Dear Friends,
I want to talk a little about our whole system. We have a tendency to want to see the big picture before we even start. Then when you don’t see you home getting clean in a day, you go against my recommendations and do too much and end up crashing and burning. I know you have tried several other systems. A system is only as good as the effort you put into it.
Getting your home in order is not going to happen if you don’t get rid of your “all or nothing” attitude. I know that you have started out Gung Ho many times only to find yourself back in the bookstore or surfing the web for yet another system or cleaning tip. We are not about cleaning tips or how to organize your clutter. We get you moving! We help you get rid of the clutter that is holding you back.
Clutter makes it harder to do your routines and to keep your home clean. When clutter is everywhere following our little system seems really hard. As the clutter goes out your door, our simple habits and routines become easier.
As for needing to know every single detail and when to take your next baby step: This is not for me to decide. I want you to build strong foundations of your simple morning and before bed routines and at the same time declutter 15 minutes a day. This is all I ask of you. As you grow, you will know when it is time to do a weekly home blessing hour, to develop your basis weekly plan or do a mission. If I were to cram it down your throat and tell you by week three you should be doing this or that, then none of you would enjoy this process.
I want you to take baby steps at your own pace. Many of you need to crawl for a while before you are ready to even stand. I know this. I crawled for a very long time. It took me nine months to develop my full-blown routines. If you can accomplish this in less time with solid foundations, then my hat is off to you. But I will never put pressure on someone to adapt to my timetable!
It is the perfectionist in you that wants us to give you the “exact” steps to take. There are some things that you are going to have to adapt for yourself. Be kind to you and don’t put yet another guilt trip on yourself for not doing this fast enough or complain that we don’t give you enough details. This is all very simple. You have crashed and burned the old way many times. Don’t fall back into this CHAOTIC trap. Baby Steps will get you there just as fast.
Your home did not get dirty in a day and it is not going to be cleaned overnight, no matter how badly you want it. Jump into our Declutter Games and get rid of your clutter!
I want you to FLY!
FlyLady
