A Time For Everything

My chore chart is doing what it's supposed to--get me to do things and make new habits.

It's amazing that a hand-drawn chart and a random sticker can motivate me to get stuff done. See those stickers above--those are from my planner. You know, they give you stickers for birthdays and vacations and appointments. Yeah, I never used them for that. And then I thought why waste them? They're perfectly good stickers and will serve my purpose. So, yeah... 

As you can see I had five tasks that I completed all seven days. The green hand-drawn stars mean I was excused from those tasks because of hockey. Meaning, I slept in because I attended a hockey game the night before. I do not cheat myself of sleep.

I've been trying to do better with my housekeeping...so I have three things listed in each of the Sat & Sun square for "chores." And I don't get that sticker unless I accomplish all three items.

One of those things is dusting. Along with just running my feather duster around picture frames and along the tops of door casings and the like, each week I'm adding a bit extra. Like... I have this multi-compartment decorative shelf, with a handful of knickknacks filling the compartments. This week I dusted that whole thing. Took each item out and cleaned it. Going forward, I can just feather it clean. I have also been taking down a few of my collectible plates and washing them as well.

Yesterday, I almost pushed off cleaning the bathroom to today. But I wanted that stupid sticker for Sunday, so I sucked it up and got my toilets scrubbed.

I still have a bit of work to do, and I'm not striving for 100% every week forever. That's unrealistic due to life events and the random circumstance that presents itself. But I do need to get back into certain habits, and this is doing the trick.

Remember back in the summer I was rewarding myself with $1 puzzles from Dollar Tree for accomplishing so much? I have no reward system in place at the moment, but surprisingly, the doing of the thing and getting the sticker has been its own reward. :0)

Hope you had a great weekend, and here's to a wonderful short week.

It's time for me to utilize the chart / sticker method again.

As you can see, I have a bit of work to do. There is a task listed for each of those rows, even the one without any stickers in it. Some of these tasks are a bit of a cheat. I'd accomplish them even without the reward of a sticker, but it's helpful to have a show of success in some areas to encourage success in others. It's also a challenge to myself to strive for a better and better percentage.

I knew it would take a week or two. (More likely three. lol) Some things are easier to integrate into the routine than others. Not to mention, I had quite a few carb-laden food stuffs left over from my trip that I'm working to consume. So getting back to better eating habits is taking longer. Of course, the canned goods will last a while, so there's no real rush to eat them. And I could give them away in a canned food drive if one comes along. But the leftover Hershey's Kisses (they were sprinkled across my display tables at the con) have got to get eaten.

I'm trying to get into the daily habit of chores at the office. A few do happen and they're on the list, but adding a few more to get rewarded and solidify the habit.

I haven't instituted a reward yet, but the accomplishments are partly their own reward, but we'll see how it goes.

One of those line items is getting back on the food plan. My weight is back where it should be, but now it's a matter of trimming off the inches I gained. Meaning a KETO intensive for a week or two. :0)

Hope you're all well. Have a super weekend.