, we have thousands of square feet to paint, clean, and decorate.
This level of complexity can be taxing. So today:
Look for simple solutions, simple pleasures, and simple ways to get results.
In my life, I've gained some level of simplicity by creating six systems to organize the most complex and time consuming areas of my life. The systems I have created organize:
- Information
- Possessions
- Home Cleaning & Maintenance
- Meal Planning and Preparation
- Laundry
- Homeschooling
The need for such systems has become apparent as I make conference presentations on the topic. Try breaking down your trouble areas in life by creating a predictable, repeatable pattern that can take the stress level down.
Join me in the 100 Day Challenge!
Alison Moore Smith is a 61-year-old entrepreneur who graduated from BYU in 1987. She has been (very happily) married to Samuel M. Smith for 40 years. They are parents of six incredible children and grandparents to two astounding grandsons. She is the author of The 7 Success Habits of Homeschoolers.
That is quite a good list for you and I really appreciate that you did it organized. I have been having myself a challenge an everyday challenge rather in the house and to the things I really want to do. Thanks for the idea love it!
Danyelle, thank you for dropping by and for the kind words. It’s great that you have some kind of goal everyday that you work toward.