I have learned some “new things” in the past few years that have been game changers and I wish I had known or understood them years ago. These aren’t life hacks- they won’t necessarily make something easier or faster- but they may save you money, hassle, and give you a better handle on what it takes to tackle aspects of your life and productivity in this crazy world.
KNOW THAT NOBODY CARES
This is an important concept to grasp: most of us expend too much emotional energy dwelling on worrying about what others think; specifically of ourselves. I mean this in the kindest way possible. Most of us think so highly of ourselves that we are overly concerned with what the world thinks about how we look, sound, and act. Take comfort in understanding as quickly as possible that people are more concerned about their own situation than whatever nonsense you have happening. Sure, if they’re mean or gossip prone, they MAY say something like, “Oh she got bad grades, glad I got good grades.” But really it will only matter to them in conjunction with how it makes them feel about themselves. The next time you are feeling insecure, remember: nobody cares, and maybe your brief stink of failure will give someone else the brief confidence to do something meaningful with their day.
HOW TO GET SALON WORTHY HAIR
There is always going to be an event where you wish you had time to get to a salon and get that “polished and professional” look. Learn how to REALLY, TRULY, and PROPERLY blow dry your hair! I am slowly cultivating this skill even though I find it incredibly difficult. In my early years of marriage there were 3 separate instances when I used too-small of a round brush that got so tangled in my thick hair I needed my husband to untangle me. I am learning the art of the smooth blow-out. If your hair doesn’t like a blow out, find what you like in a polished, put-together look that is intimidating or seems too hard- and learn it. Want to know how to give yourself the perfect beach waves, contoured cheekbones, smokey eye or eyebrows on “fleek”? Google it and practice.
HOW TO DOUBLE BATCH
You don’t have to be a great cook, or even a good cook, to learn to double one of your favorite recipes. Choose easy recipe, (think enchiladas, spaghetti casserole, taco soup, chili), double it and freeze. There is ALWAYS a good reason to have a meal in the freezer: neighbors that have a baby or a crazy schedule, sick friends or family, busy seasons.You never know when your day will mushroom and you will have nothing to serve or eat for dinner. Clearly label and if you are prone to forget what you have in your freezer or don’t have a freezer inventory- put a sticky note on your freezer tallying available meals! This works well for baked goods and breakfasts as well as dinners. It can be such a good feeling when the new neighbors move in unexpectedly, but you know you already have some homemade frozen coffee cake in the freezer to bring over as a housewarming gift.
KNOW THAT PRACTICE DOES NOT MAKE PERFECT
Next, rethink the age old concept of, “Practice makes perfect.” It sounds harmless enough. Helpful even. But as I was once taught- it can be just as harmful as not practicing at all!
If you think about how habits are made- repetition is a key factor. I am no habit expert, but what happens when you repeat a practice method, even a little bit incorrectly over and over and over? The INcorrect method is what seeps into your memory. Most of us are familiar with the common quote of unknown origins: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Well, there goes any hope for real improvement.
You can’t play your sheet music the same way you’ve been playing it again and again if it needs improvement. You can just keep doing weighted dead-lifts with bad form and keep increasing your weight hoping for the best.
Perhaps a more helpful interpretation would be “proper practice makes perfect.” Slow down, learn how to practice something slow and precise from the beginning.
KNOW HOW TO GET CLEAN FLOORS
I like clean floors. But it has taken me a long time to learn what exactly it means to get my floors to be my best version of clean! Spoiler alert: it’s more than just the SWIFFER (HERE).
Here is my own recipe for really clean floors. Best of all these steps are done all at once, with no interruptions, little feet, or any other foot traffic during this time.
Baseboards and walls that start off freshly painted, with no scuffs or nicks. (You must keep the baseboards and walls cleaned, scrubbed, and spot checked regularly.)
For the floors themselves, in this order
- Sweep
- Vacuum
- Sweep again
- Mop
- Scrub, use something to scrape, soak and scrub tough spots, or bits of food that get stuck
- Mop again
- Let it dry
- Sweep again.
Don’t have the time to do all that? That’s ok. Just be satisfied with mediocre floors- really, nobody cares but you about your floors anyway.
Maybe you can’t relate to some of what is important to me, but hopefully I’ve helped to spark something in you that will make your days a bit easier toward your productivity.
