Organizing a busy life: getting started after summer

As we return from a wonderful family vacation, the new school year is just around the corner. In just a few more days we roll back into our weekly school and work routine. With a household that includes three school-aged children, a dog, and a full time job for both my partner and me, this can be quite a challenge. Add to that some inspiration that came from two weeks of digital detox, quality family time and… a little confrontation with myself in a bathing suit. Working in academia, September feels even more like the start of a new year than January, so what better time to start a more organized, intentional and healthy year than right now. So, what are some good, science-backed strategies to do this?

Going old-school: paper planners

It may sound counterintuitive, especially as I am writing this on an iPad and you are probably reading on a digital device, but going old school with a paper notebook or planner has clearly proven benefits. The physical act of writing rather than typing, makes you remember things better. For example, psychological experiments with college students have demonstrated that taking notes by hand helps with better recall of information. In my personal experience, taking notes on paper makes me more attentive to conversations and events. I really enjoy the non-digital and more intentional way of writing. It gives me a sense of permanence, that a digital note just does not have, as those seem to disappear as soon as I open a different app. And of course there is the added bonus of collecting fancy pens and nice paper goods.

So, I always bring a paper planner with me wherever I go, my external brain if you will. I keep all kids activities, school tasks, my husband's schedule, household chores and shopping lists in one place. This simple tool helps me maintain a sense of sanity throughout the week. In future posts, I will share more about paper planner options and suggestions on how to pick one that works best for you, because, let's face it, stationery is fun.

Goal-setting

If there is one thing that is important to leading a (somewhat) organized life, it is to formulate your goals clearly. If you do not know what you would like to achieve, of course there is no way to get there. This does not mean that you have to reach for perfection, like being a supermom or superdad, instead your goals can be quite simple, like ‘having a home cooked meal at least five days a week’ or ‘finish a 5k running program before December’. You may feel a bit hesitant to write these down explicitly, like I do, so you could keep your notes of these private if you like; a promise to yourself. Putting them down on paper is really beneficial: your goals become explicit and you can hold yourself accountable and adjust them later on if needed.

Improving yourself by habit-formation

In health psychology you can find quite a lot of documentation about habit formation, whether it is focused on forming new healthy habits, or getting rid of the less healthy ones. A particularly effective strategy that has a growing following in the last few years with the emergence of bullet journaling, is habit tracking. I have found this really works for me. Tracking specific habits is closely linked to the goals you set for yourself. So, right now I would like to lose some weight and become more fit. It can be tempting to keep this desire rather general, like ‘it would be nice to eat a bit more healthy and move more’, but this does not really help on a daily basis.

So, to make meaningful progress towards my goals, I will try to identify what would get me closer to my goal, and then to hold myself accountable by checking it daily and to do weekly reviews. Eat a bit more healthy, will turn into: take vitamins, no added sugar, drink 2 liters of water and no eating after dinner. And move more will become: at least 7500 steps a day, start the day with yoga or Pilates 5 times a week. In comes the paper planner, where I can cross these things of every day and create weekly overviews. And to keep the household in check I add weekly checks for things that are easy to forget like laundry, grocery shopping and watering plants.

From scientific work, we know that consistently practicing your intentions over a prolonged period of time will help in permanently integrating habits into your life, or banning them for good. There is fascinating research out there on self identification in relation to healthy behavior. If you truly see yourself as a non-smoker, you actually have a better chance to permanently become a non-smoker. Based on this finding, one of my goals will be to actually consider myself a healthy and fit person. And, as a final note, there is absolutely no need to start considering yourself a supermodel or bodybuilder. In fact, such unrealistic expectations like these will likely work against you.

Conclusion

If you would also like to add some structure and intentionality to your daily life, consider a paper planner or even a simple notebook to start fresh after summer. Writing down your goals and tracking your progress may just be the key to work towards that 'better you' you identify with.

Sources and further reading

Mueller, P. A., & Oppenheimer, D. M. (2014). The pen is mightier than the keyboard: Advantages of longhand over laptop note taking. Psychological Science, 25(6), 1159-1168. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797614524581

Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (2002). Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation: A 35-year odyssey. American Psychologist, 57(9), 705-717. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.57.9.705

Lally, P., van Jaarsveld, C. H. M., Potts, H. W. W., & Wardle, J. (2010). How are habits formed: Modelling habit formation in the real world. European Journal of Social Psychology, 40(6), 998-1009. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.674

Oyserman, D., Fryberg, S. A., & Yoder, N. (2007). Identity-based motivation and health. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 93(6), 1011-1027. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.93.6.1011

Polivy, J., & Herman, C. P. (2002). If at first you don’t succeed. False hopes of self-change. American Psychologist, 57(9), 677-689. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.57.9.677