Identify the Problem

One of Gretchen Rubin’s personal commandments is “Identify the problem.”  The example that she used in The Happiness Project was her unwillingness to hang up her coat in the coat closet, but she figured out that she just hated the time it took to put it on a hanger.  The solution was to hang the coat on a hook on the back of the door.  Simple enough, but it took Gretchen taking a moment to put the effort into identifying the problem in order to identify the solution. 

One of my biggest problems is keeping our bedroom clean.  It will be perfect and tidy and gorgeous and awesome, but a week later, it will be a total wreck.  So I spent last Saturday cleaning the room, and I took a minute to purposefully sit on the bed and try to identify the problem of why I can’t keep it clean. 

The problem: I try on 3-4 outfits in the morning almost daily, and everything I don’t wear hits the floor, and I tell myself I don’t have time to hang them back up right then.  After that, I’m convinced the piles of clothes reproduce while I’m at work.

The solution:  I spent about 30 minutes trying on clothes and prepared 6 different outfits for the workweek (I created an extra just in case) including shoes, jewelry, and a sweater (dressing in layers is my favorite since I’m always cold).  I hung all the outfits up on and put them on a separate rod. 

Result: Having the outfits already planned out for the week not only saved a ton of time and stress, but I am proud to say that our bedroom is still clean!!  When I get home from work or the gym, I take a moment to hang the clothes back up or add them to the laundry hamper.  Done. 

Bonus perk:  Because I take the time to plan out my weekly wardrobe, I actually look and feel more put-together.  Plus, it eliminates those moments that usually happen around 1PM where I look in the bathroom mirror and realize my outfit doesn’t even come close to matching. 

I have also discovered that if we spend less than 10 minutes on Sunday planning out our dinners for the week, it saves us so much time and stress, and we don’t have the usual “so what do you want for dinner?” conversations. 

What are some tips and tricks you have used that you have that have worked after you took the time to identify the problem?  Feel free to share because you never know who could use it.

I hope this helps you in some way, and I hope it helps make you just a little bit happier.