How do you balance being organised without feeling stressed

[Hyobywater]

I try to stay on top of things with lists planning and routines but sometimes it feels like the more organised I try to be the more pressure I put on myself I want things to run smoothly but also want to feel relaxed about it curious how other families manage this balance

Following! If there’s one question I need an answer to it is this!

Are your lists realistic?

I’m probably wired differently. Having the lists alleviates the stress for me.

Once I have written it all down I can just enjoy crossing things off and I don’t have to worry about forgetting anything.

A lot of it is anticipation, rather than reactivity. It’s a bit like setting up standing orders, rather than sitting down and distributing the funds. But you can’t organise EVERYTHING, stick to whatever is needed/basic.

I too find my stress goes down once things are listed.

OP - are your plans and lists just too much ? Are you trying to do more than you can manage with no time for fun? Do you have things on the list that never get done? If so just remove them from the list.

this is why I’m a list maker too

The more organised I am, the less stressed I am!

What kind of lists do you mean?

Many things I don’t list, I just auto do and add to calendar. Ie if I take Ds for vaccination or dentist, I will book in next one at the end of that appointment so it’s already done.

I think @Only2daystogo has the key.

Do you underestimate how long things take to get done? Do you allow time for 10 minute breaks and stick to just 10 minutes? Do you break tasks down into smaller tasks, that can be completed even if the whole thing cannot be finished in one go?

I found getting a handle on those things helped a lot. Before I was just setting myself up to fail which scuppers any enthusiasm.

Also, doing the thing you least want to do first helps because you know once that’s done everything else feels like a bit of a treat 😬

This is me. From packing to go on a holiday to knowing what is in the freezer if it is on a list I feel organised somehow.

I think you might be right that my issue is trying to fit too much in and then feeling bad when it doesn’t all happen. I like the idea of being more ruthless with the list and only keeping what’s genuinely doable. Maybe if the list felt kinder it would be more satisfying to cross things off rather than another thing to judge myself by.

Yes I definitely underestimate how long things take and then everything feels rushed or unfinished. I’m also terrible at actually stopping after a short break so that probably doesn’t help. Breaking things down is something I know makes sense but don’t always do in practice and I can see how that would stop it feeling like one huge job hanging over me. I really like the idea of doing the worst task first too even if I hate it at the time it would probably make the rest of the day feel lighter.

As daft as it might sound, I literally timed how long various things actually took. You only have to do that once. Just make a note as you go about your tasks for one week.

It was a bit disappointing because I had underestimated so much and realised I was never going to get things done in the time frame I had anticipated. but it meant I could plan my time realistically going forward. That meant I could feel I had accomplished something and not feel overwhelmed and defeated. Those “wins have a remarkable effect on enthusiasm. Once you feel you are on a winning streak you are likely to want more of that and will persevere and not let your short breaks turn into stopping points. Good luck 🤞