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Monday, July 21, 2014

A Few Ways to Organize Your Life





1) Purchase a Planner/Day Runner

Something that I will always and forever preach about is investing money into a planner; whether it cost you $7 at Target or $50 custom made at an online shop I highly suggest you purchase one. I never knew the difference they would make in my life until one of my 10th grade teachers made it a requirement in her classroom and ever since then I can honestly say, that I haven't gone a day without one.

Inside my planner, I write down my work schedule for the week (for obvious reasons), my bills for that week, and any other miscellaneous responsibilities that I have to look forward to. I have built a routine for myself in which I separate my bills into two lists, one for the first paycheck of the month and the second for the other; This allows me to not get super overwhelmed, yet always keep track of what I can and cannot spend. Being a blogger is especially overwhelming because we tend to crave innovation, we're always looking for the next best thing which can be highly useful for our blog yet increasingly problematic for our wallets which is why I set up monthly allowances for strictly 'blogging' purposes.

Speaking of Blogging, Does anyone else consider this to be like the coolest job/hobby ever? This leads to my second tip:

2) Don't lose contact with what brings you joy for the sake of sticking to a schedule

Sometimes it's hard to find a balance between considering this a job or a hobby simply because in my head it's a hobby that I want to turn into a job. One of the most efficient ways of keeping my sanity is pre-planning the topics that I want to talk about but never pre-writing them unless I really, really have to. This helps me consider this a job due to my strict posting schedule of Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday yet also consider this a hobby by continuing to serve the excitement that I feel every time I write up a new post.

I would be lying if I said that on some Tuesday nights I don't sit on my bed, scratching my head, while trying to come up with SOMETHING for the following day because lets be honest, it happens. Something that has really helped me is planning topics ahead of time which requires writing them down in a list formation, and whenever I feel a little lost I can go to my notepad and pick something from the list that most excites me. If for some reason I don't feel particularly motivated to post then I just wont. I never want to give anyone something that I didn't think was 'ready' or 'good enough' and this applies to all aspects of life and career paths. Giving myself 'in-between' blogging days as well as weekends gives me time to refresh and come up with new ideas, I've been writing for enjoyment since I can last remember, believe me when I say that I know what writers block is and it ain't pretty.

3) You can't buy any more time, so be a little selfish and invest the one you've got in yourself

Yes, I understand that it's easier said than done but actually separating time for yourself is a big part of organizing your life. Remember that it is YOUR life, YOUR sanity, and no one knows your happiness or weaknesses better than you do. I am a strong advocate for pamper days/evenings- alone or with a close friend (but mostly alone). Use your time wisely by relaxing and meditating on your own persona, once you clear your own mind, you can tackle outside demons but it's hard to think straight with other things clouding your judgment.


                                                                                              4) Don't overwhelm yourself

It's really, really hard to admit that we CAN'T do something (especially as women) but sometimes we really just can't. I'd say it's actually within our nature to feel like we can conquer the world because I suppose that if we really tried we actually could but in reality we're all just human and if we couldn't beat a battle it doesn't necessarily mean that we lost the war. Admitting to ourselves our own weaknesses is a huge STEP to organizing our lives because we're weeding out all of the bad and simply trying to cultivate the good.

Obviously I'm no life expert and there's a million other ways to go about this process but through trial and error I feel as though the steps mentioned above are the ones that have worked best for me. The first one is obviously technical while the others focus more on inner peace and strength.

2 comments:

  1. i love this post. my planner is so important to me, without it i would become so overwhelmed with my jobs and internships and blog and uni work! id love it if youd comment back http://www.amyelizabethfashion.com/2014/07/cloud-nine-magical-repair-and-protect.html xx

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    1. I completely agree! My planner and notebooks help me out immensely throughout the day. If it weren't for them I don't know what I'd do xx

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