Every year around April/May, many Midwesterners awake from their winter hibernation ready to take on the fresh air of Spring! Most of us jump at the chance to be outside in flip flops and shorts when it reaches over 50 degrees. It is a great opportunity to chat with neighbors, do yard work, and clean out the garage. Spring has officially sprung and, now, so should you!
In May of every year, it is often daunting to take inventory of all the things you “put on the backburner” during the winter. Garage is filled with empty Amazon boxes? Eh that can wait until it’s warmer out! Your gutters are filled with leaves from last fall? Welp that can wait until it’s warmer! Your closets are filled with too many extra clothes in all kinds of sizes? We can do that when it’s spring cleaning! All of these scenarios just pile up and pile up until you are left as a ball of stress trying to prioritize a million things on your to-do list. So how do you get it all done? These are my top 4 tips to accomplish all you can in the first few weeks of spring:
- Divide and Conquer
If you share your space with anyone, divide up the to-do list and conquer parts together! This could look like your significant other taking care of the garage while you focus on your closets. If you have kiddos, bring them into the fun by going through their playroom together to clean out old toys for charity. Which leads me to my second tip!
- Donate to Charity!
We are all creatures of habit and tend to hoard stuff in our garages to hopefully one day you will use it. Well if the day has come to where you realize you haven’t used your infant stroller in 5 years, it is time to let it go! The best way to do this is to incentivize yourself into choosing a charity you want to donate it to. You could be having trouble letting go of your kids’ baby clothes or the cute work outfits you used to wear to the office. Find a charity like a rehab center or women’s shelter to bring all these items to. You will take pride in knowing what worked for you is now helping someone else. This is also a great lesson to teach your kids!
- Plan Ahead
Your to-do list just keeps growing and growing? Try to plan ahead and choose only the top 3 things you want to accomplish in a weekend! If we create a plan of execution for the day, we tend to wake up more energized to start. This is crucial as it leaves out all the guessing game of “where do we even begin??” for you and your family.
- Treat Yo Self!
Finally, it is important to treat yourself at the end of a difficult day/weekend! This could be ordering takeout from your favorite restaurant, taking the kids to get ice cream or binge watching your favorite show with a glass of wine. Whatever you choose, be intentional in rewarding yourself for your hard work. Oftentimes, these rewards can be the spark that is needed to light under your butt to get to work!
