The Lazy Genius Podcast - #466 - How to Declutter Your Week

Episode Date: April 27, 2026

If your calendar feels like it's yelling at you, you're not alone. Welcome to Maycember. It's end-of-the-year energy, but in May. Instead of trying to fix your whole schedule, let's look at one week at a time. In this episode, I'll walk you through a simple way to declutter your week that you can use now or anytime you need a breather. Helpful Companion Links Order my book The PLAN or ask your library to consider carrying a copy. The Summer Playbook Creature of Habit by Courtney Barnett Pumpkin by Georgie Parker Sign up for our every-other-week podcast recap email called Latest Lazy Listens. Sign up for my once-a-month newsletter, The Latest Lazy Letter. Grab a copy of my book The Lazy Genius KitchenorThe Lazy Genius Way! (Affiliate links) Download a transcript of this episode. Want to share your Lazy Genius of the Week idea with us? Use this form to tell us about it or record your idea and share your voice on the show. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hi there, you're listening to the Lazy Genius podcast. I'm Kendra Adachi. This podcast isn't about hacking the system to find more time or hacking your energy to get more done. Hustling to be the best or to make the most out of every opportunity is exhausting and unsustainable. So here we do things differently. On this show, we value contentment, compassion, and living in our season. We favor small steps over big systems. Here we are lazy geniuses. Being a genius about the things that that matter and lazy about the things that don't. And I am so glad that you are here. Today is episode 466, how to declutter your week. Is anyone else feeling it, feeling the busyness of life, the weight of your schedule, the to-do list that never ends? This time of year is the start of what

the internet lovingly calls Maysember. It's December and May when everything is happening. And the time management energy is a lot. I personally feel the crunch of it all. So it seems like a great time to talk about decluttering your week, not your life, not your entire schedule, not everything. Just one week. One week. You can do this one week at a time or just this week for a breather and then stop. Regardless, the short process I'm going to teach you is helpful any time you want to use it. After that, in this week's A Little Extra Something, I'm going to share an update on my album project. I am wanting to listen to 300,000, albums in 2026, but really the goal is less about the number and more about intentionally listening

to new music in full album form. I haven't shared anything about that in a couple of months, at least here on the podcast. So I will give you a little update on how that's going, how many I've listened to, and what my favorites are so far. As always, we will celebrate the lazy genius of the week, who has a great idea for meal planning, something we always need. And we'll close with a mini pep talk for when you can't catch a break. This episode will be a practical response to that, but man, we might also need a pep talk too. I know I do. Now, before we get into all that, it is the end of April, which means we're coming up on a great time to grab your summer playbook. So you can declutter your whole season like a lazy genius. If you're unfamiliar with our playbooks, they are the lazy genius way to plan.

You can keep your planner, you keep your Google calendar, whatever you love to use. But the piece that's often missing in planning is a seasonal eye. and compassion. This episode is going to teach you how to declutter your week. But the playbooks help you do that practically for an entire season again and again. The summer playbook is the cutest tomato red notebook that has space to plan June, July, and August. I'll mention some of the specific pages during the episode just because it's the tool that I personally use to declutter my weeks and seasons. if you recently had like a little reactionary crisis with your children about something like summer screen time or moving their bodies or you have started to feel the desire to control this upcoming new summer season with like chore charts and big black trash bag energy, you might want a summer playbook. I mean, I don't experience any of those things. I don't experience any of that poll. I didn't do that three days ago with a crazed look in my eyes, telling my children that summer was going to be different. Of course I didn't. I didn't do that at all. Sometimes we just need a small tool.

to help us with small problems in a small season. Rather than attacking our time and schedules and even our children with the broadest strokes and the biggest changes, we just need to stick with what's doable and small. And that's why the playbooks only cover three months at a time. So now it's a great time to explore the summer playbook and order yours so you can have it before June begins. It'll help you start naming what you hope for this season and prioritize what matters. actually do it. So you can find info for those at the lazy genius collective.com

slash playbooks. And two quick fun things about buying a playbook. So first, you're supporting our small business, which is amazing, but you're also supporting our partners and printing and fulfillment. Otter Pine. Otter Pine is a small business out of Asheville, North Carolina, that is woman-owned, excellent in every way and just the best people to work with. Any customer service issues are handled by Sayah, the owner of Otterpine and her team. And they're just fabulous people, truly. We love working. with them. So thank you for supporting both of our businesses. The second fun thing about buying a playbook is that we are donating 10% of all playbook sales, not just the summer ones, anything that you

