02/12/2023
Life can be a challenging and complicate maze! Every day presents unique obstacles and difficulties that can seem never-ending and overwhelming. Facing the same issues repeatedly can become disheartening and leave us feeling defeated. I’ve been there and sometimes still feel this way. However, I’ve discovered some Simple Habits that significantly improve your lives, as they have mine. These easy practices can make your life simpler, less frustrating, and less complex. Join me in this journey of incorporating these habits into your daily routine, starting with small steps, and let’s work together to conquer the challenges that come our way.
1. Wake up earlier than you must, so you don’t have to rush!
Have you ever experienced difficulties completing tasks in the morning before departing for the day? I certainly have in the past! But I discovered that waking up earlier made all the difference. Not only was I able to get things done, but I also felt less stressed and rushed. I used to wake up just 30 minutes before leaving for work or any other obligation, but now I make sure to wake up an hour earlier than I must leave to allow time for my morning routine
2. Start your morning with stretching, this will wake you up!
Morning stretching has numerous advantages! By getting your blood flowing, it can stimulate your mind, helping you feel more awake and energetic for the day ahead. It also eases muscle tension, alleviates and prevents muscle aches and pains, and improves flexibility. I begin each day with a combination of yoga stretches and exercises recommended by my physical therapist. Since I started this routine, I’ve noticed an increase in energy and alertness throughout the day.
3. Rinse dishes as you use them and put them in the dishwasher if you have one.
It is so easy for dishes to pile up and the most frustrating part of washing them is having to deal with food and grime that’s been left to dry and harden. The simplest solution to avoid this is to rinse each dish as soon as you finish using it. Have breakfast? -- rinse your cereal bowl! Have a snack? – rinse your plate! Make a smoothie? – rinse your blender! Have dinner? Rinse those pots, pans, plates, and utensils! If you have a dishwasher, load the rinsed dishes for easy cleaning later. Even if you don’t have a dishwasher, rinsing the dishes still makes the cleaning process later much more manageable.
4. Either wash the dishes or run the dishwasher at least once a day. Empty it in the morning after stretching.
So, what do you do with those rinse dishes? The answer is simple, wash them! I recommend washing all your dishes once daily, right after dinner. Let them air-dry over night and put everything away in the morning after your stretching routine. If you have a dishwasher, it makes this even easier – just run the dishwasher after dinner each night (even if it’s not full!) and then empty it and put everything away the next morning. This routine of running my dishwasher once a day (even when it’s not completely full!) has made a huge difference in keeping up with my dishes. I used to think I HAD to wait for the dishwasher to be completely full before I could run it, or I was breaking a rule, but there is no rule!
5. Use your commute time wisely – listen to a book, a podcast, relaxing music, the Bible, make your commute time encouraging and energizing for you!
Commuting times vary from person to person, my commute is 15 minutes to work, but some individuals have to commute 45-60 minutes. Utilize this time effectively as it belongs to you! I like to listen to motivating and energizing music on my way to work to help me wake up. On my return trip, I often listen to the Bible via the Bible.is app (an audioBible app) or make a phone call to my family. My husband, on the other hand, prefers to listen to audiobooks on his commute to and from work.
6. Take the stairs whenever possible.
It can be challenging to make time for physical activity and prioritize our health. I understand this because I face it daily. One thing I try to do to overcome this is to take the stairs whenever possible. I try to show up to work and other places early so that I have time to take the stairs. As I am not in good shape, I started small. For instance, I work on the 8th floor of a hospital and started by walking up just 1 flight of stairs and then taking the elevator for the rest, for 1 week. The next week I did 2 flights of stairs, and then the next week I did 3. This gradual progression made it easier and more manageable. Although it’s difficult, the rewards are worth it, and I feel like I am becoming healthier each day.
