Finding Your Muse

Here's an existentialist venture on a rainy Wednesday: What inspires you?

I recently read a quote by Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, and it really nailed a major challenge in my work and in my life:

"Motivation is a fire from within. If someone else tries to light that fire under you, chances are it will burn very briefly."

I'm keenly aware of what inspires me and try to share that enthusiastic muse with family, friends and clients. At the heart of LT is inspiring others, giving them permission to ditch the pieces of their lives that just don't ring true anymore. I try to help them find the courage to choose their best lives. And make no mistake: I fully believe that getting the life you want is a choice. It's just a matter of being willing to take risk.

But motivating others to change doesn't always produce the results we hope for. In order for change to become a framework of new positive habits, someone else can't just want it for you. You have to really want it. The goal that's just beyond your reach has to be deep under your skin, driving you to do more, to do better.

It does not come without its pains; of course, every new stage of life exacts its payment. Those among you who have made changes large and small know that it's hard work and it takes resolve, it takes a commitment to yourself and the greater scheme of your future. It doesn't matter how many times you try and fail -- you have to keep learning, to redefine your priorities and make time for them. You can break out of boredom or bad habits and rise to greater heights of happiness and fulfillment.

A simple example is this: If you want to lose weight, you have to make time to exercise. You have to really want to change the body you see in the mirror -- and make it more accurately reflect the person you are inside. It's a challenge but it's uncomplicated.

Here's one that's a bit more difficult to quantify: If you want to succeed professionally, especially if you want to transcend traditional success, you have to identify what makes you a rock star. This process will require that you tap into what truly inspires you. That intangible quality makes you invaluable and singular -- no one else can provide the genuine enthusiasm and drive you bring to the team when you focus on what moves you.

It definitely helps to have people in your corner who will encourage you to reach your goals. It makes a world of difference in moments of weakness and self-doubt that someone else believes in you. Sometimes it's hard to explain to others what you're reaching for, and it seems miraculous when someone else even gets it. But if you keep trying, you might just get lucky.

The bottom line is this: When you set priorities, for today or 10 years from now, remember that what you want for yourself is who you have the power to become. No one else can choose the change that's right for you.

Love, LT

Make Your Life List and Change

Unhappiness with a particular part of your life has a way of pervading other aspects until it becomes a self-made obstacle to success. It also, as you dwell, takes on epic proportions until you’re all but paralyzed, power dissipating, feelings of control crushed.

There are so many goals we hope to achieve in our lives, but until we make them priorities and commit to them, hope isn’t enough. It can’t crystallize without action. Whether it’s something small such as organizing your thoughts or something bigger, like writing a book or starting your own company, nothing will happen until you make it happen.

The key to making positive change is making a plan and following through, and believing it can be done. Recently I met someone who has embraced “yes” as a lifestyle, whose mission in life is to help others reach their goals – another true agent of positive change.

The website is www.mylifelist.org and you can join for free. It will help you to create a roadmap for your unique happiness, so that what you visualize for your future can become your new life. My Life List, beyond unfurling a yellow brick road for your personal adventures, teaches the importance of celebrating the steps along the way.

If you’re stuck and need some inspiration, this community will give you that and more. It will compel you to shake off what stunts your growth and embrace the changes that make it all real. Check it out!
LT

Schedule the chores for more adventure time

Summer vacation is a time for fun -- but before we abandon all order and embark on three months of Where the Wild Things Are, think about the chaos you are purposefully creating.

Oh my God. Scary.

Yes, summer's all about leaving behind the dreary chores and routine but just the *tiniest* bit of planning and prep can make you happy without having to start at Square 1 come September. Plus, there are things that need to be done or your whole family will be bare and starving.

The key to summer freedom is simplicity. And nothing is simpler than sticking to a routine. You can turn off your brain and still get it together.

Set days (or evenings) to do the major tasks of grocery shopping and laundry and stick to it. If you accomplish these tasks on the same day every week, you won't have any conflicts, you'll stay well-stocked and the beach towels will always be clean.

There's a huge difference between falling into a rut and choosing to keep order. If you stay on a slightly modified plan, you'll have more time to enjoy the spontaneous moments. Try it for yourself and see.

LT

Organize like a kindergarten graduate

Here's a question I get often: How do you maintain a space after it's been sorted and purged and perfectly organized?

The answer takes its roots from what my soon-to-be kindergarten graduate learned this year, "If you take it out, put it away. Clean up, clean up, everybody clean up."

The organizing philosophy: Respect the work you've done.

If you add an item to your space, don't forget to subtract a similar, older item. Take 15 minutes a day to tidy up, toss the junk and plan for tomorrow. Make your list of 5 so you can relax and start tomorrow prepared and polished.

It seems simple but in the midst of life, it's a lot harder to put into practice, isn't it?

Maybe this will help: When you put it in perspective, what's more important -- the tiny hassle of putting stuff back or the immense relief of having full-time control?

If you have order in your house, if you can put your hands on everything you need, then you rule your schedule, your environment, your life. That's how you get the life you want, the perfect goal for summer.

By fall (just in time for first grade in my house), who knows what changes you will have affected!

LT

Bring Back That New Car Smell

Keeping the car clean during the school year is enough of a challenge -- but how about when school lets out? There are beach days, excursions to the water park, spontaneous rides to the ice cream stand.

Blink and your car is a landfill.

