Discardia_ More Life, Less Stuff - Dinah Sanders [9]
This isn’t about a one-time massive shift; what matters here is some stuff, which doesn’t make the cut, goes away. Each time she runs one of her evaluation laps on a room, it moves closer to her ideal space. Her encouraging example is that powerful sweeps plus an overall vision plus just starting lead to success!
Go for the record
One of my favorite forms of The Lap is powered by something I love doing: hearing my favorite music. Listening to an album straight through doesn’t take that long, particularly when you’re doing something else, and good tunes can be a great motivator. Combine these two pieces of information and you’re ready to go for the record. It will take less than an hour and your home will be much nicer afterwards.
Select an album. You will work steadily through the entire album, so make it a high-energy one on which you like all the songs. Avoid songs that make you cry, Gregorian chants, moody ballads, and New Age ambient space pudding.
Start the music and get through as much of your list as you can. Don't stop and do other things during the album and, when the album ends, don't stress over what remains. Things will be a lot more like how you want them to be; enjoy that and relax. Remember: You aren’t asking yourself to do the whole list right now. You’re just doing the album. You’ll get as far as you get and that’s fine.
The short lap
Sometimes a whole album’s worth of plugging away takes more time or energy than you can muster. That’s when a short lap is your best bet. Set a digital timer or put on some music and go for four or five songs. Don’t say, “Later.” Say, “__ minutes now and then I can stop.” You’ll be amazed at what a difference 15 or 20 minutes of focused progress can make against even the worst chore.
This approach can also train you to better define your tasks. When the very first step is obvious, the project won’t repulse you as much. Strategic consultant Ethan Schoonover suggests writing to-do's as if you were delegating them to a real, other person. Be descriptive so your future self can leap right into action. When you find something lingering for a long time on your to-do list, it’s a good sign that you need to do just 15 minutes to break through that block or better define the project with words that will get you started more easily.
Laps like this work well in combination with a reward. Maybe you get home and want to take the rest of the night off. Before you do, devote those few minutes to a happier home. Try setting your sights on the kitchen. Ready? Find 10 things that you don't want in your kitchen anymore. You get more bonus points the bigger they are. Kick them out to the trash, the charity box, or wherever they belong. Gone. Done. Better. That was pretty quick, wasn’t it?
Trust in a quick burst when time, energy, or enthusiasm is in short supply. You put off certain chores because they seem too big to do in a small bite of your day. It's easy to view “clean the kitchen,” for example, as a monumental roadblock. You don't have to do everything in a single go and even one lap can make a big difference.
Next time you're feeling daunted, say, “Okay, short burst” and make a little progress. You'll be amazed at your ability to carve a few bursts out of your day, even when you thought you didn’t have a spare hour for making things nicer. Go ahead and laugh if your stubborn “don’t wanna” mood evaporates and you find yourself working cheerfully long after that timer goes off. Getting started is truly the toughest bit.
Define the finish line
Be flexible in defining your laps to