7. Keep a healthy snack with you, like nuts or pretzels, so that you can avoid snacking on fast food or sugary things.
Do you find yourself getting hungry frequently while running errands, shopping or even at work between meals? When I used to get hungry off-guard, I often resorted to unhealthy junk food options like fast food or vending machine snacks. To avoid this, I now make sure to carry healthy snacks with me such as nuts, pretzels, raising, yogurt, berries, and carrots. This way, I have a nutritious option available when I get caught off-guard by hunger and don’t have to resort to unhealthy choices.
8. Put things away as you use them, don’t leave them on the countertop.
Do you ever look around at your house and wonder – how did it get this messy?! Most likely the same thing happens to you that happens to me. You come home and you throw your shoes off by the door, take your coat off and toss it on a chair, throw the mail on the countertop, etc. But what if I told you there was a better way? When you come home take the extra time to put your shoes away – I have a shoe cubby right by the door to make this easier, but it still looks better than a pile of shoes by the door. Take that extra time to hang your coat, hang your keys, go through the mail. When we put things away where they go instead of leaving things around willy-nilly, the house stays tidier and is easier to keep clean. (Bonus Points if you can get other family members to do this, so you don’t have to clean up after them!)
9. Do a quick scrub of your toilet when there is a “mess” in there, even if it isn’t with cleaner—easier to get it off now than later!
I understand the struggle of keeping a clean toilet – it’s not the most enjoyable task. However, a dirty toilet is even more unpleasant. However, I have found a useful approach. Every time there’s a “mess” in the toilet, I immediately use my scrub brush to remove it, as it’s easier to clean up when it’s fresh. I don’t have to do a full cleaning every time, but getting rid of the mess prevents it from drying and becoming harder to clean later. Then, I only do a thorough cleaning once a week. By doing this, the toilet will stay cleaner in between cleanings and will require less scrubbing during your weekly cleanings.
10. Put your clothes either directly in the hamper it belongs or back in the closet/dresser – no piles!
I don’t know about you, but my husband has this pile (Mt. Laundmore) on the floor in our bedroom for everything he wears throughout the week, clean or dirty. Don’t ask me how clothes can still be clean after being left in a pile with other clothes that are stinky. His system is to take his clothes off put them in a pile throughout the week and then at the end of the week, or whenever I finally get him to, he will finally sort through them as to dirty or clean and put them away in either the closet/dresser or hampers. I am banishing this pile-system from my house, or at least I’m trying to. My system is to take clothes off, if they are not dirty, then put them away in closet/dresser. If they are dirty, put them in appropriate hamper. I live by this system; it is getting him to that is the struggle. I implore you to try this system, less piles = less clutter, and having the clothes sorted into hampers so you can just throw that hamper in the wash makes laundry easier.
11. Open your mail as soon as you get it and sort – trash, need-to-pay, need-to file, coupons, etc. You should have a paper organizer for this – piles are dangerous because we tend to never look at them again until they encroach on something else.
Have I mentioned I don’t like piles? Whether they are piles of clothes, piles of shoes, or piles of papers, I’m not a fan. So, whenever we get any mail or other paper into our house it is always sorted through – is this trash? Is this something I need to pay? Is this something that needs filed away? When it comes to coupons, I think about whether we go to that place and look at the date of expiration for whether we would use it by then, I also look at the coupon for whether it is a good deal. I have a wire paper organizer that I have folders in labeled as “taxes”, “need-to-file”, “need-to-open”, “coupons”. Trash goes directly in the trash; I have a need-to-open folder for any mail of my husbands that I am unsure about. You can use a similar system to this to keep your mail more organized and less bothersome.
12. Tidy up before you start your evening routine, you won’t want to once you start to wind down.
Even if we try to put things away where they belong throughout the day, inevitably, there are going to be some things out of place and little messes. I try to tidy up the house a little before I start my evening routine of winding down. Last night, this included dishes, wiping down the kitchen counters, sweeping up some crumbs off the kitchen floor from taco night, and putting leftovers away. Tonight, this includes finishing up laundry, taking out the trash, and folding blankets in the living room.
