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It's About Time
Ruth Wong
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Keep goals in sight with partner’s help
ThE year is almost half gone -- are you wondering whatever happened to your New Year's resolutions? Are you or your home in a different, improved state of being from six months ago?
I can't count the number of false starts I've made, trying on my own to establish lasting change in my life. I'm sure I'm not alone, for it seems that most of us are so consumed with the myriad details and tasks of day-to-day living that our good intentions end up on the back burner.
Happily, this year will be different, thanks to a friend who is partnering with me in "Project Change." In our times together we often talk of areas we really want to and need to change, yet neither of us has made much progress.
She wants to lose weight, and shared with me her habit of having a bedtime snack of a peanut butter-and-jelly sandwich and a glass of milk each night. I offered that one productive step might cutting her bedtime snack to half a sandwich and half a glass of milk. She thought that was doable.
As for me, to aid in my continuing quest for simplicity and freedom from clutter, she suggested that I declutter consistently by telling myself, "I'll do this for just five minutes." Of course, those five minutes usually extend to longer. I thought that approach was doable. It's good to start small instead of being grandiose.
We decided to check in with each other at the end of each week. My friend declared that a year from now we'll both be in a different place. She'll be 50 pounds lighter and I'll be 100 pounds freer from clutter. That sounded good to me!
So far it's been a painless way to "keep with the program."
If you, too, have been unable to implement change in your life or home, I encourage you to begin your "Project Change" with a "change" partner. Each of you should share a topic for improvement. Then decide on a simple first step for each of you, and when and how often you'll check in with each other.
It's never too late in the year to start! We can all be in a different, improved place a year from now. It will be time well spent! See you in two weeks!
Ruth Wong owns Organization Plus. Contact her care of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, Honolulu 96813, call 488-0288 or e-mail
orgplushawaii@hawaiiantel.net.