9 Ways To Trick Yourself Into Being More Organized

Summary

In this episode of 'The Totally Chill Guide to Work and Life', Holly Trantham, the creative director at tfds, shares practical strategies for managing money and productivity without becoming overwhelmed. She discusses the ease of starting to invest with Betterment, the importance of setting reminders for tasks, applying the two-minute rule, leveraging AI for research, and pairing tasks with rewards. Holly also emphasizes the value of reworking household chores, decluttering systematically, and allowing oneself to deprioritize to maintain a balanced life.

Takeaways

• 😌 Holly Trantham, the creative director at tfds, discusses a relaxed approach to money and career decisions in 'The Totally Chill Guide to Work and Life'.
• 💰 Many people avoid making important financial decisions due to anxiety, especially without proper education or family guidance on the subject.
• 🤖 Holly recommends using automated investment platforms like Betterment to simplify the investment process and reduce the mental load.
• 📅 She suggests setting recurring calendar reminders for tasks, including annual bills and routine chores, to ensure they are not forgotten.
• ⏱ The two-minute rule is highlighted as a strategy to complete small tasks immediately, reducing the mental load and preventing procrastination.
• 🤖 AI platforms like chat GPT can assist in breaking down larger tasks and conducting research, helping to alleviate the stress associated with certain chores or projects.
• 🍰 Pairing an annoying task with a reward, as per the Premack Principle, can motivate individuals to complete unenjoyable chores more effectively.
• 🧹 Holly advises reworking the division of household labor, possibly through chore swapping, to avoid tasks that cause significant dread.
• 🧹 Decluttering and organizing should be done on separate days to prevent the cleaning process from becoming overwhelming.
• 📦 Implementing systems for clutter, such as using bins and baskets for easy tidying, can help control mess and simplify the organization process.
• 📱 To combat distractions, especially from phones, Holly recommends physically moving the phone away to create an environment conducive to focus.
• 🚫 Lastly, Holly emphasizes the importance of giving oneself permission to deprioritize certain tasks, acknowledging that it's impossible to do everything and that life should have room for spontaneity and enjoyment.

Q & A

Who is Holly Trantham and what is her role in the video?

Holly Trantham is the creative director at tfds and the host of the second season of 'The Totally Chill Guide to Work and Life'. She has been working behind the scenes on content across YouTube and other tf's channels and has also written a book titled 'Beyond Getting By'.

What is the main theme of the second season of 'The Totally Chill Guide to Work and Life'?

The main theme of the second season is to approach money and career decisions from a relaxed perspective, aiming to help viewers live the life they want without making these decisions their sole focus.

Why does Holly suggest that people often spend more energy worrying about money decisions rather than actually making them?

Holly suggests that people often worry more about making money decisions because it can be anxiety-inducing, especially for those who have not learned about it from their education or family, and the energy spent worrying can be greater than the effort required to make the decision.

What is Betterment and how does it simplify the investment process according to Holly?

Betterment is an automated investment platform that simplifies the investment process by asking users a few simple questions about their goals, timeline, and other factors. It then uses automated tools like portfolio rebalancing and dividend reinvestment to make investing easy for the user.

What does Holly mean by 'productivity for productivity's sake' and why is she against it?

Holly refers to 'productivity for productivity's sake' as the pursuit of being productive without a clear purpose, just for the sake of being busy. She is against it because she believes productivity should be about freeing up time and energy for the parts of life that truly matter, rather than being an end in itself.

What is the 'two-minute rule' that Holly mentions and how can it help with productivity?

The 'two-minute rule' is a productivity technique that states if a task can be completed in two minutes or less, it should be done immediately. This helps reduce the mental load of constantly remembering to do small tasks and can prevent procrastination.

How does Holly suggest using AI platforms like chat GPT to break down larger tasks?

Holly suggests using AI platforms to help with tasks that are time-consuming, such as research or project planning. These tools can help reduce the time spent on these tasks, allowing individuals to focus on other aspects of their work or personal life.

What is the 'Premack Principle' and how does Holly recommend using it to tackle annoying tasks?

The 'Premack Principle' is a psychological theory that states that a more probable activity can be used as a reward for a less probable one. Holly recommends using this principle by pairing an annoying task with a reward to motivate oneself to complete the undesired task.

What is the importance of dividing household labor equitably according to Holly?

Dividing household labor equitably is important to prevent one person from bearing the mental load of household chores. Holly suggests chore swapping if there is a task that one person dreads more than another, to distribute the burden fairly.

How does Holly recommend managing clutter and maintaining an organized home?

