How To Streamline Your Entire Life So That You Can Finally Be Able To Enjoy It!
How To Streamline Your Entire Life So That You Can Finally Be Able To Enjoy It!
Ever wonder what the difference is between you and that rich guy standing in front of you in the check out line at the store? Simple, he has a plan and you don’t.
Why does it seem like everyone else is enjoying their day taking their sweet time, while you are running around looking like a hot mess like a chicken with her head cut off?
Why is it that you are always scrambling for time and you just can never seem to find enough time in your day to get it all done.
So you rationalize by telling yourself that:
a.) Those folks just aren’t real! No one looks that perfect. Come on! That’s just a smoky mirrors trick!
b.) They don’t know the struggle! They probably have maids, a nanny, maybe even a butler or two?
Man, what I wouldn’t give to my very own Alice or Mr. Belvidere right about now. (sighs)
How do they make it look so easy and come out looking like a million bucks every day?
Then there’s me, I’m constantly rocking the “I give up,” look. I literally look like I got ran over by an 18-wheeler. I am just struggling to stay alive and keep it all together.
Some days it just seems like being an adult is literally like folding a fitted sheet. (I saw this on a t-shirt and it just about sums up my life!)
You know there’s got to be a super-secret magic formula to it but you just can’t even wrap your mind around it somehow.
I mean something has got to give right? How do they do it all?
Aha! The answer is that they don’t!
How? Why?
Because they streamline their lives with technology like smartphones and devices like Alexa, Siri, and automation subscriptions like Amazon Prime Delivery, and Audiobooks or go old school with a free printable daily planning worksheet below.
Automation (as in cold hard machinery like Alexa not sweet and lovable Alice from The Brady Bunch) is the secret sauce to looking like you just don’t care!
So if you want to start getting hip to the modern times and look like you seriously belong in this century.
There are some must-have goals to get you on the right track to streamlining the chaos that is your life:
1- Daily Goals:
Whether you go old school by using paper & pencil and/or digital, plan to win by planning ahead.
Currently, I am using both my Google calendar as well as my paper planner.
We have been getting several power outages this year and technology is not as reliable in my neck of the woods.
Therefore, my handy dandy paper planner is always available to save me much-needed time and sanity in my day.
- Digital Calendars: Google calendar, Apple/iCalendar, Cozi, or Asana
- Paper Planners: The Living Well Planner, The Happy Planner (Scroll to the bottom to print out your very own copy of my free printable daily planning worksheet below.)
2-Meal Planning Goals:
Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.
- Freezer meals are the unsung heroes when it comes to saving your tummies and your wallets.
They are cheap, efficient, and delicious if you cater to your own taste palette.
Try: My Freeze Easy, Once a Month Cooking, or Eat At Home
- If you’d rather have the convenience of an all-in-one meal plan and a choice of picking out your favorite dishes to cook your meals fresh from home, then try a meal delivery service like; (EMeals, BlueApron, HelloFresh, Plated, SunBasket).
- For free and seasonal meal ideas use store websites to plan a week’s worth of meals based on what is on sale for your local store during that week. Stores like Kroger, Aldi, Meijer, & Walmart posts meal suggestions with pictures, ingredients, types of cuisine, and types of diet such as Vegetarian or Gluten to help you cater to your own family’s needs.
- To save even more cash, be sure to use a combination of rebates Apps like Ibotta, BerryCart, & Checkout 51, and store coupons, digital coupons, as well as printable coupons, and manufacturer’s coupons during your grocery trip.
- Grocery pickup (Walmart, Kroger pickups) and delivery options (Instacart, Amazon Prime or Pantry), shop locally and digitally at the same time with (green bean delivery service)
3-Cleaning Goals: Multi-task, divide & conquer, and let go of perfection.
- Baths: clean the walls of your tub or shower while you actually shower and you’ll kill 2 birds with 1stone!
- Kitchen: fill your sink with hot soapy water before your meal so that you are ready to tackle your dirty dishes while the stains are fresh and loose making it easy to rinse or jet load them right into the dishwasher for a quick rinse.
- Toilets: spray after you go potty, put a multi-surface bleach cleaner under each sink so that you’ll always be ready to go (no pun intended)
- Delegate: divide and conquer, enlist your army of munchkins and colonel hubby to help out.
- Beat the Clock: set a 15 timer so that you can sneak in a quick work out when you try to beat the clock while you clean, finally check it off on your calendar/planner.
- Organize & Declutter: Pare down your belongings. Make 3 piles and label them as Keep, Toss, or Donate. Only keep and organize the things that you truly cannot live without. Out of sight, out of mind.
- If that won’t do, try the 4, 5, or 7-minute workouts on YouTube, they’re wonderful!
- Every little bit only helps you get even closer to your goal!
4-Personal Finance Goals: Do you know how much you’re spending, down to the penny?
- Set a budget and do It often with free digital apps like mint, personal capital, digits, or you can use budget spreadsheets or even plain old paper & pencil as long as you are diligent about assigning a category for every dollar.
- Want the next coolest toy? Figure out what you can cut from your budget.
- Make a line item for your specific need/want.
- Assign a deadline & make it a savings goal.
- Think ahead and plan for future use, trade a service or go halfsies, or flip and sell an unwanted item to get quick cash for your new toy.
5-Relationship Goals:
- “Life is short! Make your moments count.”
- “Love like you’ve never been hurt before.”
- It doesn’t have to mean expensive gifts or exotic trips.
- Simply spending time together as a family and avoiding toxic people and/or situations.
- Go on a bike ride together.
- Roast marshmallows and make s’mores while stargazing.
- Play a game of Monopoly.
- Cook with your spouse and kids.
- They love to help, so let them, and show them how much you appreciate it when they do! (See #8!)
6-Fitness Goals:
- If you’re trying to shed some unwanted pounds, try the free version of the Lose It! App.
- It allows you to track your weight, track your meals by calorie intake, and your physical activity.
- Remember to drink lots and lots of water (think close to a gallon a day!), and replace your regular
- meals with veggies instead of meats.
- Weigh yourself each morning, and exercise at least 30 minutes daily, while listening to your favorite
- podcast or watching your favorite show with your family.
- Kids are a great motivator when you are trying to lose weight because they are full of energy and they
- just cannot get enough of your attention. ☺
7-Education Goals:
- Read something fun for at least 20 minutes, instead of watching TV.
- You’d be surprised at how much more productive you are as well as how much more you’ll learn in the process.
- We are using our kids’ favorite pastimes (such as their devices and video games) as a treat for the time they put into doing their homework because they seem to have a natural aversion to it.
- Just like we tend to have a natural aversion to exercise. 😉
- I like the Little Things App, listening to kindle/audiobooks & podcasts, watching YouTube tutorials & webinars on Udemy, Khan Academy, while I am working out.
8-Whatever you do, do it together!
- Pick a fun project and do it together as a family.
- Then randomly choose someone who’d enjoy it and gift it away to them!
So go forth and win at life and then pay it forward!
Want to add more fun back into your hectic schedule and enjoy more time for yourself and your family every day?
You can do that by getting instant access to my free printable Daily Planner sheet below.
Enjoy!