Here comes 2013. Every year I try to think of a word that sums up my goals for the upcoming year, and I can’t even remember what my word for 2012 was. It was a tough year; lots of highs and lows, but I’m starting to think that just like the weather patterns of late, these are just the patterns of my life.
This year I’m going to stop the insanity. For instance, I’ve found myself fighting a losing battle every weekday from 3:00-6:00pm. You know, that magical time of day when you pick up the kids from school, help with homework, do chores, figure out dinner, address work email, do dishes, sort through mail … there are too many to do’s on the list for this short frame of time. I would find myself in a horrible mood but I wasn’t keying into exactly why (sometimes the most obvious things can be the hardest things to see).
Then I was having a conversation with my son as he was preparing for a taekwondo tournament and he was struggling with sparring. While sparring with one child, he kept kicking and the other child kept very effectively blocking his kicks. I told him that he had to change his approach—because it’s crazy to keep doing the same thing and expecting different results.
Just like my after school schedule. It’s crazy to expect a better result if I’m still dealing with the same list of things to do. So I need to change that or else, very simply put—it won’t change (again; it’s those obvious things that are the stumbling blocks!). So I’m trying to do more in advance. Working on a meal plan so figuring out dinner isn’t such a chore.
With the added pressure of trying to eat low-carb and fit in exercise along with family and work commitments, I think the word that will guide me through 2013 is going to have to be “organization.” It’s what I’ll try for and hopefully, by the time 2014 rolls around, I’ll have the concept perfected.