With the formation of the menu, the size of purchases immediately becomes clear. What to buy, when to buy, how much. For sure, you will also save money.
Simplify and unify breakfast, afternoon tea and snacks as much as possible. For example, in our family for many years we have always eaten the same thing in the morning — muesli, filled with oat milk in the evening. In the morning, it remains only to warm up. We drink the same smoothie for afternoon tea. More precisely, the recipe varies depending on the season. But it's always a smoothie!
In general, habits are good. Combine them into a sequence and automate your actions. The sequence is, for example, the chain "we go to the bathroom, brush our teeth, put on pajamas, then a song or a book, we sleep." You can do exactly the same thing with food. For example, we washed the dishes after breakfast — right there, without leaving the sink, we wash the apple and cut it into slices to take with us for a day walk. Pour water into a bottle and put it together with a banana and a sliced apple in a bag. At the same time, it will not be forgotten.
Secondly, we simplify the wardrobe.
Surely you've heard the famous story about Steve Jobs? This brilliant designer and founder of Apple always appeared at work in the same clothes — a black turtleneck and jeans. Mark Zuckerberg, the creator of Facebook, is seen in a similar one. And many other great people who come up with big businesses and change the world, dress very simply and, most importantly, always in approximately the same clothes. Of course, this is done specifically and for exactly one purpose — to minimize the number of small daily decisions by converting them to automatic ones. Everything to keep the clarity of thinking for business development!
Of course, I'm not encouraging you to dress like Steve Jobs. I'll tell you about my approach. During the working week, when I'm at home alone with my baby, I always wear exactly the same thing — the most comfortable trousers or shorts with lots of pockets and a T-shirt. In the cold season, another fleece or jacket. All of the above I have several pieces, for regular washing, all things are very similar and perfectly combined with each other. In the morning I don't think what to wear, except to check the weather forecast.
It's like with a baby: no endless costumes. 10 trousers, 10 T-shirts, several sweatshirts and a pair of jackets, everything is extremely simple and combined. Grabbed with one hand without looking — and the child is dressed. And it's easier for you, and the kindergarten teachers will be happy. Some special "complicated" things — exclusively on weekends. With Dad.
In the off-season, when the temperature jumps back and forth, we think over the options for the coming months in advance and lay them out in piles. From +15 to +10 — these trousers and this jacket. From +10 to +5 — those and that one. If something gets dirty, immediately go to the laundry, without thinking for a second. The time has passed when people were shaking over every child's thing, so that, God forbid, it would not be demolished ahead of time.
If a child already goes to school, he is already able to take care of his clothes himself. A few weeks of training — and the issue is resolved once and for all. If the school has adopted a uniform, his task becomes to take care of its cleanliness, if not, then choose clothes for himself. In any case, delegate to the children everything that they can already decide for themselves. And it's easier for you, and they develop independence.
Thirdly, it is important to have a clear schedule in front of your eyes and a well-thought-out chain of actions from the very morning.
Yes, yes, chains again! We sort of tie solutions to one another and thereby reduce their total number.
On Wednesday I have to go to the store, which means that my baby and I are going to this playground, because from there it will be convenient to go shopping and go home. We do not take toys for the sandbox, because otherwise the products will not fit into the stroller bag. And always, when we need to go to the store, we do exactly that. On Friday we have a free day, we don't need to go to the store — then we go to our favorite playground. Always the same. Toys, of course, we take. The algorithm is remembered, now it's always like this.
With an older child, the schedule generally becomes the law of life of the whole family. Do school or kindergarten, children's clubs and sections subordinate all other matters? Great! What you need! Plan a chain of actions for each day and stick to them strictly.
For example, distribute by days of the week... cleaning. We sweep the kitchen every day, after dinner. The floor is washed once a week, on Friday, while the daughter is on figure skating. Toilet and bathroom — twice, once on Monday, after high tea and vacuuming carpets, and the other time on Friday, before washing the floor. The main thing is to write it down in advance and hang the schedule in a prominent place! At the same time, the household will be aware.
In general, plan everything you can in writing, simplify and automate.
The bottom line is that our brain is a very highly efficient system aimed at solving situational problems. Problems that you can't escape from anyway and that will appear every day. And this is actually great — it's quick and easy to solve problems that arise. Invigorates.
But for some reason we use our incredible brain, our natural supercomputer for the most part only as a repository of daily tasks. Don't forget to take it, don't forget to go there… At the same time, the problems do not go away. As a result, we solve them ineffectively, and get tired, and always forget something. Our brain is forced to make hundreds of small decisions every day, simply because we have not automated and planned them.
When we see something written down as "tasks for today" - we do not think about whether to do or not, what to do and how. We just go and do our chain of actions. As always. We don't get so tired and save our strength for what is more important. For example, cuddle on the couch with the elders and listen with sincere interest to their stories about such important children's affairs. Run around the house with the kids, tickle and tinker. To meet her husband from work with a smile and calmness, to have the strength to listen to him, to help relax and enjoy each other. Find the strength, finally, and for yourself. In order to eat — more correctly, take care of yourself — more carefully, sleep — better.
After all, you also need to decide on this. To decide. Choose this particular action from all the others.
Take care of yourself — decide less.
Julia Sianto
