SJP #012: Mystie Winkler : Practical Tips for Being More Productive!

Welcome to the Simply Joyful PodcastEpisode #012 with Mystie Winkler Practical Tips for Being More Productive Show Notes: KristiClover.com/012   I am a complete oxymoron! I know it! I admit it! I own it! I am one of the laziest perfectionists you’ll ever meet. I’m the messiest organized person, too! I’m also highly creative and highly analytical. My right brain and left brain are in constant competition.  I actually look at organization as a puzzle. It’s a fun challenge for me to solve. Just how simply can I make things to get it totally efficient? I tweak and tweak and tweak again until I can get it to work just right.  Yes, I love organizing things! I love figuring out new systems and new ways to simplify…which is why I’m so excited about having none other than Mystie Winkler on the podcast today! Mystie speaks my love language — organization! Now, if you are unfamiliar with Mystie, we’ll then you are in for a treat! Mystie runs a blog called Simplified Organization. I mean, how much more of a perfect fit for the Simply Joyful Podcast can you get? Mystie is a self-proclaimed “slob by nature and has been actively combatting that tendency for 8 years now.”  Mystie has not always been a naturally clean and tidy person. She’s had to learn to  change her attitude about how she cares for her home — and her family. Formerly she felt like “housecleaning was a waste of time.” However, things changed when she learned her “why” behind keeping her house in order. It became more about changing her perspective than finding new ways to clean. Her problem wasn't not knowing what to do. Her problem was not caring. Well, she’s learned to care and she shares more about that today. You are going to love this episode if you are looking for a real conversation from two women who have had to overcome their non-tidy ways to become organized.    A Special Offer... Before we jump in I wanted to remind you that we have a special Simply Joyful Podcast deal with Audible! You get a FREE audiobook and a FREE 30 day trial! Just go to https://kristiclover.com/freedownload.  By going through my link, it helps to support the podcast. My goal is to get more help to free up my time, so I can keep bringing you more encouragement.    Check out the Show Notes... Also know that everything we talk about can be found at KristiClover.com/012 or at simplyjoyfulpodcast.com. I have all the links mentioned in this show there!   On a “Simply” & “Joyful” side note… Mystie’s family sings and memorizes poetry together in the morning, and this puts them all in a good frame of mind to begin other work.   In This Episode… In this episode, Mystie and I talk through practical tips and advice about how to be more productive. Mystie explains what “brain dumping” is and the best way to do it. She seriously rocked my “love for organization” world with her tips and advice. I stopped asking the questions I had on my paper and just started asking questions I knew I needed answered to help me with some of my problem areas.   I just know you are going to be so inspired in this episode with Mystie!   Highlights from This Show... Mystie admits she was a natural list-making organizer and thought she had everything together until she had kids. She tried doing things as efficiently as possible, but she’s learned that dealing with the big picture and the vision were more important than the details. Mystie said that she used to ask herself “Why do the dishes need to be done?” or “Why should I mop the floor in the first place?” Finding her “why” was the answer! “If it doesn’t matter at all, I’m not going to waste my time doing it.” — MystieWinkler I mentioned that when it comes to homeschooling AND housekeeping, you do need to lower your standards and expectations a little bit. {Here's a post about more on this: Help! I Homeschool & My House is a Mess!} Mystie states that her eyes were opened to the “why” from reading two novels: Mansfield Park by Jane Austen and Bleak House by Charles Dickens. “[In the novel] Bleak House, [the main] character is wrapped up in how she keeps her house. The fact that she has the ‘household keys’ and that the house runs smoothly because of her was a huge part of the beauty that she brings.” — Mystie Winkler Mystie said that reading about this character from the Dickens classic helped open her eyes to the fact that details do matter and that the way one keep her house reflects on the character of the housekeeper.   “[Paying attention to details is a] way that we love people. It’s not meaningless, because it’s a gift that we’re giving to others.” — Mystie Winkler   “The way we keep our house does speak to our character.”