avatar by on October 31, 2011   •   219 Comments Personal Growth You

Imperfection.

I‘ve loved the series on Simple Homeschool lately, where Jamie and the contributors (sounds like a band name) have shared their biggest homeschooling mistakes. One post at a time, they’ve saddled up to the plate to confess one thing they’ve wished were different about their teaching experience.

I’m also reading Grace for the Good Girl, a newly-released book by my dear friend Emily Freeman. In it, she confesses to myriad masks she’s donned her entire life in desperate effort to keep her accolades as a good girl. She admits her imperfection.

At Relevant this past weekend, I sensed a repeated murmur of conversation wrapped up in the theme, It’sOkayToBeImperfectBecauseWhoIsn’t?. Be it in your writing style, an embarrassment over your Twitter following, or your desire to be more “influential,” the conference room became a breathing space for women to feel okay about who they are and the platform they’ve been given.

In short… People are fessing up to not having their act together.
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avatar by on October 30, 2011   •   4 Comments Links

Weekend Links

I missed this leaf blanket in my backyard while I was enjoying a surprising snowstorm at Relevant this week. I’m ready to relish fall just a few more weeks… And I’m excited to head on a plane in just a few hours and kiss my babies.

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.” -Albert Camus

avatar by on October 28, 2011   •   55 Comments Organizing Your Home

Scan Artist: Scan your way to an organized life.

Note from Tsh: I’m still at Relevant, so I’m excited to bring you today’s guest post from Carley Knobloch of Digitwirl. I love her practical ideas here!

Didn’t scholars predict that we’d be a paperless society by now? I read that in a magazine article once, but don’t ask me to find it… it’s probably under the mound of bills, school papers, receipts and magazines that used to be my dining room table.

The paper clutter in my house has been a constant source of angst. Popular productivity books taught me how to “process” piles until they were no more. File away the things you need, toss the rest—that’s what they said.

What I’ve found, however, is that it’s not the filing that’s the challenge, it’s the retrieval:

• Where’s that receipt file for our accountant?
• Where did we file those pictures from our honeymoon?
• Why can’t I find the %!*#$ file with the Kindergarten class roster in it?!

I yearned for a way not just to clear my counter tops, but to be able to instantly find any important document or precious memory without upturning my entire house.
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avatar by on October 26, 2011   •   48 Comments Work You

Five work-at-home challenges (and how to handle them)

Written by contributor Heather Allard of The Mogul Mom.

Working at home is a dream come true for moms who long to both be home with their kids and earn an income.

But once you’re elbow-deep in the chaotic mix of running a business and raising a family, you may discover that there are some, er, challenges to working from home that often go untold.

Have no fear! I’m here to share with you five common work-at-home problems and some pretty nifty solutions.
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avatar by on October 24, 2011   •   Productivity You

Do you need white space?

Note from Tsh: Tomorrow morning I fly out to Pennsylvania for Relevant, so I’m having Anne of The White Space Solution share this post today, giving me a few extra minutes to finalize my presentations. I loved reading her ideas here!

How many items do you have on your to-do list? How about goals? Do you have more than a few that you’d like to achieve? If you’re looking to simplify your life, likely that’s because your list is filled to the brim with goals, interests, activities, passions, people, and work.

It gets especially sticky taking action and completing anything on your master project list after you become a parent.

Since my daughter was born almost four years ago, I’ve had to adjust and reframe how I reach and set big goals in my life. It used to be so easy! But now, with a toddler in tow, a job managing someone else’s online business, a husband who needs my attention, too, writing for my own blog, writing my first book, and the myriad mommy duties, I need time and space to actually reach all those goals—and finish anything.

If your life is bursting at the seams, like mine, then you might like to know these three things I’ve learned to make space in your life, so you can actually get down to the business of getting things done.

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