10 Ways to Make Your Life Easier and Less Stressful

10 ways to make your life easier and less stressful

Life can be stressful, juggling everything. This is my list of ways to streamline life and make it a little bit easier.

1. Create a routine or morning habit
2. Only check email and social media twice a day
3. Create a daily to-do list
4. Plan all of your meals- even snacks
5. Cut and slice everything on grocery day
6. Keep a water and snack grab bag always ready
7. Do laundry and plan next week’s outfits, hanging or folding them together.
8. Create a space to keep your phone and keys
9. Create a message center for the whole family to communicate
10. Clean and organize one thing every day

1. Create a routine or morning habit
Mornings are the busiest, and starting the day in chaos only leads to more chaos. By creating a morning routine, you start the day organized and refreshed. Starting the day off right will have a snowball effect on the rest of your day.
Don’t check email or Social Media first thing. It will waste your precious time and create more feelings of being rushed.
I start my morning by making coffee, going outside, sitting quietly or meditating, and listening to nature. Once the coffee is done about 10 minutes later, I grab a cup and listen to the Daily Reflections with Jeff Cavens. I like to sip and enjoy my coffee. I get cranky if I drink it on the run. After I have thought about the day’s message, maybe journal a bit, I do some light stretching and head to the kitchen to make my family breakfast and pack lunches.

2. Only check email and social media twice a day
What!!?!?? The time suck that email and social media create is frightening. You think to yourself, it’s a 30-second video, I have 30 seconds. The problem is that 30 seconds leads to another 30 seconds and another. Until you have spent an hour watching 30-second videos, your to-do list is out of control, dinner needs to be made, and you feel like all you do is work. There is never anytime for yourself.
Schedule two blocks of time to check and respond to emails and check Social Media. Set a timer if you need to so you don’t get caught in the time trap.

3. Create a daily to-do list
When creating a to-do list, be realistic about how much time you really have to work on a project. There is nothing worse than having a to-do list so long it’s impossible to complete. You feel as if nothing got done for the day. It drags you down mentally, and procrastination sneaks in. You may even start wasting time thinking about what to do next.
Don’t forget to schedule fun and relaxation on the list. If you don’t schedule time for yourself, you won’t take it. Life will sneak in and give you something else to do.
Prioritize what needs to be done each week and let the rest go. Sometimes the toilet can wait a few days if there’s an opportunity to go for a walk, read a book, or play a game. Life is supposed to be fun, not work all of the time.

4. Plan all of your meals- even snacks
Once a week, plan all meals and snacks you and your family need that week. The more details you have, the better. It will save time at the store and during the week. You will eat healthier as well. Don’t forget to check the calendar when planning your meals there are always activities or meetings that get in the way of cooking. Plan a crock pot meal for those days when no one is home to cook, and everyone will be starving the moment they walk in the door.
Once you have a meal plan, write your grocery list the way the store you shop is set up. Write your list grouping items on the same aisle together. You will get everything on your list and not backtrack through the store. It will save you time shopping.

5. Cut and slice everything on grocery day
This one seems so easy, but most people don’t do it. Everyone eats healthier when fruit, vegetables, and cheese is easy to grab. Cut and peel all the veggies and fruit that will stay fresh for the week. If using them for packed lunches, divide them into containers or zip bags so they are grab-and-go ready. Slice and grate all cheese needed for the week as well. It makes meal prep so much faster!

6. Keep a water and snack grab bag always ready
You can plan all day long, but even the greatest planners can’t foresee everything. Sometimes things take longer, or last-minute things come up. Having healthy snacks and water with you will save you time and money.
When your blood sugars start dropping, you won’t be desperate to eat the first thing you can find. McDonald’s drive-thru won’t be necessary, and your body and brain will thank you.
It’s estimated that 75% of Americans suffer from dehydration. Packing water with you could save your life.

7. Do laundry and plan next week’s outfits, hanging or folding them together.
Try to do all of your laundry in one day. Whatever you do, don’t let the laundry sit in the dryer all week! It’s madding when you are rushed and can’t find an article of clothing because it has been hanging out in the dryer since the last laundry day. By finishing all your laundry in one day and grouping the outfits together, you allow yourself more time in the morning, creating a less crazy start to the day. This works get for kids getting ready for school too.

8. Create a space to keep your phone and keys
Searching for the keys when you need to leave NOW is the worst. It puts you in a frazzled state of mind, which leads to more forgetting and poor decision-making. If you’re stressed, everyone around you will become stressed. The kids will start school anxious, and you’ll feel bad about it later.
I keep my purse, keys, and phone on my desk. Everyone knows that is where they live, so if they are borrowed, they are placed back where they belong each time.

9. Create a message center for the whole family to communicate
We use a whiteboard in our household. We put everything that needs to be done for the day on it. With everyone’s busy schedules, it can get crazy just having time to talk to your family. The board serves as a big-picture to-do list.
If I make a casserole for dinner but will not be home to put it in the oven. I leave a note on the board with the baking directions and what time to start it for whoever will be home. We use it for pack lists, lunchbox requests, chores, and big projects. It also works for sick patients, keeping track of medications and times given.

10. Clean and organize one thing every day
Break your house down by rooms or sections. Put each area on a cleaning rotation and break it down into minor daily items. It may take a few weeks before everything is cleaned, but once you start, your whole house will be sparkling! You’ll get quicker as you go since it will become automated. Put on an audiobook or music and get it done!
Everyone in the house needs to be on board with the new protocol, keeping areas picked up and clean, or you’ll never feel like its working.