— Mystie Winkler   I brought up the book Discipline: The Glad Surrender by Elisabeth Elliot and explained how the author brought up the fact that if you want to see if someone is disciplined, look at their house. I was convicted! Mystie said that part of coming to know the meaning and value of cleaning up is doing it for others. Not just people you invite over, but the people that live in your house.   “You need to bless your family as well as you would bless others with your house and the standard you keep your house in…and what also prepares you for hospitality is when you make it a priority to actually take time to get a little bit organized here and there.”   — Kristi Clover   Mystie talked about her blogs: Simplified Organization: where she keeps home and life management thoughts Simply Convivial: her homeschooling blog.   Mystie shared her thoughts on productivity and about how we only have “so much time” in our day. We need to be investing it in areas that are not self-focused. We need to ask ourselves, — “What are the roles or responsibilities that God has given to me?” — “Who am I supposed to be serving?” — “Am I using my time to build and grow my family?”   Mystie discussed that serving the important people in her life comes before productivity and that feeling of accomplishment in herself.   I asked Mystie to talk about one of her key habits for productivity: Decluttering your brain! She said it’s good to write down all the thoughts and worries that are occupying your mind on a piece of paper. On paper, it’s much more obvious that we have too many commitments or emotional ties to unimportant duties.   Mystie talked about brain dumping on paper vs. brain dumping on the computer. She explained how mental space and different brain connections comes into play. Once the brain dump is out, you: 1) Go through and delete as much as possible, 2) Set up a reliable calendar, a place to keep to-do lists, and a place to keep reference notes, & 3) Look at the lists regularly! Because it’ll only work if you review them.   Mystie teaches in her Habits of Productivity course about how to use Evernote and paper for such organization. Evernote has a good search function for finding notes efficiently and can recognize scanned-in notes.   “Your brain is for thinking and not for remembering.” — Mystie Winkler (from the book Getting Things Done by David Allen)     Books Mentioned… Mansfield Park by Jane Austen Bleak House by Charles Dickens Discipline: The Glad Surrender by Elisabeth Elliot Life Management for Busy Women by Elizabeth George Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen     Please Note... Every podcast episode will have all the highlights and links from each episode (just like this) on my website. So, come on over to the blog to find the show notes. Be sure to grab your FREE copy of my book, Sanity Savers for Moms, by joining our Simply Joyful community. It's a great way to keep in touch...and get subscriber only freebies like my book. Click HERE to get the book and join! Make sure you head over to listen to my other interviews HERE! I know you will love these episodes!   Help Get the Word Out... My prayer is that this podcast would be a blessing to all who hear it. If you enjoy this podcast, it would be such a blessing to have you "Subscribe" to this podcast on iTunes or Stitcher and leave me a rating and review. This helps the podcast to rank in iTunes and be more "visible" for people searching for new podcasts to listen to. If you wanted to share this episode with friends or on social media, I've created several great images that are share-worthy. Thanks!   *My "Thank You" for Your Rating & Review on iTunes or Stitcher* If you do subscribe, rate, & review this podcast in iTunes or Stitcher, I'd love to thank you by giving you $5 off at my store! Just leave the review and email me, and I'll send you a coupon code to access the coloring book! (See show notes for details) Thank you so much for helping us get the word out about the Simply Joyful Podcast!   I hope you enjoyed this week's podcast! My prayer is always that you will be blessed and encouraged by each episode.   Live Simply. Be Joyful.   Connect Online: My Website Facebook  Instagram YouTube Pinterest Twitter   Connect with Mystie… Mystie is a homeschooled homeschooler, married to her high school sweetheart, educating her five children ages thirteen to four. She loves to take big ideas and grand visions and make them practicable in real life. She blogs at Simplified Organization,  Simply Convivial, and Schole Sisters. You can check out all her awesome organizations courses and books HERE!!