This week, I wanted to share my recent discovery about the magic that can happen in just 15 minutes a day.
I recently started a new job that required a pretty significant shift in thinking about household management.
I’ve never been a full-time at-home mom or homemaker, (though I seriously admire those who are), but I have always had enough flexibility in my work schedules to allow for the routine (and often mundane) tasks like meal preparation, cleaning, laundry, etc.
I felt some anxiety about adjusting to my new work schedule since it would require a shift in how I approach everything from cooking to yardwork.
Well, I decided to approach my feelings of uncertainty with my usual strategies: list making and block scheduling.
If you haven’t tried block scheduling before, I strongly encourage this technique. It is a great way to lay out all of your time and account for the necessities (sleeping, eating, working, etc.) as well as your desires (yoga, family time, reading, shopping – whatever matters to you).
It’s also a great way to realistically see where your pockets of time are and what you might be wasting time on.
Here’s a basic block schedule I created when I was preparing to start my new job (I compressed the sleep block at the top from 12:00 a.m. – 5:00 a.m. to save space):
I account for every hour when I block schedule and try to ensure that I lay out all the consistent, recurring activities. And then I take a flexible approach to actually following the schedule. No one’s life can really be planned and organized down to the minute, after all.
As I thought about my schedule, though, I realized that I didn’t want to push cleaning and laundry and yardwork to the evenings after work when I would want to catch up with my three kids. And I didn’t want to end up spending hours on Saturdays catching up on the kids’ homeschool along with all the housework and yardwork.
And thus, I decided to plan small chunks of time for the mundane and routine tasks of life. Instead of striving to clean the whole house at once, for instance, I would spend 15 or 20 minutes working on one specific aspect (dusting, sweeping, cleaning the toilet – whatever was needed).
I have found these 15-minute blocks to be magical.
Because the time is compressed, I focus more clearly and actually accomplish the tasks. Often, I am amazed at how quickly I can get a load of laundry folded or dust a few rooms.
It’s not a perfect system, but here’s a glimpse at how I used my morning 15-minute chunks this week:
- Monday: folded and sorted a load of laundry (I separate my kids’ clothes and then they are responsible for putting them away in their closet)
- Tuesday: moved and spread mulch in a section of yard where daylilies were starting to emerge
- Wednesday: reorganized temporary shelving in the basement to better organize and update the inventory of our back-up pantry supplies
- Thursday: moved several loads of mulch down to our vegetable garden
- Friday: moved several more loads of mulch
At the start of the week, I spend my 15-minute chunks of time working around the house before heading off to the gym or a local walking/hiking trail for my morning workout.
Later in the week, I usually workout first and then return home, so I can do more “dirty” outdoor tasks like mulching and gardening on those days (now that the sun is up early enough!).
I honestly feel so accomplished by the time I get to work most days, and even if I get very little accomplished in the evenings after work, our household seems to continue flowing pretty well.
There are some non-negotiables most nights – a clean kitchen, a load of laundry started – but if I am wiped out or my kids need attention, I can focus on self-care or childcare without feeling torn in another direction.
And on other nights, I might find myself with another pocket of time in which I can wipe down the bathroom counters and clean a toilet or get ahead on some meal prep.
I hope you’ll be inspired to rethink your current routines.
What can you do in 15 minutes this week?