Ep 153: Not Just Lip Service

done. So let's simplify the process and clear the clutter to see the blessings God has for us. I know your time is valuable. So thanks for joining me each week for a healthy dose of organization and a whole lot of motivation. Hello there. I wanted to read a chapter of my book to you. So if you have not gotten it yet, you can head over to Amazon. It is called I've got you girlfriend. Why? Getting organized and living this mom life is not a solo mission. It's by Paige Killian and the

foreword is written by a dear friend named generally rude. The foreword is fantastic. You gotta check it out. Also, this book is not only available on Kindle, and paperback, and now hardcover, look how fancy but now it is available on audiobook. So I thought it would be fun to actually read an excerpt and you can get an idea. If you like how it's read, then maybe you want to head over to Amazon and pick it up on audiobook. You can listen to it in your car while you're doing

laundry. It's totally kid friendly. Although you might want to watch out for one particular part in Legos in the bedroom. That's a great chapter, but maybe don't let the kids

listen to that one. Okay, today I wanted to share chapter five, it's called not just lip service. And all of the chapters start out with a quote, or a scripture that I love. That sort of pertains to what I'm going to talk about and I am a huge Mary Poppins lover. So this one have a quote from Mary Poppins, here we get chapter five, not just lip service, well begun is half done, Mary Poppins. When I first speak with a client who wants to make a change in her home, wardrobe, kids or schedule, I

began taking notes and plug her needs into each category. That's the three E's prioritizing what's most important to her. Most of the time, she doesn't know where to begin, which is totally okay. But she does know what frustrations exist. That's where we start, identify the problem and write it down. The written word has power. When you are a busy mom of littles, you use everything that gives you power to accomplish your goals.

Outside of prayer, writing your pain points down and getting them in order of importance instantly offers you a sense of empowerment. That is a great motivator. Here's the three E's checklists that I share in the book. This is actually something that you can go to everything with style.com. And you can get your copy of the three E's checklists just to look about the top look for the tab that says three E's checklist and you can print it off. Writing it down makes the list of things

real and actionable. When their thoughts, hopes and dreams floating around in your head. They aren't tangible. They aren't accomplishable that's a word, I looked it up. If they don't get written down, they're less likely to become a reality. Sometimes it feels like they are solely in your head. Just to make you a crazy person. You aren't a crazy person. Have you ever made a vision board? The idea is actually to take those

desires and create a tangible thing to see and touch. When you do so, it said that you have a likelier chance of manifesting them into real life. Again, let's use everything we can to make those dreams a reality. Your time is valuable. Remember, so instead of me suggesting you get out your first graders rounded scissors, glue stick last month's Pottery Barn Kids catalog and travel magazines. Let's just get those pain points down on paper, shall we? In the words of TLC, don't go chasing

waterfalls. Oh my gosh. For now, let's just focus on one room in the house that's bugging you so you don't get overwhelmed. When you get your first list of three E's written you can create another set for a different room you want to tackle when these are done. If you aren't in need of a total room overhaul find three areas in your home you'd like to see change. For example, there may be one thing you want to adjust in your bedroom, like

a fresh coat of paint, or new bedding. replace an old piece of furniture in your son's room. And finally, work on purging the bookshelves in the living room. Use your judgment. If your list starts to feel overwhelming, dial it back to one room. So you're setting yourself up for the best chance of success in getting organized. Go ahead, scribble down below three areas for change. It's okay if it looks a mess. For now. Just brainstorm and scratch it out when you decide you want one

thing to appear higher or lower in the lineup. And just for fun, maybe jot down the date. So when you revisit this page, you'll have an accountability reminder or a good laugh about how far you've come. So here is the section for your three areas of change. This first section is your essentials. And then on the next page, you have your enhancements and extras, lots of space to jot down ideas and just brainstorm what you feel like

you might want to prioritize over the other things. Get your three E's started, it's gonna pay off, we gotta write it down. This is a beautiful beginning Mary Poppins would be so proud. You're on your way. Now there's no need to feel married to these things or even this order. As you start the organization steps you may find that new needs or desires reveal themselves. Oh, yeah, that's a very exciting part of getting organized. By the way. I can't believe I haven't mentioned it sooner.

It's a domino effect. You declutter your mind when you write these things down on paper, you get your space organized. And then a cool thing happens. You begin to free up time in your schedule and room in your heart for brand new desires to start showing up. You know how I know. I never dreamed I'd become a professional organizer with my own business, a creator of online courses and author of a book for busy moms,

or a speaker at events I normally attend for fun. These things started stirring in my heart as I made plans to accommodate a new reality. There was a need for me to go back to work after my second child was born. As I organized in style,

my home wardrobe kids and schedule using these three E's that I didn't even fully know how to utilize at the time, I learned some new things about my heart. I didn't just want to contribute financially to my family with teaching only. I wanted to create something more. I wanted to serve other moms who needed many of the same things I did, a new desire was brewing.

When I made room for it, I got clear on what I needed to organize and style for my new life as a working mom of two, when I took the time to write down exactly what I needed to accomplish. I had made room for these new desires to become a reality. Is there something awesome you're meant to do, but it's getting lost because of clutter, disorganization, or total overwhelm is getting in the way, that doesn't have to be your reality anymore. You could be three steps away from finding

your joy and new desires you never knew existed. Now your list is made you have it down on paper, so it's not all mixed up in your head causing you stress or anxiety. Remember, it's totally acceptable to not have it all figured out right away. You've identified the problem areas and have attempted to place them in order of importance starting with those essentials. If you haven't, go ahead and flip back to the page with the three E's listed or write them on your bookmark.

