stick to a schedule

This is especially important for me being Bipolar. My therapist said sticking to a regular schedule is a huge help. I actually made a chart of things I’d like to complete each day, and I got those cute little star stickers teachers use on papers for when I accomplish things. Starting tomorrow I’m going to get to work on this goal!

I’m very tempted to give up on this. I’ve not had much luck with setting up any kind of schedule.

I notice that some of the ideas I had about a schedule was based on how I though things are, and not how they really are. It’s difficult to change reality, but it’s impossible to change illusion.

I find the hardest thing to do in the pursuit of scheduled living is to actually read the attempt at schedule that I had written down. (The second hardest is to write it down.)

Maybe I should print a set of instructions for the use of a scheduler, and have the first step say: “1. Read the instructions.”

It seems to work, the little change in thinking. Instead of thinking “today I must do this” I think “today is the day for doing this” and it becomes easier.

I just need to get it all down on paper.

Got some good tips from Julie Morgenstern, via Gretchen Rubin

Things that need a schedule:

Car: Weekly, Monthly, Annually, at clock intervals.
Money: Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Annually
Entertainment: Weekly, Monthly.

I’ve been vaguely trying to have to-do lists, and weekly plans and stuff, but I’m dissatisfied with how it works. It’s simply not easy to do without much practice, and there is very little help for it in my day-to-day life.

So the schedule for this goal is this: By 13 April 2010 I will live a fully scheduled life. I will next evaluate my progress on 13 July.

I haven’t been doing too well with this lately, I’ve been focusing more on pleasure rather than work. Which is cool, but it makes me wonder, why is it so hard to be self motivated. Perhaps I am so used to taking orders from other people in order to get things done. In other words, it’s easier when someone else is in charge of my life, which is kinda shitty. I should really take charge. And be my own.

I’ve given 43things a breather for a while, but I’ve noticed that since I’ve stopped coming to this site my life goals are a little bit out of focus. I spend too much time on one thing and fail to keep up with another – I need balance, and I think that calls for my setting a schedule for organising my time of what to do and when to do it. I’d really like to see how much more efficient I’ll be if I do this. Schedules aren’t really my thing – I go with the flow a lot of the time, but I’ll give it a go and see what I get from it. Hopefully I can sort out all the crap that’s going on in my life right now!

I made myself and my husband schedules (we run our own business so our schedules have to coordinate), now the only trick is sticking to it. I think once we get into the habit it will be easier, but changing our habits will be the tough part.