You’ve probably heard about time blocking.
It’s one of the most popular productivity tools, and for good reason.
But here’s a question: are you time blocking the right way?
Not just on the regular days. You’ve mastered the flow on those. But what about your busy days?
We all have ‘em. The rush around, barely any time between meals and naps, oh and there’s still supper to make ones.
How can you use time blocking to support you in those days?
Take it easy
Go easy on yourself.
You’ve got ten million other things to do.
Today is not the day for “deep clean the bathrooms” or “food prep lunches for the rest of the week,” no matter how nice it looked on your pre-planned schedule.
Cut yourself some slack. Keep the rhythm, sure.
(So find the absolute easiest, fastest, fun-for-you chore on that list. Move it to your busy day.)
That way you’re still in the habit of “after I get the kids’ breakfast, I do one housekeeping chore.” That’s fine.
But choose something like…
- wiping down surfaces
- cleaning bathroom mirrors (only the mirrors!)
- a quick living room vacuum (sub in the dirtiest room at your house)
- throwing some ingredients in the breadmaker
- prepping 3 lbs. of chicken in the Instant Pot
You get the picture.
Go easy on yourself.
Forget the expectations
Your time is already taken up by those errands. (Or whatever your particular busy day entails.)
You don’t have the brainpower, mental space, or even physical energy to do a bunch of house cleaning or cooking on top of that.
So find yourself an easy chore. Pick crockpot meals (or something ridiculously fast for you to cook) those nights.
Lower your expectations.
Your new standard
That way, after your next busy day, you get to feel accomplished.
What did I do today? Oh yes, that’s right.
I completed all those errands. I got the dusting done. I put supper on the table.
It was a good day.
And you know what?
It was.
Busy, but good.
Because you took the pressure off yourself, got realistic about your expectations, and gave yourself bite-size tasks to accomplish.
So where can you lighten the load for your next go-go-go day?
Is your calendar about to explode? Is your schedule stressing you out every time you look at it?