get from now until the end of May to another nonprofit. We did this three months ago during the spring playbook season where we donated 10% of our sales to World Central Kitchen. During the summer playbook season, we're donating 10% of our sales to the Hawaiian Council. I'm sure you've seen the news with the devastating flooding in Hawaii and so many people have been displaced from their homes, businesses are devastated, the needs are just so high. The Hawaiian Council is a nonprofit that seeks to enhance the cultural, economic, political, and community development for native Hawaiians. They focus on low-income communities and underserved groups, groups that will be at the biggest disadvantage during this flood recovery. I love that we can all help this organization

and the people of Hawaii to come back from these devastating floods. So thank you for your support of our business and know they are also helping support the people of Hawaii during this hard time. All right, let's take a quick break to hear from our sponsors, which makes this show free for you to listen to. But before we do, here is your quick reminder about the podcast recap email that we send out every other Friday. It is called latest lazy listens, and it summarizes the episodes, shares the lazy genius of the week, as well as other segments we have on the show. And it has a little extra note from me to help encourage you through the weekend. If you'd like to get that recap, head to the lazy genius collective.com slash listens.

All right, let's figure out how to declutter your week. This decluttering process is five simple steps and it will make even the busiest week easier. Not free of busyness, but easier than it would be if you did not declutter. Now, the reason we're doing this now is because this time of year is cuckoo pants busy. At church the other day, a friend asked, are you winding down like with the school year ending? And I was like, oh man, we have to, I think we have to wind up before we wind down. May means that everything is happening, whether you are a teacher, a parent, or even a college student who's finishing up your first year away from home, life is just really busy.

And if you add on any like end of quarter things for work, summer plans, like for vacations, figuring out where your kids are going to go to camp, feeling the excitement and also the pressure of just a new season in general. It's a lot on your mind. It's a lot. Plus, your schedule might be crazy, which doesn't leave a lot of time to process any of these inputs, right? Like personally for me, over the span of, I guess, three weeks in May, I will attend four school plays, three band concerts, a handful of meetings for like various things I'm involved in that all, of course, happen in May. I'm going to run two events and like still apparently make dinner for my family every night. I mean,

Okay. Like, it's all kind of ridiculous, really. But I can't not go to my kids play and the concerts. I can't ghost the event I'm organizing or skip the meeting that I'm running. Those are all things that I need to keep on the schedule. But there are also things that I don't need. And that is why you declutter the week. You need to get rid of what's less important so you can make space for what is most important. Otherwise, you're going to keep five. on all cylinders in every area and burn out. I know most of us are used to buckling down, gripping tight, powering through, you know. You all know me well enough to know that we don't really do that here, like not at the expense of ourselves. And a way that we prevent that kind of burnout from happening is by doing things like decluttering the week, by spending 15 minutes looking at what's coming and making choices that help keep the most important things at the and the least important things out of the way. We're only doing this one week at a time, not an entire season at a time. Now you can certainly look at your season and let what matters

in this season impact your decisions this week. In fact, I think that's a great idea, especially if you're already in a rhythm of looking at what matters from season to season. But today we are not decluttering from now until the end of June. We are decluttering. one week at a time. Don't look beyond the next seven days, especially, again, if you're not already in the practice of being a lazy genius about your time. Sticking with one week, it also makes the decluttering process a little easier. You know, it's simpler to eliminate something that's less important this week than eliminating something that's less important two months from now, right? In busy seasons, especially, everything cannot matter. We know this. You know this. You know,

you won't make it if everything matters, but it is easier to accept that when you're only working with seven days at a time. So let's figure out how to name what matters the most in your week, spend your genius energy on it and then declutter the rest. So here's how this is going to work. I have five steps for you. Take what works, leave the rest behind. But this is a great order to help you declutter your week. Step one is look at what you have. Step two is sort. step three simplify step four remove and finally step five is start with today so look at what you have sort simplify remove and start with today all right those are those are our steps let's get into them so step one is to look at what you have you need to see all the pieces of your week before you can

know what to sort simplify or remove you can't really declutter a space until you know what's in there Right? Same with your time. That's why I really like a brain dump list for step one. It is the to-do list equivalent of pulling everything out of the closet. You get to pull it all out in order to assess what you've got. So don't be precious with your brain dump. Just pull it out. Just write everything that you have on your schedule for the week, all that you need to do, all this on your brain, all that you need to decide. Sometimes even regular things like meals or exercise should probably go on the list, especially if they're not already, like, automated for you. So essentially write down everything that is currently undone that you have to find time to do.

