THE IMPACT OF SMALL FREQUENT TASKS

CONSIDER BREAKING YOUR REGULAR TASKS INTO SMALLER PIECES

Some things that we have to do on a regular basis can be accomplished more easily by breaking them down into smaller tasks. These can often be done when we have a few minutes. If we wait to do them all at once, they often become more time-consuming overall because they require more effort to accomplish. We might not have those longer spans of time available to get these things done. And due to the nature of the tasks, they might just feel much more manageable by doing little pieces at a time, then tackling them for longer periods of time less frequently.

I will share some examples of tasks that I have found become more manageable by doing small pieces of these tasks frequently. Of course, this might not be the best way for you to do these things. But, by sharing these examples, maybe you might think of something you could break down into smaller pieces. This can help make your life a little easier!

FINDING THE TIME

What’s great about breaking things down where you can is that you can squeeze them into those little bits of time where you are in between things. This could be waiting for something to finish in the oven. Or when waiting for water to boil. A short break between dropping off one child and picking the other one up. Whenever you might have a few minutes to spare here or there, you can take advantage of that time to get a little bit of something done.

TRACKING EXPENSES / RECORDING TRANSACTIONS

I have found it so much easier to take 10 to 15 minutes a day to record all checking and credit card activity. Whenever I am not able to keep up on doing this, it takes me so much more time because I can’t always remember what the transactions were for. It’s funny how I purchase something 4 or 5 days ago and have no recollection of what that purchase was for. I do eventually figure it out, but it takes so much more time and effort. When I take a few minutes to keep everything updated on a daily basis as much as possible I pretty much always remember exactly what the transactions were for. I am easily able to record the expenses and apply them to the appropriate budget category.

PAYING BILLS

One thing I started trying to make a habit of lately is paying bills when they arrive if I can. It literally only takes me a couple of minutes to pay a bill. I don’t normally seem to get too many bills in the mail at one time. So, if one or two bills come in the mail, instead of sticking them away in my folder to pay them later I’ve been trying to just take a couple of minutes and pay them right away. I pay all of my bills using my bank’s online bill payment service, so it takes no time to enter the bill and have it sent off. I quickly record in it QuickBooks and post it against my budget spreadsheet.

MEAL PLANNING

I used to spend a ton of time with meal planning. In general, I have simplified my meal planning with rotating meals regularly so that I have a basic plan to work with. If I am not too busy, I can switch out a meal to try something new.  But, if I don’t have the time or energy I still with the basic plan. But, the way that I have broken meal planning down into small tasks is by trying to plan a future meal each day. For example, if we are having hamburgers tonight for dinner and my general meal plan says we have that every two weeks, I put it on the meal plan for two weeks from now.

You can use a meal planning app, a notebook or notes app, or whatever way you track meals. Even for meals that I do not regularly rotate I do this. Say if it’s something like lasagna that I don’t make often, I might place it on the meal plan 2 months from now. But, the main point is that by looking at today’s meal and copying to a date in the future, I am constantly filling in the days of the weeks for a future meal plan. Usually, when it’s time to plan meals for the week, I only have maybe one or two days to fill in meals for, if that.

GROCERY SHOPPING LIST

The meal plan app that I use creates a grocery list for the meals in my meal plan. In addition, I have a list of the things I generally purchase, like milk, eggs, bread, etc. Once I have my list together I check my fridge, freezer, and cabinets while I am doing things to check items off my grocery list that I already have. For example, if I am pulling out frozen shredded cheese for a meal, while I’m in there I check how many packages of frozen cheese I have. I then check my shopping list. I check off what I have so that I only purchase what I will need.

If I’m in the cabinet getting some pasta I’ll check my list and see if I have any pasta that might be on my list. When I go in the freezer to take meet out for a meal, I might remember to take a look at how much chicken breast I have. But checking throughout the week to see what I have, I can cross the things off the list a little bit here and there as I have time and while I’m in the fridge, freezer, or cabinets anyway, rather than taking separate time to go around checking what I already have on hand.

CLEANING or STRAIGHTENING UP

Many cleaning or straightening up tasks can be broken down into small pieces. My daughters often are in a hurry to get out to school or work and leave their things all over the bathroom sink. Not something that I should have to clean up, but at the same time, it drives me crazy waiting for them to get back to have them put their things away.

So, one thing I recently started doing is instead of getting really annoyed at the messy bathroom I started putting just one thing away anytime I either went in the bathroom or just walked by it. Just putting one thing away felt like nothing, and before I know it the bathroom is back to normal. I’m no longer frustrated every time I walk in the bathroom. We are working on resolving the main issue. But, the main point though is how you can just do a little bit at a time and it will make a big difference

PUTTING AWAY LAUNDRY

Laundry is something I definitely love to break up into little bits on days I am working from home and I don’t have time to stop what I am doing and put a whole load of laundry away. Once I have a clean folded basket of laundry done, I put it next to where I am working. Each time I get up I grab something and put it away. I find this works especially well with towels.  If I am heading in the direction of our linen closet, I grab one towel, fold it, and put it away on my way to where ever I am heading.

WHAT CAN YOU BREAK DOWN IN TO SMALLER TASKS?

Of course, the tasks that I was able to break down may not work for you. They are kind of specific things that I was able to work into my day. But, I hope that by providing these examples, it will get you thinking to see what you might be able to break down to make life a little bit easier.

Thanks so much for checking in! If you would like to hear the podcast version of this topic to check out Lola’s Frugal Life Podcast! Also, be sure to check out my other blog posts on this site!

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