Let’s agree on one thing: We’re all really busy.  And there are a lot of things that can be done on a day to day basis and a lot of things that can’t.  As you’re looking at your to-do list for today and this week I challenge you to do two things:

Do the thing you’ve been putting off. Whenever I have something on my list that I really don’t want to do I do a few things:

1. First figure out if this is something that should really be on my list.  Is it better done by someone else?  Does this thing actually need to get done?  If it’s better done by someone else, delegate and if it doesn’t need to get done skip this item right on down to the second challenge.
2. Why haven’t you wanted to do it? Is it too big? Break it down into smaller pieces.  For things I really don’t want to do I will break it down to 10 minutes of action at a time.
3. Set a timer for 10 minutes or 20 minutes and turn off all the distractions.  And do it.  Start.  Don’t look back. With those first few minutes behind you do you have the momentum to finish?  If yes, do it.  Living more of your life with this thing DONE is a pretty sweet reward.
4. Is this something you’ll have to do again? Figure out a time of day, month, year that would make this task more palatable.  Schedule it out in your calendar now so it doesn’t sneak up on you and while you’re at it – ask for help.

Remove the thing that you don’t want to do &  doesn’t really need to get done.  Just cross it off this is no longer something on your plate.  (Doesn’t that feel awesome?)

It’s Monday, a start of a fresh week, a start of a new month.  You may even have today off…but let’s be honest – even with a day off in front of you there are still things to do.  This week is inspired by this amazing NPR podcast from The Salt called “For A More Ordered Life, Organize Like A Chef” at just 7 minutes long I recommend downloading it and listening to it on your next drive to the grocery store.  My very first job was working in a restaurant and those experiences taught me so much.

Three Key Lessons from the Restaurant:

1. Mise-en-place is a french word  meaning “putting in place”.  It’s something that is done over and over again within restaurants and a great habit to get into no matter what it is you’re doing – it’s basically setting yourself up for whatever it is you have to do.  It makes great sense to get out all of your ingredients together prior to starting to cook and the same principle can be applied to any task that you have to do.For example: lets say that you’re working on a new blog post – prior to starting to write the actual post it’s a good idea to make your post graphic, take a picture for the post (or a series of photos), figure out your keywords so you can integrate them into your post, have your links ready so you can add those to your post without a hunt.

   Another example: you have an upcoming meeting with your accountant. Have all of your online log-ins in an accessible place, gather all of your receipts, have your invoices & cleared checks & bank statements at the ready and have a list of questions so you utilize the time to the best of your ability.

   Proof we’ve been doing mise-en-place at our house for a long time is this video from Lexi when she was almost three. I warn you the cute is hard to resist.  

2. Start with a clean surface.  From the back of the house, to the tables to the bar, all surfaces in a restaurant start out clean. Take this approach with the surfaces you interact with.  Take all of the things off, clean the surface and then be thoughtful when putting things back. Edit the unnecessary to remove distractions.
3. Every interaction starts with a Greeting. There’s something really nice about stepping into a room and being greeted with a warm hello and a smile.  This was true when guests walked into the restaurant and its really important in your personal life.For example: I work from home, so most of the time I’m here when people come back from various activities and work. When I take the time to get up and greet them with a warm smile, a hello, a question on how their time away from the house was it makes a remarkable difference in the energy of our home. When someone has to seek me out they feel like they’re intruding and their return isn’t celebrated which is a little thing that makes a huge impact.  People are important. Greeting people honors that.

I would love to know what you think of these lessons and if you have one you’d like to share of your own.  You can comment on this blog post or head over to Facebook where we’ll be taking the conversation further!