That's the purpose of a to-do list, right? It's to remind you of what is still undone that you need to do. Your brain damp is the week's long, unorganized, overwhelming to-do list. You do not stop there because that would be horrible, but it is where you need to begin. okay for my upcoming week my list includes an overnight work trip so i have to like pack prep the work make sure all my kids have rides to and from school while i'm gone i have two friends birthdays this week to be intentional about i need to write and record an episode i have a kid's band concert as well as a weekend of band since the boys will be going to their all state band clinic for three days with a performance at the end which is very exciting but that means that they need food and

rides and ironed clothes for their performances, right? Then there are regular chores and meals and my own movement and rest, especially since this week there is no school on Friday, which is the day I normally take off and automate that rest. That's when my rest is automated. It's my day off. I don't have that this week, so I'll have to be more thoughtful this week about that, okay? Now, I put this brain dumb in my playbook. If you use a playbook, you already know that there is this big double spread at the start of each month labeled brain dump. It's so nice to have a space to just get it all out. It doesn't have to be organized. That's actually the point is for it to not be. You just get it all out. Now, sometimes I will go beyond this week and write whatever is on my

mind or that I know is coming up. But usually I just brain dump one week at a time, maybe two. And then the following week, I will just keep adding to that same brain dump list in that month's spread. You know, it's sort of like I just keep building on that month's brain dump. However you do it, whatever you use, the point is just to see what you've got. Pull everything for the week out of the metaphorical closet so that you can make good decluttering choices. So you can see it. So that's step one. Step two is sort. It's just like you do in a closet.

Once you get everything out, you start sorting and putting similar things together. You know, it's like all the batteries are over here and all the bed sheets are over here. And that's what you're going to do with your brain dump list too. Now, how you sort is up to you. You can sort by urgency. This is why I love the framework now, soon, later, and never mind. It is a to-do list framework that helps you triage all the things on your list into an actionable order based on their urgency.

You know, what needs to happen now? What needs to happen pretty soon? What's later this week, but still important? Now what can I just say like, ah, never mind. Never mind this week. This is not the time. Sort your tasks by urgency. You can also sort your tasks by importance.

You can use the framework have to and hope to. That's a favorite of mine. Go through your brain dump list and decide what has to be done this week. Like there's no question. And then what you hope to get done this week. That is also important, but you can choose more easily when you have it separated by have to and hope to. You know, because those are two different things. If you don't get to what you hope to do, it's like it's fine. It can go into the next week. Okay. So that's another way that you might sort as by importance. You can use have to or hope to or something else that you would like. Now, you might sort by the type of tasks, like you might put all your errands into one list or your computer work into another list. Maybe you list out all the like administrative adult type tasks and responsibilities. Maybe there are just a bunch of things that you need to do in the kitchen. It's like grabbing all the winter gloves and putting them together in one pile, right? When you sort things by how similar they are, you can see a better way to tend to them all at once. You can batch it. You can use one of our favorite lazy genus principles

and batch it. And then finally, you might sort by day of the week. I find this frame being better at the end of the process personally, since the final product at the end of decluttering your week is like a to-do list for today. And then a to-do list for the rest of the day. And then a to-do list for the rest of the days, but depending on your brain dump list, it actually might be easier to go ahead and sort tasks by the day that they need to happen. Your week sometimes will actually align with the days of the week better. Okay. But that is step two. It's sort. Sort however you like by urgency, by importance, by the actual type of task by day of the week, by whatever you need. Okay? Put similar things together. That's step two. All right, moving on to step three. Step three. Step

Three is simplify. When you look at your sorted lists, what can be simplified? Meals, chores, errands, work meetings. If you're going to be in a car a lot, can you simplify an extra busy day by like swapping a carpool route with another parent to simplify how much driving you're doing that day? Can you simplify your lunches this week by just making a pot of soup to eat this whole week, like even though it's summertime and it's hot, you really do need a simpler way to cook and serve your lunch? What can you simplify?