Holly recommends having systems in place for clutter, such as using empty bins and baskets around the home to quickly tidy up items. She also suggests adopting a 'tidy as you go' mindset and decluttering and cleaning on different days to prevent the task from feeling overwhelming.

What is the key takeaway from the book '4,000 Weeks: Time Management for Mortals' that Holly shares?

The key takeaway from '4,000 Weeks' is that it's impossible to make time for everything that feels important. The book encourages readers to accept that they will never feel completely on top of things and to prioritize what truly matters, rather than trying to do everything.

Outlines

00:00

🌟 Introduction to the Totally Chill Guide

Holly Trantham, the creative director, introduces the second season of 'The Totally Chill Guide to Work and Life.' She has been working behind the scenes on content creation for YouTube and other platforms for eight years and is also the author of the book 'Beyond Getting By.' Holly aims to discuss a relaxed approach to money and career decisions to help viewers live the life they want without these aspects becoming their sole focus. She acknowledges the anxiety that money can cause, especially for those who lack financial education and encourages starting with investing using Betterment, a platform that simplifies the process with automated tools. She also touches on productivity, arguing against productivity for the sake of it and emphasizing the importance of focusing on what truly matters in life.

05:02

📅 Tackling Mentally Draining Tasks with Calendar Reminders and the Two-Minute Rule

The paragraph delves into strategies for dealing with mentally draining tasks. Holly suggests setting recurring calendar reminders as a way to ensure tasks are completed, such as paying annual bills or cleaning routines. She also introduces the 'two-minute rule,' which advises doing any task that can be completed in two minutes immediately to reduce mental load. Holly shares personal examples, like canceling app subscriptions right after downloading them to avoid forgetting. She emphasizes the importance of not letting tasks occupy more mental space than they deserve and encourages finding ways to ease the burden of these tasks, especially for women who often manage this 'mental load.'

10:03

🤖 Utilizing AI for Task Management and Productivity

Holly discusses the use of AI platforms like chat GPT to break down larger tasks and reduce the time spent on them personally. While she admits to having some reservations about AI, she acknowledges their usefulness in cutting down on the time spent on tasks like research or project planning. She shares an example of a mother using chat GPT to find summer camp options and her own experience of getting a meal plan outline from the AI. Holly suggests that AI can help alleviate the stress of tasks that bring no joy, like researching meal plans or finding local activities, without replacing the need for human effort.

🍪 Pairing Annoying Tasks with Rewards and Reworking Household Division of Labor

This section explores the concept of reward pairing, where doing something enjoyable can motivate the completion of a disliked task, based on the Premack Principle. Holly cites a study that emphasizes the importance of how rewards make people feel, which can boost dopamine levels and enhance pleasure. She then suggests reworking the division of household chores to avoid dreading certain tasks, advocating for chore swapping among housemates or partners. Holly provides a personal example of swapping the task of mailing items with her husband, who doesn't dread it as much as she does.

🧹 Strategies for Managing Clutter and Cleaning

Holly shares her personal strategies for managing clutter and cleaning, starting with decluttering and tidying on different days to prevent an overwhelming cleaning list. She also advocates for a 'tidy as you go' mindset and introduces a tip from Casey Davis's book about using empty bins and baskets to quickly tidy up items throughout the day, which can then be organized and put away at the end of the day or week. This method helps control clutter and makes the cleaning process more manageable.

📵 Addressing Phone-Induced Procrastination and the Permission to Deprioritize

The final paragraph addresses the issue of phone-induced procrastination and suggests physically moving the phone to another room as a solution. Holly references studies that link phone use to procrastination and shares her own experience of having to remove her phone to focus on tasks. She also discusses the concept of deprioritizing from the book '4,000 Weeks: Time Management for Mortals,' emphasizing that it's impossible to make time for everything that feels important and that it's okay to let go of the need for constant productivity. Holly encourages viewers to give themselves permission to deprioritize and to not miss out on the joys of life in the pursuit of being productive.

Keywords

💡Productivity

Productivity refers to the efficiency of an individual or system in converting inputs into outputs. In the context of the video, it is about managing tasks and time effectively without letting work dominate one's life. The script discusses being against productivity for the sake of productivity, emphasizing the importance of balancing work with personal life.

💡Investing

Investing is the act of allocating resources, usually money, with the expectation of generating an income or profit. The video mentions investing as a task that people often put off due to anxiety, but it can be simplified through platforms like Betterment, which automate processes like portfolio rebalancing to make it more accessible.

💡Mental Load

Mental load refers to the cognitive burden of managing and remembering tasks, responsibilities, and information. The script talks about the mental load women often deal with, especially in managing household chores and tasks, and suggests ways to reduce this burden through strategies like setting reminders and using AI tools.

