I haven’t posted about my daily goals in a while, and part of that is because I completely fell off the wagon where one of them was concerned. I was not getting my dishes done every day.

Obviously, with the new faucet, there is a bit of “rebirth” pertaining to that particular task, but most of the reason I wasn’t following through had to do with a different schedule at work, and it being freaking hot. Who wants to stand in front of a steamy kitchen sink when the temperature outside is steamy enough?

Now that I’m back on my 3 to midnight schedule, the dishes aren’t a problem. And I can proudly state that I’m keeping up with the paper coming into this house. I bought a new 8-gallon trashcan and it’s on one side of my desk. The shredder is on the other. The file cabinet is also within reach. When mail comes in, it’s sorted into one of four piles: file, pay, shred and trash. The pay pile stays on my desk until I’m ready to pay bills. Everything else gets handled right then and there. This is proof that the key to staying on top of certain things is to have the proper tools within reach.

I’m long overdue for adding a third daily goal, but I still need to give it some thought. Hmmm….

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Back here, I mentioned that I’d set a goal of doing my dishes every morning while I made coffee. I also said that it takes 21 days to establish a habit. Some people say that SHE type people should make it 28 days.

It’s been slightly more than three weeks since I established that goal and with the exception of two days, I have followed through. Both days involved me getting out of the house much earlier than usual: when my mom was visiting and I had to have her in Bowling Green by 9 a.m. and the day I went to jury duty.

So, I’d say that I’m doing pretty well and it’s time to add a new goal to the mix. Looking around the disaster that is my house, I can see right away that paper is an issue I need to deal with - and this is one that’s going to require multiple steps. The first step is dealing with incoming mail. I have a tendency to sort through the mail, pull out what’s important and toss the rest on the closest flat surface. (Flat surfaces are evil things, sometimes.) Eventually, the important stuff somehow finds its way back to the junk mail and before I know it, they’re all hooking up, setting up housekeeping on my dining room table and multiplying.

This results in two major problems: a huge mess on my dining room table and bills that get forgotten about and go unpaid.

Having spent the bulk of last weekend paying bills, and realizing that things weren’t as bad as they seemed but not nearly as good as they could have been, it’s quite obvious that this is the Next Big Thing I Need to Work On.

So, my second goal is to separate the mail as soon as it arrives, and deal with the junk mail immediately. In keeping with the principles outlined in The Organizing Sourcebook, I need to make this as convenient as possible. My shredder is already conveniently located underneath the mail rack hanging on my wall. But not all junk mail needs to be shredded, and the nearest trash can is 15 steps away in another room. There’s a small wastebasket in my basement that I’m not currently using, which I’ll bring up today and place next to the shredder, thus simplifying my ability to eliminate the junk mail as it comes in the door.

There is one foreseeable problem with all of this, however. I’m not always home when the mail arrives, and therefore am not always the one to bring it in. So, I also have to get JM to leave it in one place. Given that he’s my son and has nature and nurture both working against him where organization is concerned, this will be a challenge. I think he can handle it, though.  If not, he’ll just have to move.

So, there you have it. My additional goal for the next 21 days. I think I’ll also check out Taming the Paper Tiger by Barbara Hemphill, because I don’t think I’ve ever read that one and I’m pretty sure I’ll need it for what’s next!

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Last weekend, I had a little conversation with myself and I decided that I was going to set one goal for the week. I didn’t really discuss it here, other than to post it on my daily To Do list. It was sort of a test, to see if I could stick with one thing every day. And I did.

I promised myself that I would do the dishes every morning before I began to get ready for work. I mentioned that I discovered I could wash them in the time it takes to brew a cup of coffee. That has been true every morning except one - the one where I needed to wash the crock pot - and that was only because there wasn’t enough room in my dish drainer for it with everything else. 

Developing a routine is one of Flylady’s most stressed concepts. And while it may seem overwhelming to some (how can I build a routine when I don’t even know where to start?), I would venture to say that even the most disorganized person has at least one thing in their life that’s consistent. And honestly, even after having tried Flylady’s system as well as the SHE cards, it was only a few weeks ago that I realized I had a daily routine in place already.

I’ve mentioned before that my work schedule changes depending on what the calendar says. Between semesters, our library is only open from 8 to 5. Since I’m used to working second shift (and I’m not a morning person anyway), it was only a matter of time before I overslept on an 8 to 5 day. One morning, I woke up 45 minutes before I was supposed to be at work. I immediately called in and said I was running late. I ended up being no more than 15 minutes late. And I didn’t do anything I don’t normally do.  I take that back - I made one substitution: glasses for contact lenses. That probably saved me a minute or two.

When I get ready for work, the series of things that I do (shower, moisturizing, drying hair, brushing teeth, makeup, getting dressed) is in a particular order that never deviates. This routine has developed naturally over time, based on what’s most convenient. As one example, I never moisturize before I put in my contacts, because I don’t want the lotion on my hands to get on my lenses. I eliminate that step on the days I’m wearing glasses, but otherwise the routine is the same every single day. I even get out the various products I need and line them up on the vanity, putting them away as I use them. Even at a relatively leisurely pace, I can be ready in 45 minutes. When I’m rushing, it takes even less time.

There’s a smaller (but just as, if not more, crucial) routine that I do prior to getting ready for work. I wake up, start a pot of coffee and while it’s brewing, I feed my cats. There’s no doubt that they know the drill. And if they can figure it out, there’s really no excuse for me.

Now, I’ve added a step to that smaller routine: doing the dishes every morning. It’s also generated a nice and totally unexpected side effect. The Boyfriend gets up a couple hours after me, long after I’ve shut off the coffee pot, which means he has to heat up a cup in the microwave. While he’s waiting? He puts the clean dishes away. Unasked.

Supposedly it takes 21 days to build a habit. I’m not planning on consciously adding anything to my routine for at least a couple of weeks. We’ll see how it goes.

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