If You Want Something Done, Ask a Busy Person

I’m writing this blog post on a weekend that Aaron and I have been working around the house nonstop. We’ve hung Christmas lights, set out Christmas decor, addressed/stuffed/sent 175 Christmas cards, cleaned out the entire guest room (our drop zone since we moved into the new house this summer), then put up curtains, set out pictures, and got it good-to-go, mowed the backyard, edged the front yard, put Halloween boxes back in the garage…among a million other things.

As I sit down to write during the last 45 minutes of the kids’ naps—after I just finished up Christmas cards—I know exactly what I want to write about, because my life this weekend has been a living testament:

If you want something done, ask a busy person.

I’ve always believed in this little phrase, but I forgot just how true it is. I’ve been busier than ever lately…it’s the holidays, after all. On top of creating Christmas magic for the kids (except Elf on the Shelf because WHO HAS THE ENERGY), I began a new job about a month ago. It’s completely virtual (!!) and only 10 hours a week right now— which is truly perfect. Finding 2 hours a day is challenging enough….why?

Because I can’t find childcare for Warren, and Jo is going to school 2x a week right now 25 minutes from home, so honestly, days she goes to school, I actually get LESS done since I’m driving about 2 hours of my morning. It’s really just for her benefit that she’s going…she basically bullied me into it. (Anyone who’s met Jo will understand).

This is Jo over Thanksgiving when she decided the path through the park was too long. It may shed some light onto her persuasive qualities.

I also drive about 30 mins each way 3x a week for Warren’s therapy + kid swim classes, keep up with the constant house mess caused by 3 small gremlins, attempt to entertain said gremlins, grocery shop, cook, etc etc. Oh, and in case you’re wondering, Anders is only in school until 10:45am, so I have all 3 with me most of every day. It’s definitely a much more grueling schedule than when we lived in Alaska. Fingers crossed I get a bit of reprieve starting next school year when Anders is in kindergarten (WHAT), and the littles are off the year-long wait list at the schools closer to our house.

All that to be said, a part-part time job is all I can really take on right now, as I squeeze in my hours during nap, in the morning before they wake up at 6:45am, or when Aaron gets home from work and lets me hole up in our bedroom for a bit to write. By the way, I’m working for an influencer who is a psychologist/couples therapist, managing her social media engagement and writing blog posts— the dream!

Starting work while barreling into the holidays has been stressful at times, duh, but also interesting in that I’ve seen a shift in my to-do list. While I’m busier and busier, my list is shockingly getting getting shorter and shorter.

I’ve always been a productive person by nature. Don’t get me wrong—I don’t believe in letting productivity be a measure of worth—but I deeply enjoy the satisfaction of accomplishing tasks, big and small, that I’d like to see done. And the more I do…the more I do.

When we’re on top of things (as much as any human can be— remember: it’s impossible to be on top of everything unless you’re Joanna Gaines), that means we’ve been managing our time intentionally, prioritizing, and staying organized. The more accustomed we are to knocking things out, the less of a hassle it feels like.

If you sit on your bum all day, getting up to go pee or make a bowl of cereal feels like a pain. But if we’re out and about accomplishing things that result in a happier environment (The kitchen is clean! There’s food in the fridge! I love the blog I wrote for work! Our Christmas cards are in the mail!), then adding on one more thing isn’t usually a huge deal. It’s amazing how much time and energy we have when we get on a roll.

I’m not talking about burning yourself out, here. I don’t feel particularly burnt out. I just mean that when we simply DO what we need/want to DO, we realize nothing’s really all that hard. Hanging those curtains we’ve been meaning to hang in the guest room took all of 5 minutes. Going to the post office is a 25 minute ordeal at the very worst. Mowing the backyard is actually nice when I put on a podcast. I actually feel like I’m in a better mood all around, simply because I’m proud of all I’ve done, and so many fewer things are hanging over my head!

Thus, if someone were to ask me to do something right now, I probably wouldn’t mind at all. And they could certainly count on me, vs. when I’m in a more lackadaisical headspace and I’m more likely to procrastinate or feel the weight of a request.

As we take on the busiest time of the year, just remember: If you need help, ask a busy person. Or in my case, become a busy person and see how much you can help yourself! I haven’t written a blog in a few months— and mind you, I’ve been plenty busy— but it’s no surprise that today, on a weekend I’ve been the busiest in a while, I’m finally writing a blog post.

So get after it, my friends!

PS- I hope you can get past the word “busy,” since I know it has a negative connotation. I just mean it’s nice to feel productive and proud okkkk?