Goals

I've been inspired yet again, only this time it is to proclaim my new goals for my life (not just the new year). This is the first step in being accountable to myself.

1. Clean one thing (not just straighten)

2. Organize / Purge (live with less, be realistic)

3. Read physical things (books, scriptures - both ancient and modern day)

4. Write those letters (you always mean to)

I hope to accomplish the first three once a day/weekday. It appears very overwhelming, and I know that if I bite off more than I can chew the likelihood of my success is slim, but I really am going to take these things seriously, but in small doses. Allow me to elaborate...

If I'm having a regular day, I already work to keep the house straightened up, why not simply add one more simple task? On Monday I accomplished this by simply wiping down the shower door with a dryer sheet (see next goal) as a test to see if it worked. It worked surprisingly well considering the amount of hard water build up the door had. If I had expected myself to deep clean the entire shower, it might have happened this time (being the first), but the probability of me keeping this up is pretty farfetched. I assume taking several small steps will eventually result in a clean, maintained home, not one that is neglected.

Next, I should be striving each day to organize my home, or purging something that realistically I haven't used and probably won't. Again, this could be as simple as making sure the twisty ties are separated from the paper clips in the desk drawer, or finally letting go of one simple item (like the thingamajig that carves stamps - I neither make stamps nor use them). I spent some time on Pinterest (which I already love) to organize my Cleaning/Organizing board. I deleted duplicate pins, and edited each pin to link directly to the original post and describe the tip/instructions without having to click into individual links to compare/decide which to use. I may have been browsing on Pinterest anyway, why not make it more helpful for me to use in the future (saving time and suggesting easier/homemade ways of accomplishing goal #1).

I have never been one to casually curl up with a book, and yet I can easily keep up with several blogs (mostly design related) and now Pinterest. I am totally a visual person, so being able to browse images in this way allows me to get the information/inspiration I want, and then move on. If I'm already taking the time to "read" in this way on the computer (although I don't take the time to ready each blog, only spy the pictures), why not reserve some time to really read - books, Ensigns, scriptures. Again, I'm not going for overwhelming, and I can't kid myself by suggesting that I won't be on the computer, but one verse of scripture won't be hard. It will be small, but it is something - something that I wasn't doing before, anyway.

And then there is writing. I always mean to let others know in a thoughtful letter how much I appreciate a certain lesson, appreciate their appreciation (yep), or simply admire them. I can accomplish this daily by having things available to me to write on the spot, even if I am not writing daily. I can carry notes at church so that they can be written and given then and there (because I know I don't go home to do it, and the delivery or postage is a hassle).

I plan to keep a simple journal of sorts, not anything that requires a full entry, just simply jotting down how I have accomplished these goals as a visual way to keep me going and on track. Then I can also see my progress and motivate me to keep going.

I am hopeful that I can make these things happen judging by other modest goals I have kept recently, like flossing my teeth every night since my last dentist appointment (why are the simple things so hard). And also more impressive is that I started a regular work out routine (even though I dread it every morning) by getting together with a friend.

My motto should be "don't make simple things hard."