Hello hello, and welcome to Episode 99 of Life On the Brink!
Happy October! It’s a beautiful time of year, in my opinion one of the best months of the year. It’s around this month, though, that my schedule starts to look uncommonly busy, the list of projects just seems to grow, and it’s easier for me to get overwhelmed with tasks and commitments. Basically from now until the New Year things just get busier and busier, which is why right about now I like to get really intentional about helping out my future self.
This is a similar episode from last October:
Today I’m sharing a few organizational tips (some you might even call “hacks”) that really help me keep things on track and make things easier for my future self. I hope some of these might inspire you to examine your own routines to see how they can better work for you!
What’s in my teacup? I got ahold of some of the Spice and Tea Exchange’s Banana Nut Muffin Herbal Tea and oh my. I like to put a little oat milk in it, it’s truly like drinking a dessert.
HOME
1.When it comes to re-stocking things for the home like laundry detergent, dish sponges, trash bags and the like, I keep a note on my phone to keep track of these things. If something is running low (or has run out entirely) I throw it on the list, and then I usually use that list to make an online order at Target. It prevents me from getting sidetracked in the store, and I’m consistently taking inventory of what we have.
2. I mentioned this on the last podcast episode, but in the same way, I also keep a grocery list on the fridge. I use one of those nifty stacks of list paper held by a magnet, and as soon as something runs out, I write it on the list. It really helps me streamline my grocery-shopping process, both when I’m assessing what I need to get and then when I’m at the store.
3. This is one that helps me out so much! Whenever I bring in the mail, I try to go through and sort it out immediately. If it’s a bill or something important, I have a mail organizer in the office upstairs, but as we know, most of the mail we receive is some manner of advertisement or coupon, which usually goes immediately into the recycling bin. I probably don’t get as much mail as someone who lives in a larger household, but the visual clutter of lots of paper and bills can add just a bit of stress every time I look at the dining room table. Just do yourself a favor and go through it as soon as you bring it in the house.
4. Clean out your closet! Clothes can be very overwhelming, and while I don’t keep any kind of capsule wardrobe, I do consistently purge through my closet to get rid of what I no longer wear. October is the perfect time to do this, since chances are you’re putting away your summer clothes and taking out your sweaters! Just take a moment to ask yourself whether any pieces went the entire summer season without a single wear (excluding special occasion and fancy stuff). A clean and organized closet slowly curated with pieces that I love to wear makes putting together an outfit so much easier, and takes away a bit of that decision fatigue at the beginning of the day.
5. This is a bit of a random tip (one I first saw done by Girl and the Word) but it helped me out a lot recently. I finally put up a big gallery wall in our living room, but since many of the pieces were a little heavier and we’re also going to be hung several feet above the floor, I needed a way to map it out on the wall. I simply traced out each frame onto wrapping paper, made a note of where the hook was, and use painters tape to assemble the gallery wall with paper. Once I found the right position, I just secured nails and hooks where they needed to be and hung the frames accordingly. Such a helpful hack!
SCHEDULE
6. Get every meeting/appointment/event possible for the year or quarter on your calendar ASAP! Since it's October, I would recommend doing this for everything possible from now til the New Year. For example, at the beginning of this school year I put every faculty meeting that applied to me for the entire year in my calendar right away. Now it's not something I have to look up week after week and it saves so much time. So, for every school function, work event, doctor or hair appointment, make sure you can see it now.
-and change it immediately if something changes
7. One thing that has definitely helped my shared life with Josh is to have one shared Google calendar. We color-code events that apply to just one of us, as well as things that apply to us both. It just minimizes the number of times we forget about each others' stuff, and has been a life-saver when trying to schedule new things.
8. Get the group chats going! Now's the time to schedule all your holiday events, especially if multiple schedules need to coincide. I'm all about not filling up December with too many things, but if there's a particular celebration or tradition that's important to you (for me it's apple picking in the fall and caroling in December), talk about and schedule them as soon as possible.
SEASONAL
9. This has been such a huge help to me. I have a large family, and inevitably I will let someone's birthday/housewarming/graduation sneak up on me. So lately, I've been storing a gender-neutral birthday or greeting card in my office for when I need a last-minute gift. I think the next step for me will be to store a gift card in the house too, maybe to Starbucks or Target or a nice local spot!
10. To go on top of that, I have a designated "gift box" all year round. It performs a couple of functions: 1. to house gifts for loved ones as I happen upon them throughout the year, 2. to keep any emergency secret-santa/gift exchange gifts, and 3. to store anything that can be re-gifted. Points 2. and 3. generally go hand-in-hand. It's nice to have a place to collect gifts (both specific and non) throughout the year so when December rolls around I'm way more ahead than I thought!
11. Buy decor/wrapping paper/holiday things out of season. Josh and I bought our Christmas tree off of Facebook Marketplace this past summer, so once Thanksgiving comes and goes, we're ready to go! I also strongly encourage hitting up the post-Christmas sales for wrapping paper and decor. The difficulty most people find with this, I think, is that it's no longer the vibe, you know? Buying a tree in June isn't the vibe. But to that I say: it will be the vibe!
12. Even if you don't happen to find loads of Christmas gifts at flea markets all year, I think the most applicable step anyone can make is to keep a list for gift-giving that you add to throughout the year. If you hear someone mention a book that your mom would like, just write it down. If you find out that your brother's favorite band is coming to town, right tickets down as a gift idea. Just observe and go through life, and when the idea strikes, keep track of it. This is way easier than trying to conjure up the perfect gift out of thin air.
Final thoughts:
-If some of these steps feel rigid, difficult, or too strict, sometimes I can trick myself into thinking that this is all "just in case." This isn't a rigid lifestyle, in fact it's just a way to put a few bucks in your proverbial mental bank for when you need it down the line.
-This is a biggie: keep learning to say NO (or "no, thank you" if you like). Especially as the holidays approach, prioritizing your health, your family, and your peace of mind is critical. It's perfectly fine to say thank you, but no. Really, you're saying "yes" to less stress.
This Week’s Little Joy: I just finished the audiobook of this memoir, “Your Table Is Ready: Tales of a New York City Maître D'” by Michael Cecchi-Azzolina. It's narrated by the author, and he does a truly fantastic job of bringing stories from his past to life. I love reading books about restaurant kitchens, so it's great to hear one from someone in the front of house. Utterly fascinating, and I highly recommend the audiobook!
What I’m Listening To: Debut self-titled album by “säje,” an absolutely insane vocal quartet. The harmonies are tight and super crunchy, and many tunes also include instrumentalists or guest singers. It’s a very refreshing new sound, and one that I think will become influential for modern vocal and jazz composition.
Thank you so much for listening! Feel free to leave a comment, or head to Apple Podcasts to leave a star rating or review. If you have any suggestions for future episodes, send an email in the contact form on this site. I’d love to hear from you, and I'll be back in two weeks with our hundredth episode!