💡Two-Minute Rule

The two-minute rule is a time management technique suggesting that if a task can be completed in two minutes or less, it should be done immediately. The video uses this rule as a strategy to tackle small tasks promptly to prevent them from contributing to the mental load.

💡AI Platform

An AI platform, such as chat GPT, is a tool that uses artificial intelligence to assist with tasks such as research or planning. The video suggests using AI platforms to break down larger tasks and reduce the time spent on them, providing examples like researching meal plans or summer camp options.

💡Reward Pairing

Reward pairing is a psychological principle where the completion of a less desirable task is immediately followed by a reward. The video references David Premack's principle and suggests using rewards as motivation for completing dreaded tasks, which can boost dopamine levels and enhance the feeling of pleasure.

💡Household Management

Household management involves the organization and coordination of tasks within a home. The script discusses using a spreadsheet to divide tasks fairly among household members, which can help in reducing the mental load and ensuring equitable distribution of chores.

💡Clutter

Clutter refers to an untidy accumulation of objects or items. The video talks about the importance of managing clutter through systems like placing empty bins around the home for easy tidying and adopting a 'tidy as you go' mindset to prevent it from becoming overwhelming.

💡Deprioritizing

Deprioritizing is the act of deciding that certain tasks or activities are less important and can be postponed or omitted. The video encourages giving oneself permission to deprioritize certain tasks to avoid the stress of trying to accomplish everything, aligning with the book '4,000 Weeks' mentioned in the script.

💡Procrastination

Procrastination is the act of delaying or postponing tasks or actions. The video suggests strategies to combat procrastination, such as physically moving one's phone to another room to reduce distractions and increase focus on the task at hand.

💡Equitable Household

An equitable household is one where responsibilities and tasks are shared fairly among its members. The video touches on the idea of letting go of the need for a perfect home and instead focusing on creating a more balanced distribution of chores and responsibilities.

Highlights

Introduction of Holly Trantham, Creative Director at tfds, and the start of season two of The Totally Chill Guide to Work and Life.

Holly's eight-year experience working behind the scenes on content across all of tf's channels and her contribution to the book 'Beyond Getting By'.

The importance of approaching money and career decisions from a relaxed perspective to maintain a balanced life.

Admission of the common tendency to delay important money decisions due to anxiety and lack of education on the subject.

The concept that worrying about tasks often consumes more energy than actually completing them.

Endorsement of Betterment as an easy-to-use automated investment platform that simplifies the investment process.

Holly's stance against productivity for the sake of productivity, emphasizing the importance of focusing on what truly matters in life.

The idea that productivity is necessary to free up time and energy for life's important aspects, not just work.

Simple strategies to tackle mentally draining tasks, such as setting recurring calendar reminders for important tasks.

The two-minute rule for completing small tasks immediately to reduce mental load.

The use of AI platforms like chat GPT to break down larger tasks and reduce personal time spent on them.

Pairing annoying tasks with rewards to increase motivation, based on the Premack Principle developed by David Premack.

The suggestion to rework how household labor is divided, possibly through chore swapping to avoid dreaded tasks.

The strategy of decluttering and organizing on different days to prevent an overwhelming cleaning list.

Implementing systems for clutter control, such as using empty bins and baskets to easily tidy up spaces.

The recommendation to hide your phone from yourself to avoid distractions and increase focus on tasks.

Permission to deprioritize certain tasks, as suggested in the book '4,000 Weeks: Time Management for Mortals' by Oliver Burkeman.

The conclusion that productivity should not come at the expense of missing out on life's truly valuable moments.

