So much to do, so little time...

As I was on my way home from an incredible week of learning with colleagues, I had my growing to-do list swirling in my head. (Which was obviously growing after a week away). As I arrived home, my husband (who thankfully kept himself, the kid, and the dog alive for the week) and I looked around at the clutter in our home and had a similar swirl of "how are we ever going to clean all of this up?!"

And then I realized that we are asking the wrong question! Instead of "What should I tackle first?" we need to start asking, "What can I do differently do maximize my time?" A prime example is the amount of time I waste spend picking up Owen's toys and putting them back on the shelf in a reachable, yet somewhat presentable fashion. NEWSFLASH...if you're frustrated with the results, then you probably need to change some behaviors! So, we're trying the "toy bin" approach now instead of open shelves.... because truthfully, I just want him to be able to access his things and learn to pick them up. At the age of 2, I don't really care if he learns how to make them presentable as he puts them away.  (Side note: this is the mind-shift I realize I made as a Math teacher from a traditional "by the book" approach to PBL/PrBL. I was so frustrated that students weren't "getting" the problem solution methods I worked on with them TIRELESSLY! But, when I changed my approach and, specifically in PrBL, realized that the outcome I was really after was a correct solution and awareness of various ways to solve a problem...I didn't actually care how they solved it. If they wanted to toss the toys in the bin, GREAT! If they were the "put them neatly in rows" kind of problem solvers....SUPER! or if they just wanted to take an hour figuring out what they preferred...THAT WAS OKAY TOO! It wasn't about memorizing an approach...MY approach that I was trying to cram into their heads. It was/is about knowing that it was a new option to try out but there are other ways too.)

If insanity is "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results," then I'd say I was a bit insane in my expectations! Actually, I'd even venture to say that we all are in some area of our lives, and we can often detect it through the phrase, "I have so much to do and not enough time to do it!" So... what's the source of frustration? What are some alternate ways of approaching that thing which is frustrating you? I know it won't be comfortable at first, BUT... choose one of those new possibilities and try it out! Give it 30 days....long enough to make it a habit and allow you to see if your approach was part of the frustration (or perhaps understand that it might be something else.)

Last week, I shared some thoughts with you about goal setting (achievement goals and habit goals). To get more in touch with where you're spending your time, I thought I'd offer up this weekly review/reflection:

• My Biggest Wins this past week were:    (list your top accomplishments for the past week)    
• After Action Review: 
1. Review the things you said you'd need to accomplish last week to reach your goals. How far did you get?   _________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________
2. List Lessons Learned from the week. What would you do differently or better? 
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3. How will you adjust your behavior going forward?  ____________________________ _______________________________________________________________________

• New Weekly Big 3: What must you accomplish this week to reach your goals? 
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Peace, love, and adaptations,

Sarah