Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Getting Started - What's Holding You Back?

Okay, so obviously I have neglected my blog.

I pretty much start out every entry with this disclaimer, yeah?

And I've been thinking about this a lot. I mean, I do things and think to myself, this would be great to share on my blog. Or, I see a cool project someone else has shared and think, oh, I've done something similar but with a little twist or different approach. I should share mine, too, and share a link to theirs. Or, offer my perspective on how to do something. I mean, I've learned to sew from blogs, it would be great to give my thoughts to other beginners.

But what's holding me back?

Well, for one, I am not a naturally organized person. I have to build serious systems into my life to make it work. Time management is not a natural gift of mine. Nor, is really any sort of organization. So, it kind of just snowballs into an unmanageable mess. My house becomes crazy, I need to clean all the bathrooms, vacuum, do the laundry...

So, I just find myself trying to come out from under it all, all the time.

Plus, which my husband has helped to realize, I just kind of shut down when overwhelmed.

This is a great characteristic in someone who is chronically disorganized. ;)

So, I've dug out my standby approach that worked for me in college. The planner.


The Orange Circle Studio "Do It All" Planners are my personal favorite. http://www.orangecirclestudio.com/planners/do-it-all/

You can keep your fancy electronic app. Actually, if that works for you, by all means, that's fantastic - use it.

But I need the tangible act of writing something down in order for it to stick. It's just who I am.

I now have a list of general cleaning actions that I need to complete each week. On a super fancy index card that I keep in the front pocket of my planner.


And I write when I intend to complete them on my calendar. One, it keeps me on track. Two, I get the satisfaction of crossing them off. :) At first, I tried to assign days to do specific tasks, but it made it hard to realign things during busy weeks when we had a lot of commitments in the evenings. The card allows me to see what my week looks like and assign tasks accordingly. (Plus, I know what needs to get done so I know what to ask Mr. Gardener to help out with.) ;)


Which, from an outsider's perspective seems sooo organized (my hair stylist saw my planner and thought I was the most organized person on the planet. Ha!). But, in reality, it just won't get done otherwise. This helps break down what otherwise feels, to me, like an overwhelming set of tasks into manageable chunks.

I've been doing this for a few months now, and it's become routine. And I need routines and systems, people.

If you're one of those people who can just get 'er done, my hat is off to you. Can you tell me your secret?

And, amazingly, I have more time now. Woohoo! Because I'm not just sitting thinking and worrying about all the things I have to do and how am I going to do them, and where do I even start??

So, that's one hurdle down.

The other thing is that all the things that I want in place to blog better just aren't there yet.

I don't take fabulous and professional-looking pictures. I have ideas in my head for logos and branding, but I don't have them yet. I need to develop great content. So on and so forth.

But here's the thing, that's ridiculous.

I do want to accomplish those things. But, if I don't just start, it's not going to happen.

So, I bought a Craftsy class on picture taking with a DSLR and I'm going to start there. We're on this journey together.

So, here's to mid-year improvements and trying to stop worrying about the things holding me back and just getting started.

What's holding you back from pursuing the things you want to do? Do you have any tips or tricks?

See you soon!

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