So here's how you head it all off at the vacation pass:

1. Take everything out of the car, including any car seats or boosters, even anything in your arm rest, door pockets and glove box. Sort through the detritus and toss all the junk. Getting rid of the crummy hair elastics, sticky candy wrappers and broken crayons feels good! Then only put back what you need, making sure to safely stow your registration and insurance papers. Put your ice scraper in the garage. When you're considering what to keep in the car, think about what you often need but can't find. Do you scramble for a pen? Digging for tissues or change for the toll? Keep these close at hand. Make a point not to store anything on the floor. Once that starts to disappear from view, it's all downhill from there.

2. Gather your supplies and detail your car. Take it to the car wash, vaccuum the carpeting and upholstery within a shred of its fabric, freshen up all the surfaces and make it sparkle. Spring for the mega-wash on the outside and a little "new car smell" tree, too. Why not?

3. Put a small plastic egg crate or cargo organizer in your backseat or trunk that contains a roll of garbage bags, handiwipes, paper towels, leather or upholstery wipes and swiffer pads. That way, when spills happen (and who hasn't watched in horror as an entire slushie tips over, emptying onto the backseat?), you'll actually be able to do something about it. At least at the next pitstop.

4. Be conscientous about what gets left behind -- even if you're the one doing the leaving. Anything you bring into the car has to exit with you, too. And kindly request the same from your passengers. The payoff comes when your boss says, "Hey, can you give me a ride?" and you don't feel like cringing.

Don't forget that Americans spend about as much time in their cars as they do in their living rooms -- and yet we hardly ever clean up. Cars cost a lot of money ... our big investments deserve to shine. It will feel nice to have a clean car when you set out on your summer adventures. Roadtrip!!

xoxox

LT

Countdown to Summer Vacation

Once that last bell rings, we all want to forget the school year ever existed and plop our butts on the beach, right? Here are some quick tips to get you ready for summer fun.

Classroom cleanup:

Teachers, do you wish it were like the old days, when child labor laws weren't so tough? I remember the last week of school was devoted to wiping down desks, washing blackboards and packing away bulletin board and games. But then again, I went to Catholic school, so who knows.

When you're sorting and organizing this year, make "future use" your most important criteria. If your supplies are tired, retire them. If they will do the trick come fall, pack them away with simple labels and keep them with other materials from the same zone in your room. Don't forget to take an inventory of what's packed (also useful throughout the course of the year to keep track of quantities used and what you need to reorder).

Organize the trunk:

Get your fun supplies in order. Put folding beach chairs and a collapsible umbrellla on the bottom of your trunk, and top with your favorite beach blanket and clean towels. Make a kit (a simple mesh drawstring laundry bag will work) that contains sand toys, floaties, kites, frisbees, sunblock, bug spray, roasting sticks for s'mores, and sparklers and glowsticks for evenings on the sand. (Don't forget a small first-aid kit, just in case.) Then all you have to do is throw on your flip-flops and go.

Welcome your guests:

Everyone has company over the summer. Make yours feel more comfortable with a small basket in your guest room. It's really easy to put together ahead of time and kicks off their stay with a nice touch. Fill a basket with bottles of sunblock, bugspray, lotion, plus a toothbrush, soap, and even a disposable camera. Just don't be annoyed if they ask to stay a little longer.

Clean out your freezer:

Be prepared for some great grilling with your garden-fresh produce and a trip to the butchery -- but first ditch all the unidentifiables in your freezer. (You know, toss the fish sticks from Lent and the burned and sticky popsicles.) Then stock up on great cuts of meat, bag them for protection and label them. When your garden starts to overflow, freeze what you can't use right away. Don't forget to date each bag so you know what's what and when it got there. It will cut your grocery bill, the time you spend in the store, and nothing will go to waste.

And here are my best tips of all: Take advantage of all the time you have with the family and friends you love. Go barefoot as often as possible. Eat too much. Wear sunblock and don't ruin your skin -- you don't want to look like a handbag when you're old.

Does This Work or Am I Crazy?

Something surprising has come to my attention. Apparently, there are LT readers out there who yearn for more of a challenge. Whoa, can I get a what-what!

In response, I'm launching a new, once-in-a-while feature highlighting organizing ideas (Advanced Organizing Skills II on your syllabus) that step a shade closer to the obsessive-compulsive line. I will try to contain my glee as much as possible.

(Hopefully in my quest to satisfy the more advanced organizer, I won't scare off any loyal, more normal readers. And I want to remind everyone that truly only a small percentage of organized people are rigid, non-spontaneous freakshows. I swear.)

OK, so does this work or am I crazy? When you're loading the dishwasher, separate your dirty forks, knives and spoons into their own compartments. Then when you're putting them away, you can just grab each grouping and toss them back in the silverware drawer.

It must have saved me at least three minutes this morning. I used the time wisely, actually sitting at the breakfast table with my daughter, drinking my coffee while she ate. It was pleasant and I was laughingly pleased with myself. (FYI: I fight most of my compulsions to over-organize, but this one was just too easy. Don't think the craziness escapes me. I do get it.)

If you're an organized person, don't feel put off by our more remedial tips. Your OCD is in good company here. Email your inspirations to linearthoughts@comcast.net

And for the less organized of you, don't forget: Small changes can really add up.

Wishing you a productive, organized week -

LT