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Thursday, October 20, 2011

The Perfect Tool for Getting Organized?

A few days ago, I was distractedly trying to peel a peach to give my son for a snack. Now I have some of the best knives you can get, but for some reason, that peach just wouldn't peel! After laboring for a few minutes, and wondering if I had a random rubber peach, I realized that I had my paring knife upside down!

I am thankful to say that I did NOT cut my finger before finding out my error. In this case, I really did have the perfect tool for peeling my peach in a neat and orderly fashion. However, I failed to properly use THE perfect tool, which was my BRAIN! I wasn't focused on the task at hand, and directed my frustration at the peach without seeing if there was something I needed to change before proceeding.

If you have followed Established Ways for any length of time, you may have noticed that for the most part, I recommend very plain and inexpensive organizing tools;  and in my own personal life, I have stubbornly used what I already have for a very long time, rotating and mixing it up as I go.

Practice makes progress, and if you practice a new method of ordering things, you will be in that habit by the time you add in the "perfect" tools. Skipping this step and hopping out to the nearest organizing product retailer can sabotage your efforts if you haven't gotten into orderly habits over time. You will feel  especially bad about organizing if you go into debt for products you never end up using, and other members of your family team will be less than enthusiastic about the effort.

That said, there are only three perfect tools for getting organized, and you can get all three for free:

1. A Purpose - Ask yourself WHY you want to "get organized." After you answer that question, ask why AGAIN. Keep asking the question why to each answer you give until you get a deep emotional reaction to your answer, and you are ready to start. It may be that you want to start a business, commence homeschooling, write a book, or something else inspiring. The point is that organizing is the road that gets you to your purpose, and not the goal itself.

2. Commitment - Avid interest will fail you in the face of setbacks. What you need is an ongoing sense of conviction and confidence in your desired outcome based on your purpose and priorities.

3. Accountability - Tell someone who believes in you what you are doing and why, and ask them to hold you to it. For even more help, form a Busy Moms Coaching Group with me to help you stay motivated as you share with other moms!

Thank you for being an Established Ways reader. As I face challenges bringing them to you, my purpose of working with you to create fearless achievement, joyous play, and deeper rest helps me stay committed, focused and motivated! What are you shooting for that spurs your organizing efforts?

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