Now, we have got some great lazy genius principles to help you do this. I already mentioned this, but you can use the principle, batch it. So combine all your errands into one day, do them all in one day at one time. You can batch your meals, making your meals. batch homework time with kids. And rather than doing it piecemeal through the afternoon as kids come home, maybe like you normally do for this week, because it's a lot busier, batch homework time with kids and do it all after dinner. So it's like, hey, guys, we're not doing homework after you get home from school today. We're going to do it after dinner. So like go play now. And then you tend to

everybody and help them all at the same time after dinner. Batch tasks that require you to sit, like folding the laundry while you're listening to your kid read for school. Right? So use Batchett to help simplify the complications of your to-do lists. You can also simplify by using the principal decide once. Decide once that you are not saying yes to anything new this week. Whatever is here is here and nothing else. No yeses for the next seven days.

Decide once that you're going to be in bed by 10 o'clock every night, even if there are still dishes in the sink or tasks to be done. You decide to be done with whatever is waiting for you so that you can prioritize your sleep during this extra busy week. The dishes will be fine. It's going to be fine. You can simplify it by deciding once that you're going to wear a certain kind of outfit all week so you don't have to think about what you're going to wear. Decide once is a great simplification tool that you can really use just for a week. It doesn't have to be forever. Use it just for this week. Another principle to help you simplify is to let people in. See if you can share a morning of errands with another mom who's home with tiny kids. Like go to Costco together so that one of you can

like run and get what you need while the other mom hangs there with the kids who are like playing in the carts together or trade caring for each other's kids while you each run errand solo, you know, a couple of mornings this week. Or you can simplify. by literally making something more simple. So, for example, this week, I am simplifying movement by not worrying about long gym time. I try to get one long weight workout at the gym every week. But since I'm out of town for a couple of days and the kids don't have school on Friday, everything is condensed this week, everything.

So that means I'm going to simplify movement, but I'm just going to do free weights at home for shorter times and like walk around the neighborhood if it isn't too hot, I'm not going to worry about a long gym day. I'm just going to make that simpler. That's a great simplification for a busy week. Now, this is a great time to remind you that your simplifications don't have to be forever. It's just for right now.

I love my long gym time once a week. It's something I really like to prioritize and do. But guess what? Three of the five week days this week are very weird and out of the ordinary. I'm okay if what I normally do needs an adjustment to make this week work better. This is like the prime time where you might hear those old productivity voices telling you that if you don't do whatever you normally do or do the thing that you committed to doing that you're letting yourself down. No, you're not.

I'm not. I'm just making an adjustment to simplify my wheat, to declutter my time so that I can feel, better and more grounded in what I have to do. Like that's wisdom. That's wisdom. That's not quitting or letting myself down. So back to the decluttering process. Look at what you have. Sort. Sort. Simplify. And then step four, remove. Now, you will already probably start to see this very clearly as you're going through your list. you can be like, wow, what can I just take away? What can wait? What can completely leave this week without it being a huge problem?

So go through your brain dump list, go through your sorted and simplified lists, and make a mark next to anything that it can be taken away this week. It can be taken away. I made a brain dump list last week like I usually do. And on it were several things that I ended up removing right away, honestly, before I even sorted or simplified. I just knew. I was like, these things can go.

Absolutely. They are not urgent right now. one was hanging a new painting in my office. I cannot wait to hang this thing. It's so beautiful. But I have to find a good home for the painting that's currently in its place. I have to attach hardware to the new painting in order to hang it. So it's a couple of steps. But listen, that could wait. I could just lean the painting against my desk until then. It's fine. It's fine. And taking that off of my brain for the week, it's a way to declutter it. It's like, I'm even going to think about that. I'm not going to worry about it right now. Another thing for my list that got

removed was cleaning out my closet. Yes, it would be really nice as it gets hot to go through my sweaters and declutter my closet a little so I can get my t-shirts front and center because North Carolina is like hitting record highs right now, but it doesn't need to happen. Like it's fine to remove it from the week from a busy week. I'm home three days. One of them with the kids home. This is probably not the time to organize my closet. I also removed a couple of phone calls that can wait, a trip to the tailor to tend to a pair of like non-urgent pants, and a front porch cleanup that I had planned. Now, one might argue that all of those things will keep getting pushed.