Transcripts

hello everyone I'm Holly Trantham tfds

creative director and this is season two

of The totally chill guide to work and

life for the past eight years I've been

working behind the scenes on all of the

content you see here on YouTube and

across all of tf's channels and I also

wrote our second book beyond getting by

throughout this series I'll be talking

about how to approach your money and

career decisions from a chill place

where they help you live the life you

want without ever becoming your sole

Focus so let's be honest here a lot of

us have put off important money

decisions longer than we should have

money can be anxiety inducing especially

if you never learned about it from your

education or your family but a lot of

the time we spend more energy worrying

about doing something then it actually

takes to just do it and if you've been

putting off getting started investing

just know that with betterment it is

made easy just answer a few simple

questions about your investing goals

timeline and other factors and

betterment will take it from there

because with automated tools like

portfolio rebalancing and dividend

reinvestment they make investing easy

for you and a total grind for your money

vment can help someone ease their way

into investing as their financial

experts are working behind the scenes to

make your money hustle while you do

literally anything else get started be

invested click the link in our

description or head to betterment.com

tfd to sign up in minutes yes ma'ams I

am coming to you with productivity

content a quarter of the way through the

21st century but I want to be clear here

that I am generally against productivity

for productivity sake I think

productivity especially in the workplace

is only really necessary because

lessening the amount of time and energy

you spend on work means you have more of

it left over for the parts of life that

really truly matter not that work

doesn't matter but you know what I mean

and when I say work of course I mean

housework as well but even in a quest to

live a less productivity focused life

there are still things we need to get

done just to be people in the world so

whether your most annoying task is

something you've just continuously been

putting off like getting started

investing or coordinating upcoming

holiday plans with family not to scare

anyone or something that just won't stop

piling up like your email inbox or your

kitchen that somehow magically gets

dirty again after you clean it here are

some simple ways to tackle your most

mentally draining tasks number one set

recurring calendar reminders so I know I

am a pretty type a person but for me if

I have something on my calendar I'm

pretty much going to do it and not just

for day-to-day stuff I find this really

important for things like annual bills

like our credit card bill which is

really easy to forget is coming if we

don't set a reminder for it though I do

know there are some budgeting apps that

are actually pretty good about sending

those reminders to you I have gotten

into the habit for setting reminders for

everything from recurring weekly ones to

clean my apartment on Fridays to onetime

reminders I set to cancel a subscription

that I signed up for a free trial for

which actually brings me to my next

Point number two use the twom minute

rule this is a very basic rule that says

that if something can be done in 2

minutes do it right now so in the case

of setting a reminder to cancel an app

subscription that I signed up for a free

trial for I do that immediately

mediately when I download the app so I

just don't have to think about it this

is also the main rule that gets me to

put away a pile of clothes in the

evening which just ends up piling up

when I'm too lazy to hang up my outdoor

clothes after I come inside and change

into my indoor clothes this dress in the

house situation is very rare so many

tasks take up way more brain space than

they really deserve to because we spend

so much time dreading the fact that we

have to do them or thinking about oh

yeah I got to do that rather than just

doing them that mental load is something

so many of us deal with all the time

especially as women and side note I have

been asked before how men in opposite

sex relationships can start taking some

of that mental load off of their partner

and I think the key thing is just taking

ownership of those tasks and taking it

upon yourself to look up tips like these

in order to figure out how you get them

done number three use chat GPT or

another AI platform to help you break

down larger tasks okay I will not deny

these AI tools still give me a little

bit of the ick and I'm not suggesting

using them in place of real human labor

but I think they can be really helpful

when they help someone cut down the time

they personally spend on a task so when

it's cutting down the time you would

spend on something yourself not

necessarily something you would

Outsource to another human being whether

that's related to home chores or work

for instance I totally see how helpful

they can be for doing a lot of research

or tackling a bigger project down below

I've link to an Atlantic article from

last year all about how AI like chat gbt

can help you cut down the time you spend

on domestic labor even though it can't

do your chores for you for instance one

mom used chat GPT to research summer

camp options for her kids that worked

for their schedule and it came up with a

pretty good list even though it couldn't

take on the hassle of actually driving

her kids to Camp I tried out asking chat

GPT to give me a meal plan that is high

in protein and fiber and it actually did

a decent job giving me a basic outline

for what that could look like so if

things like researching meal plans for

your family or finding things to do in

your area bring you absolutely no joy AI

can be really helpful for taking the

stress out of those tasks side note I've

also used it to help me figure out a

room layout and it actually worked

pretty well number four pair an annoying

task with a reward we all love little

treats and sometimes a little treat is

really good on its own but you can also

use them as motivation for doing

something that you're really not looking

forward to according to an article in

Psychology today in the 1960s American

psychologist David primac developed a

theory now known as prex principle he

explained that doing something you're

more likely to do can be a reward for

doing something you don't actually want

to do and there have been several

studies that have helped legitimize this

idea behind reward pairing a 2019 study

found that it's not the reward itself

but rather how the reward makes people

feel that helps them do their best this

makes sense because rewards boost our

dopamine levels which plays a key role

