As someone who organises people for a living, I am forever being told that my life must be organised bliss. But much like a painter’s house is never painted, too can my admin look a little worse for wear. After all, I’m a working parent and single mum running two businesses doing my best to stay connected to friends and family, so of course, some days are organised chaos.
I call it the struggle of the juggle.
Some days we feel on top of the world, with our balanced lunch packed, kissing the kids at the school gate and handing over the gluten, dairy and sugar-free birthday cupcakes.
Other days we imagine ourselves barrelling down the tracks, like a train about to derail.
But how can you find a consistent middle-ground? How can we stay in control week in, week out without the wheels completely falling off? I have two words for you: preventable noise.
Being consistently organised is about reducing as much “preventable noise” in your life as possible.
Preventable noise is finding yourself in the meat aisle on Monday night wondering what you’re going to cook. Tearing the house apart while the car is defrosting to find your kid’s school jumper. Leaving emptying the dishwasher to the morning. Cooking multiple meals each night to satisfy every member of the house. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ When we remove (some of) the noise, we free up space for other things without having to rely on anyone else. We put ourselves back in the driver’s seat. In control of how far we’ll let a simple derailment throw us off course.
Let me give you some real-life examples to try:
Rather than being the person who does it all, only to complain about it at parties, share the love and lighten the mental load – write down the chores and agree a clear responsibility list between you, your spouse, your kids.
No one sits down after dinner until the bags are unpacked, lunchboxes out, kitchen is tidy and the house has gotten a 10-min express clean (set the timer). It’s amazing what you can achieve in just 10 minutes to avoid spending hours cleaning on the weekend.
Beds are made every morning, non-negotiable. The house not only looks respectable, but it means that if someone wants to pop over at the last minute, you’re not scrambling and screaming to “clean your room, hurry up!!”. Instead, you're boiling the kettle, ready to destress with tea and a catch-up.
Groceries are left to the weekend, ready for Monday. Weekend and school snacks are separated. Meal plan is set. If you have a busy weekend, make the most of Click & Collect. Or my oldest trick was telling hubby that I was grocery shopping, only to do a Click & Collect and walk the shops for a few hours – worked wonders!
Cook once and eat twice. With every second night now freed up by leftovers, what can you do instead?
Make meals that are adaptable to a variety of tastebuds. Bolognese mince becomes tacos for some and spaghetti for others. The less complaining, the better we feel!
We can’t prevent the noise, but we can control how it impacts us.
I’d love to hear if you’ve tried one of the scenarios I’ve suggested! Comment below.
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