And that's possibly true. But I'm not removing them from existence. I'm removing them from my week. By taking them off my list for this week, I am taking away the pressure. to complete them. And that matters. Now, who knows? Maybe there will be time to tend to something this week. Maybe like when the kids are home on Friday, we can all take a half an hour and clean the front porch as a group. I don't know. But I'm not going to force it right now. I'm going to take care of the essential things first and then see what's left over, task-wise and energy-wise, right?

So look at your sorted lists. What can you remove? You don't have to cross it out all the way. You don't have to scribble it so you can't see it, you know? Just make a note somewhere that says, hey, this is not for this week. Like this can wait, you know, use a little star or circle or a highlight or color or something. And then when you declutter next week, you're actually already starting from a better place, right? Because you've decluttered last week. This is why I love using my playbook for this because there's space to do all of this stuff, especially the space for weekly lists. There are pages, full pages for like week one, week two,

week three and four of a month. So it's nice to stick things in their best week, you know, to like as I'm decluttering and be like, I'm not doing this this week or next week because so and so, but I can put it in week three. This is a good spot to put this thing. It's just really nice for it to have a place, but I don't have to think about it again until I get to that week. And then once I do, I can sort of. and simplify and remove from those tasks and declutter that week, but it's already going to feel a little less busy because I've started the process already. Okay, so those are the first four steps.

The final step is to start with today. Here's where you can make a specific to-do list for today based on what you've seen, sorted, simplified, and removed. Sometimes all I can do is start with my best list for today. and leave the rest until tomorrow. And then tomorrow, I'll look at it again, and I'll make another list for that day. Just start again, make a second list. Now, sometimes when you go through this decluttering process,

you actually feel pretty good about grouping your to-do list across a few days. You know, the way that you're simplifying is by batching all of your errands on one day. So you can actually easily make that list for that particular day, right? or you might know that you have 90 minutes while your kid is at soccer, soccer practice on Wednesday to either like work on your laptop in the coffee shop down the street from the field or you're going to run errands before picking your kid up, but that only happens on the Wednesday during soccer practice, right? So if you want to make multiple lists for multiple days, please do, please do. But ultimately on paper and in your heart, I want you to start with today.

whether you're doing it the night before today or in the morning with your coffee or at 11 o'clock and you want to wisely and kindly start stewarding the rest of your day, just consider what can be done today. Because you have already sorted, simplified, and removed, the list should be a little more doable to make than it was before you did any of those things. Now your life still might be crazy busy, especially on a particular day of the week. just like a closet might still be full of stuff, even after you've decluttered it. It's still got a lot of stuff in there. But when your schedule and your closet don't hold unnecessary things when they are sorted

just enough to feel like you can catch your breath. And when you have made certain things more simple, knowing that it's good and wise to do that when you feel overwhelmed rather than feeling bad, that you've like changed your mind. All of that makes your week feel better. So look at what you have, sort it by the type of thing, right? Whether it's by similar tasks or urgency or importance or even days of the week, then you're going to simplify what can be made simpler this week. Remove what doesn't belong for this week. And then as you make an actual fresh to-do list, just start with today. Start with today's tasks, not the entire week if you can.

Start with today for yourself and whatever energy that you are bringing. Start with the smallness and the goodness of this day. And it helps you see the good that's here right now even during a busy time. And that is how to declutter your week. Are you one of those media strategy people clicking through slides, scrolling, spread, sheets. Yes? Good. This is for you. Because on Spotify, there's an audience that's different, locked in, loyal, invested. They're called fans. Fans don't just listen to music. They feel seen by it like it belongs to them. So when your brand shows up on Spotify, that's who you're talking to.