in how our brains feel pleasure perhaps

for you this means only listening to a

certain podcast that you love while

working out or rewarding yourself with a

pastry for doing your weekly bookkeeping

but of course this only works if you

actually limit receiving that Award with

doing the task you're dreading number

five rework how you divide labor in your

household in the first season of this

series I talked about the household

management spreadsheet that my husband

and I use to divide our tasks in the

home if there is one particular chore

that you are constantly dreading I would

consider doing some chore swapping if

you spend more time dreading a task than

it takes to actually do it and you don't

live alone I would consider doing some

chore swapping with your partner or

roommate or family member etc for inance

I really hate mailing things and there

have been multiple times where I have

kept something past the due date because

I really dreaded going to The UPS Store

to drop off the return package that much

I don't I don't know why I dread that

but I really do my husband does not feel

that way he's very neutral towards the

mailboxes Etc so now that is his task

and I have eliminated that from my life

of course that only really works if you

have someone who you are able to divide

tasks with equitably and also they are

on board for doing that but I do think

you can find workarounds for avoiding

the tasks you really dread even if you

live alone for instance one of the

things I really dread about the mail is

having to deal with missed packages so

if you're in the same boat you could

sign up for something like a po. box or

use pickup points to ship packages to

rather than dealing with them in your

apartment building shout out to people

who have package dealing problems in

their lobbies number six declutter SL

organize and clean on different days so

I've gotten much better about this with

age at the ripe age of 32 but I am

definitely a clutter prone person and I

am also the person in charge of cleaning

the apartment because I genuinely prefer

to have one bigger weekly task to do

rather than several daily tasks to do

but when I do my weekly cleans if I have

decluttering and tidying on the same

list with scrubbing the bathtubs and

doing vacuuming that list feels too long

so I've started making sure I do my

decluttering and tidying a day before I

do my big clean so that that big clean

list does not feel overwhelming and

adopting a tidy as you go mindset is

also very important which brings me to

my next Point number seven have systems

in place for clutter so my very favorite

tip for controlling clutter comes from

Casey Davis's book how to keep house

while drowning which if you are a member

of the society at tfd you will know was

one of our book club picks in that book

she suggests placing empty bins and

baskets around your home so that you can

easily and quickly tidy up places

without having to put everything back

where it goes immediately then at the

end of each day or week when you reset

your home you can go around collecting

all the things from your different bins

and baskets and reorganize them and put

back where they technically belong I use

this in the form of trinket dishes

because I am someone who is constantly

fiddling with her rings or taking her

earrings off so instead of maybe losing

an earring I just set it in a trinket

dish when I want to take it off and come

back around to it later goes back with

all my jewelry and we're all good and

there are probably other systems like

that that you could pretty easily put

into place so you can stop making your

own life harder number eight hide your

phone from yourself so for certain work

tasks I have to physically move my phone

to another room in order to to actually

focus on them and not open the New York

Times cross word app I literally had to

do that while writing this script there

are a lot of studies out there that

illustrate how phone use leads to

academic procrastination but for those

of us who are well beyond our school

years I'm sure we all know that that's

still a thing even if you're not

studying I've tried apps that lock me

out of other apps or setting timers on

my phone for my social media but truly

sometimes I literally have to just

physically move my phone because the

only way I can actually get something

done is to make it physically impossible

possible for myself to procrastinate by

scrolling number nine give yourself

permission to deprioritize one of my

very favorite books I've read in recent

years is 4,000 weeks time management for

Mortals by Oliver burkman yet another

book club pick and this entire book is

about dealing with the impossible task

of trying to tackle everything our

productivity obsessed Society is

throwing at us I highly recommend

reading the entire thing but here's a

really good quote the problem with

trying to make time for everything that

feels important or for enough of what

feels important is that you definitely

never will the reason isn't that you

haven't yet discovered the right time

management tricks or supplied sufficient

effort or that you need to start getting

up earlier or that you're generally

useless it's that the underlying

assumption is unwarranted there's no

reason to believe you'll ever feel on

top of things or make time for

everything that matters simply by

getting more done this Probably sounds

like it's going to negate all the other

things I've already talked about on this

list but I promise you it doesn't

because there are always going to be

things you do really have to get done

you have to file your taxes sorry to say

you have to check in on your finances

and you have to make sure your house is

clean enough those things are

non-negotiables but you don't

necessarily need to have this week's

meal plan written out on a chalkboard in

your kitchen in perfect calligraphy

relatedly when I interviewed author

Tiffany duu for the book she talked

about women and home control disease and

how letting go of your home always being

in perfect condition is a big step in

creating a more Equitable household this

honestly hurts me to admit as someone

who lives and dies by her spreadsheets

and Google Calendar but there's really

nothing magic about doing a certain

chore on a certain day of the week just

because that's when you planned to do it

sometimes a fun and unexpected

invitation or a long conversation with a

friend on the phone can derail your

plans to tackle your to-do list but life

has to have room for that as well

because what is the point of being

productive and feeling on top of things

if achieving that feeling means missing

out on the parts of life that are truly

so worth it thank you so much for

watching and I will see you back here

next week on the next episode of the

totally chill guide to work and

life e