Just Enough, Nothing More

What is the one thing you want to do today?

Zenhabits tells us to kill our to-do list and to do the one thing that needs to get done today. The one thing that won’t happen on its own (laundry and driving the kids around will happen whether they are on the list or not), the one thing that we want to do but never have time (we always seem to have time for procrastination), the one thing that will change us (it’s so much easier to do the same thing day in and day out, under the guise of making sure we get it all done).

Housework gets done. It’s the creative, personal, self-growth efforts that don’t. If we have something important as our one thing, the other stuff will get done. If I had to choose between having a pristine house and having art to show for my life, I’d raher have art. You don’t have to live in a sty to find time to create or grow. Our society’s taught us that there is only black or white. The housework gets done or it doesn’t. We do art or we clean. The truth is we can do both. We seriously do not need to spend all day doing housework. We can spend some of that time on creating.

But for most of we are so worried that we aren’t getting every bit of laundry done that we make excuses for not expressing ourselves. Having the daily practice of having only one thing on our list is how we get our heads out of trying to be perfect and into being extraordinary.

This one thing also sends a powerful message to our children - what’s inside us is important. It’s far more important than a to-do list.

Related posts:

1. Our To-Do List
2. 5 Homeschool Must-haves for 2008
3. Worrying About Homeschooling
4. Not Getting Work Done By 3pm
5. Virtual Schools, Charter Schools and Homeschooling