And you're right next to artists like me, Lizzo. So, are you ready to talk to fans? Spotify advertising. You're among fans. All right, let's get in today's a little extra something. where I'm going to share an update on the album project that I'm doing. So like I said at the start of the episode, I sent my count at 300 albums for the year, kind of split down the middle of like brand new albums to me and then familiar things that I want to relisten to. But at my current pace, I think that number is probably going to be optimistic. It might happen. It might happen. But there are a couple of challenges to listening to albums that I did not anticipate. The main one is having to listen to a new album alone. I don't know what the content is. I don't know if there's language. I don't know if it's

appropriate for when my kids are around until I listen to it, which means I can only listen to a new album when I'm on my own. And since a good bit of the time that I spend alone is working, I can't just randomly listen to like the new Harry Styles album while I'm working on a podcast episode. So finding time to listen to albums with singing work, has been harder than I anticipated, which is okay. We adjust, right? And the adjustment, it likely comes at the expense of some of those 300 albums. It's probably going to be a smaller number. But that's great. I don't mind that at all. The other thing is that I'm just a big fan of audiobooks, and I love to listen to those when I could be listening to albums. Like, I'm listening

to the Louise Penny books in the Inspector Gamash series. There's so many of those books, and I love them, there are so many of them. I've also been listening to the full cast Harry Potter audiobooks as they have come out. There's just a lot of great stuff to listen to that I genuinely enjoy. So my album time has not been as high as I expected it to be just across the board because it's like I forgot how much I love audiobooks. So here's why I am with the project. I have listened to 65 full-length albums so far in 2026. So I'm on track to come close to 200 for the year for sure, which is great. I'm very happy with that. And again, it may be more, it may be less, the number is less important.

More than half of the albums of those 65 are new. And there are a couple that I've listened to multiple times that have just like shot up to the top of my list, like becoming go-toes. And I did not expect that to happen so quickly. But here we are. So I want to share a couple of them with you. The first is called Creature of Habit by Courtney Barnett. she reminds me a little bit of Tom Petty, but like a female indie version of Tom Petty.

The songs are so good, so fun, so loud. It's weirdly nostalgic music while also feeling modern and fresh. And the language, the lyrics of Creature of Habit are fairly family friendly. Like there's no language, there's nothing terribly objectionable, at least from my own listening. I have turned to that so many times. I've played it in the car where my kids are there. It's like it is just a good time out of the gate. So fantastic. So that's Creature of Habit by Courtney Barnett. The second album that I've gone to multiple times is called Pumpkin by Georgie Parker. This is like down the middle singer-songwriter album with just enough like interest and

weirdness to grab you. I love a singer-songwriter album that's just like somebody with a guitar. I love that. That this has some extra instrumentation, some interesting chord progressions. It's like just got enough of a little to make you go, whoa, what is this? Her voice is incredible. The lyrics are beautiful. It's just so good. She reminds me a little bit of like Lizzie McAlpine.

I've never known how to say her last name. Maybe like a little bit of Gracie Adams. Mostly like old school Regina Specter. It's just like pure and beautiful and moody and cool. It's just great, great vibes. Both of these albums are so good for a drive. Creature of Habit is for like sun, open windows, happiness. Pumpkin is for like clouds, open windows, and melancholy.

Both are just excellent. And I will keep listening to them for a very long time. So again, that's Creature of Habit by Courtney Barnett and Pumpkin by Georgie. Parker. And that's my album update. Today's a little extra something. All right, this week's lazy genius of the week is Rachel from Dallas. Rachel writes, rebranding leftovers has been a game changer. No one of my family loves to eat leftovers, but in the season of family gatherings, practices, games, homework, and working parents cooking a different meal every night is just not possible. So I started putting ABC night on our weekly meal plan and explained it was anything

but cooking. Chicken tender tacos, check. Pancakes and peanut butter sandwiches? Sure. Last night's spaghetti on a pizza crust? Why not? Apple nachos with caramel sauce? Sign me up. If ABC Night isn't on the calendar now, my son specifically requests it. The kids get some freedom and creativity, and I get a cleaned out fridge. This is so great. I love that this is not a new concept. We've had versions of this before, but you guys rebranding. It is so key. And the kids, kitchen. It is so key. I know some people swear by like getting kids to eat broccoli by calling them little trees. While that never worked for my own children, I do think it's a great idea. My kids are far more willing to eat something called fire pork than soy glazed pork tenderline, right? So calling your

leftovers a completely other thing is so smart. I've heard of calling these like yo-yo dinners, too. You're on your own. Yo-yo. But I really like ABC Night. Because it teaches everybody that dinner can still be great without cooking. It inspires a little bit of creativity, which some people really respond to. So it's just a fun rebrand. Thanks for sharing this idea with us, Rachel. And congratulations on being the lazy genius of the week. All right, let's close with a mini pep talk for when you can't catch a break.

