Clutterbug - Real-Life Hacks and Tips to Declutter, Organize and Clean your Home Fast - 3 Strategies for More Motivation | Clutterbug Podcast # 60

Episode Date: July 27, 2018

Here are three really simple and effective strategies for getting more motivation! Want to get more done? Wna tto overcome procrastination? These simple tips can help!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey guys and welcome back to the Clutterbug podcast. Today actually we're going to talk about motivation again, but this time we're talking about three strategies to get you started. So thanks so much for joining the Clutterbug podcast. I super appreciate you taking the time to listen. So today we're talking about motivation. A lot of people struggle with motivation. We struggle to get started.

especially doing those things that we know we have to do, but we totally don't want to do. And I struggle with lots of different areas with motivation, but I'm getting better. I used to not want to do anything at all. I was a total super slob and a definite sloth. I would rather lay around and watch television than do anything else. So how did I change? How did I get motivated to do those really horrible? tasks that no one actually wants to do. And I'm not only going to talk about strategies that work for me,

but strategies that work for the majority of people. And so I picked the three most popular. First, let's talk about the time of day. This is a really popular strategy because it works. We all are so different. Some of us are morning people, some of us are night owls, Some of us get that burst of energy in the afternoon. So knowing yourself and the time of day where you just seem to be more energized and do those little things that you wouldn't normally want to do, that is when you should schedule or even think about attempting the projects that you've been putting off. So if you're not a morning person, don't tell yourself that you're going to go for a run every morning at 6 a.m. You're just constantly breaking promises to yourself because it just goes against your personality.

If you really want to have a nighttime cleaning routine, and you guys know I'm always like, yay, to the nighttime cleaning routine, but you're exhausted at night and you're just not a night owl. Who cares? Let that go. And instead, do your tidying in the morning or in the afternoon when you feel that burst. It isn't about perfection. And it certainly isn't. about what time of day you do something, just that you're actually doing it. And I'm going to use my husband as a huge example. He is really into fitness right now. He's running all the time, and he's trying to run 5 or 10K a few times a week, and he's always wanted to do this in the morning. He, you know, talked about getting up at 6 a.m. and he even set his alarm all the time. But the truth is,

Joe's a night owl. And everybody tells you never to run at night. It's hard to go to sleep after. It's just not a great time. So he just never ran. Now he's running at 11 o'clock at night. And I know it's probably not the best time, but it works for him. That is his time where he's feeling the most motivated. And I'm a night owl too. I'm actually doing this podcast right now and it's one o'clock in the morning. It's crazy. I should be in bed. I'm ridiculous. But this is a lot. I'm ridiculous. But this is the time of day where I feel the most motivated. This is the time of day where I'm doing those big painting projects. I'm tackling a DIY project or I'm cleaning my house because this is what works for me. So know yourself and your time of day and stop trying to go against the grain

and pick the time that works best for you when it comes to tackling those projects that you're procrastinating. The next motivation strategy is called habit stacking. I've heard this actually called a couple of different things, but it's a pretty cool concept. And honestly, I've been doing this and I didn't even realize I was doing it. So the general concept between habit stacking is when you want to create a new habit, you combine it with an existing habit. So you add it on. And you choose just one small part of the new habit. So if you want to get in the habit of flossing your teeth, every night when you brush your teeth, which is already a habit, just floss one tooth. And then the next day, just floss one tooth again and one tooth and one tooth. And eventually you just get in the habit of

flossing without even thinking about it because it's just something you do when you brush your teeth. So I'll give you an example of how I stacked a habit without even realizing it. Every night, my dog does this thing. He wants to get let out in the backyard at night. It's pitch black and just run around sniffing for raccoons. It's his thing. I don't know why. It's really annoying. And usually I just stand by the back door impatiently waiting for him to come back in. It's a habit. I know it's 10 o'clock. The dog has to get let out. And I'm going to be wasting time. Well, right by the back door is the bird cage. So one time while I was waiting, I just replaced the bird's food and the bird's water and put new paper towels in the bottom. And now, every time I let the dog out at night, I just clean the bird cage

and replace the food and water without even thinking about it. I've stacked that habit that is just, now it's effortless. It's just something that goes along with the rest of my day. So think about what it is that you want to accomplish, a new habit that you want to create. Maybe you want to start doing the dishes every night and every night you have a bedtime snack at 9 p.m. When you're doing that, just put one dish in the dishwasher or wipe one small section of the counter when you're making your snack. Stack that habit on something that you're already doing. Even if it's a negative habit, you can stack a positive on top. And eventually, you'll be doing in those things at the same time right after one another without even thinking about it. The last strategy is balance.

And this is something that I'm just, this is my go-to motivation strategy. I balance out the bad thing that I want to do or the boring or the monotonous thing that I want to do that I'm procrastinating with a positive. So if I don't feel like cleaning the toilets, I tell myself like I'm a small toddler, if I clean the bathroom, I can have an hour to watch my favorite show. or if I cut the back grass, then I can buy myself something pretty on Amazon. It's probably not the best strategy, but it totally works for me. I also balance out the bad with a positive, like an audiobook. It is my go-to to getting motivated. I pick a book that's exciting, something that I want to find out what happens next,

not some self-help book or something boring, something really exciting, usually some Y.A. Vampire, horrible crap. But it keeps me motivated. And let me tell you, there has been so many times where I've, like, looked around and realized I've been cleaning or scrubbing or painting or DIYing for five, six, seven hours straight. And I didn't even realize it. And I don't want to stop because I'm so into my book. So balancing is such a great technique, especially if you have ADHD like me with a audiobook or get a wireless headset for your phone and talk to your best friend while you're cleaning the bathroom or folding the laundry. Listening to music even is a great way to balance and bribing yourself and rewarding yourself for those tasks that you don't want to do

is all about balance too. So those are the three strategies for motivation. Again, knowing your time of day, knowing when you like, you'll bring it and making sure that you're doing the things that you don't really want to do during that time. So you're not breaking promises to yourself. Habit stacking. When you want to start a new habit, but you're not feeling motivated, stack that new habit or a baby version of that onto a habit you're already doing around the same time. And last but not least, finding the balance. So bribing yourself like you're a toddler or discering. Or disqualifying. distracting yourself with something awesome like a new audiobook. So thank you guys so much. I hope you enjoyed and I'll see you next time.