Just get them out of your head and on paper friend, it will feel like forward motion, always. Still waiting. No pen, have a crayon nearby. I feel like those tend to be in my purse more often than pens these days. So just like the Duke dove right in that day, when he triumphantly organized the coffee pod drawer, I encourage you to do the same. Don't let paralysis take over. Because you're over analyzing

everything. There's certainly value in pre planning and thoroughly thinking things through but not at the expense of accomplishing your goals. Hey there quick reminder that now there are four ways to get my book. If you head over to Amazon, you can search up I've got you girlfriend, why getting organized and living the small life is not a solo mission. You can now get it on the Kindle app, paperback hardcover, and

the audio book is finally here. So if you've been enjoying this podcast episode, I have a feeling you might love the audiobook. Thanks so much for making it a best seller. And now back to the show.

Do you think Duke's process was to think through each step of getting those pods into the drawer, and what each possible outcome could be if he did it incorrectly, accidentally mixing the French roast with decaf, I can confidently say, No, he didn't let his mind get overloaded with options of where to put each pod trying to align them perfectly. Contemplating the aftermath of his choices based on his placement of them. He grabbed that bag and got started, there was a goal he

wanted to accomplish, I want you to do the same. Trust me, the details will come together naturally, unless you never start the process of moving toward your goals at all. Just as Mary Poppins says, well begun is half done. This means getting started is usually the hardest part. And once that's happened, you're headed for success. Let's take a page from Dukes organization book, just go for it. It's okay. If it doesn't work out exactly how you envisioned at first, you can

tweak it or start over if necessary. That's what return exchange policies are for. It's important to you don't get bogged down in the details in the beginning. That's even hard for me to write. If I'm being honest, because I'm extremely detail oriented. That can often be the cause of halting that forward motion though, you have your three E's listed in order

of importance. And now it's time to trust the process. Beyond the three E's I asked you to write out first, so you know what you want, I have broken up the process of making them happen into three simple steps as well, so you know how it will get done. Remember, it's so important to keep the steps to a minimum. So you're setting yourself up for the best chance of success. You don't want to be the mom who puts her thoughts on paper, and then create so many steps to get the result. She

burns out along the way. For now your thoughts are written check. They're out of your head and made real and actionable. Give yourself some credit for that celebrating this forward motion. After you've done your happy dance and perhaps schedule this celebratory, happy hour with your bestie. There's another thing you can do to seriously increase your chances of making these awesome changes actually happen. It's time to publicly declare your plans to someone, anyone? Yes, writing it down,

definitely make it real. And we'll start that forward motion but sharing it. And even setting a deadline with your spouse, your kids, your best friends or even a mentor will add the accountability factor. Think of the written word as essential, and the spoken word as an enhancement. This reminds me of

when I was saved at six years old in my Sunday school classroom at First Baptist Church in Humboldt, Tennessee. I had asked God to come live in my heart, forgiving my sin and giving me new life. As a Christian. I have such a specific memory of this. I was overjoyed to tell my parents who were in big church at the time. When I shared my exciting news with them. It became real, and they were so pleased with my choice. That choice was an essential part of my story and

my walk with the Lord for the rest of my life. As the days went on, we talked about my decision and how in our faith, it was highly encouraged for this very special moment to be shared publicly through baptism. It would be my public declaration that I was choosing a life of serving God in all that I did. This was a massive declaration. If you think about it, especially for this perfectionist. Of course, I needed constant encouragement and support for my loved ones

and the church. The public declaration was the enhancement to my salvation. It made my decision so much better, and came with an added bonus of accountability. So at age 10, when the weight of my decision had settled in my heart, and I was old enough to really grasp the idea of living for Christ through this life and delighting in the eternal promise of heaven. I was baptized. I remember the nervousness that came over me as I waited at the top of the stairs. Then at

Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee. As the pastor spoke, I saw him motion for me to step forward into the warm water. With my all white robe and thin white socks fully engulfed in water. I anxiously moved toward him and slid my feet under a short metal rod in the bottom of the giant tub. So my little feet Oh, who am I kidding? I have huge feet for a petite person wouldn't pop up in the air as I was dumped. After a few meaningful words were spoken and I had announced my name to

the congregation supportively watching below. I was laid back into the water and raised to walk in newness of life. It was beautiful and powerful. I'm joyful. be transported back to that place as I write these words, what an incredible step I took as a child into a new world where I had been given the greatest gift. Isn't that funny how a simple act can be so life changing? Have you had one or more of those life altering moments that happened by a simple choice to change

something in your world? Maybe those three E's you've been thinking about, and hopefully have been written somewhere by now could be simple steps toward a big change for you and your family. Since I referenced a couple of my E's, I may as well go one step further. Just like writing down your essential goals has power and publicly declaring it can enhance your experience of accomplishing it by way of countability. You can

go that extra mile by outsourcing to take your end product to another level. In my baptism example, this can be like finding a great small group to do an ongoing Bible study growing more in your faith and staying in the word as often as possible, in relation to your three E's in your home. This could be like finding a painter, a carpenter, not Jesus, though, he's moved on to things other than carpentry now, a stylist or interior designer to complete your vision beautifully if you

need help with execution. If you found a mega motivation and seeing your three E's on paper, and also shared them with friends or family, who am I to stop your momentum, by all means sprang from your chair or bed or the bathroom floor, where you may be patiently awaiting the sound of success in potty training with your toddler and get to work. Hopefully you liked this chapter. If you did, check it out on Amazon. Again, you can get it on Kindle paperback, the hardcover or now on audiobook.

Thanks so much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time. Thanks for listening to another episode of the moms organization motivation podcast. For more resources to organize and style your busy life, head over to everything with style.com and connect with me on Instagram at everything with style mom. If this episode was helpful for you, please share it with your friends rate and review it on iTunes. That's Apple podcasts

now, and let me know what you'd like to hear about next. Thanks again for listening and happy organizing.