The other day, I was standing at the orthodontist with my kid being asked to make five future appointments over the next eight weeks. And as the very kind receptionist worked to find appointments that would work for me, I kept thinking, well, I hope this doesn't fall on Annie's Awards Day. And I hope I can switch carpal run this day. And I guess I'll need to adjust when I record my episode on this day. And I guess I won't have an empty day that week after all. Like I thought, it was just like a series of like micro decisions that felt heavy. And I stood there in the orthodontist office.

and I remember thinking how much I wish I had caused his job, my husband's schedule. He just goes to work in the morning and he comes home at dinner. Like he doesn't have to do any of the schedule Tetris because he's at his office and he can't. Now, I mean, if he was a single parent, he would have to figure it out, but he's not a single parent. He has me and I have flexibility built into my job and my schedule, which is by design, you know? I appreciate the fact that I can take Ben to five or six appointments over eight weeks without it being stressful on anything but my own sanity. Now, my own sanity matters, but it's also manageable, you know? Like, ultimately it's all fine. But also in that orthodontist office, I felt the weight

of the last few weeks, really the whole of 2026, because it feels like I haven't caught a scheduling break in months. I've had kids sick on my day off. I've lost my boys twice, which backed up all my work and made future weeks like so much busier and harder. Like no week has felt normal, not yet in 2026. And I don't know, maybe normal isn't a thing with three kids and a job and a partner and all the things of a busy life. I've said this before, but I do tend to think of my life as full instead of busy, busyness feels like it has no soul. Fulness still has soul. And also fullness can wear you down, especially when you feel like you can't catch a break. When things like start to even out and then a kid gets a stomach bug or you sprain your ankle or your car needs a new transmission or

whatever. You know, it's the whole like when it rains, it pours idea. And this time of year, I just think and feel that way. It's like it's like pouring Google calendar items. And it's in those times where we have to remember that greatness is not the goal. Changing our circumstances to be the easiest they can be is not the goal. Managing our lives to the point of absolute control is not the goal. The goal is to be a grounded, integrated person no matter what is happening around you. When I feel like I can't catch a break, honestly, it means I think that my circumstances should be different.

And I start to try and manage or manipulate those circumstances. Instead, it's better to channel that energy into being my truest self and staying kind, staying boundered, staying calm, even when I have to make a million orthodontist decisions at 9 o'clock on a Monday morning. When you feel like you can't catch a break, remember that you operate differently than most people. you are not as shaken by your circumstances, not in the same way that productivity people are. You don't need to micromanage or over function or get big black trash bag energy. Just breathe, stay kind, remember what matters, and keep on going with the next thing.

I know that's not an answer with like a pretty bow. If you want one of those, there are other podcasters that you can go listen to. But I'm here instead to tell you that you can stop trying so hard. Be kind where you are, live in your season, and tend to whatever you need to tend to today. It's not as exciting as listening to an episode titled something like the best advice to change your life forever. I think you just need to breathe and stay soft and kind and stop hustling so hard. You don't need to change your life forever. Live kindly in the life you have today.

When you adjust your expectations to match that, not catching a break. isn't as stressful as it could be. And that's a mini pep talk for when you feel like you can't catch a break. If this episode was helpful to you or if you've been looking for a way to support the show, please we would love for you to share this episode with someone that you know, or you can leave a kind review on Apple Podcasts. Every single mention and share, it makes a difference in making more people lazy geniuses. So thank you for being so supportive.

This podcast is part of the Odyssey family and the Office Ladies Network. This episode is hosted by me, Kendra Adachi, and executive produced by Kendra Adachi, Jenna Fisher and Angela Kinsey. Special thanks to Leah Jarvis for weekly production. If you'd like a podcast recap every other week, be sure to sign up for the latest lazy listens email that goes out every other Friday. Head to the lazy geniuscollective.com slash listens to get it. Thanks y'all for listening.

And until next time, be a genius about the things that matter and lazy about the things that don't. I'm Kendra, and I'll see you next week. Hey y'all, it's Kelly Clarkson with Wayfair. Ever order furniture online and wonder, what if? Like, what if it doesn't hold up? That sofa was four days old. You should have ordered from Wayfair. With Wayfair, there's no what if.

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