Stop treating your everyday tasks as nuisances

A little while ago I said to my husband: “You know what I think creates so much dissatisfaction in people's lives?"

Patient and kind as he is, he said: “What?”

“We do so many really important things to keep our lives going, to keep the foundation healthy and functioning, but we treat those things like they are annoying nuisances and so the completion of those tasks never gives us the satisfaction and sense of pride they should.”

Yes, I am talking about laundry, cleaning out the dishwasher, prepping yet another lunch or snack… you know, all the one hundred small things you and I do every.single.day that get zero recognition. All the things we just rush through.

But why?

Can you imagine, if we stopped doing all those things? Society would literally start to collapse.

So, why aren't we treating these essential tasks with more respect and honor?

Part of it is, I believe, because these tasks used to be –and often still are– “women's work” and as the feminist movement (which I very much consider myself a part of) has grown, instead of elevating the importance and honoring the hard work it takes to “run a life” we have further devalued the very tasks that make up the foundation of our lives. 

And hence, we have robbed everyone –women and men!– from feeling a sense of satisfaction and pride over doing every-day things at home well.

I mean, how often have you looked back on your day and thought to yourself “I got nothing done today!” when in reality you probably did a million things… but those things were all things that our society doesn't “count."

When was the last time you chopped a bell pepper in peace? When was the last time you admired your clean kitchen with a sense of pride and accomplishment? When was the last time you folded laundry with nothing else in mind than the twelve unmatched pairs of socks in front of you?

It sounds funny, I know 🙃 but I am actually quite serious.

How would your life –your experience of your daily accomplishments, your sense of pride and purpose and importance– shift if you stopped looking at alllll the things you are doing as nuisances and elevated them to being the very things that set the healthy foundation for your life? What if you stopped taking all these things for granted?

Over the last months, I have been practicing being present with these tasks and honoring my time by no longer thinking of “life-jobs” as nuisances. 

And I can tell you that it feels pretty damn good to take a moment and admire my clean kitchen, to meal-prep like it's the most important job in the world, to just take the time it takes to fold my three kids laundry.

It's a mindset shift that requires zero additional time on your end, but will change your whole daily experience by giving you a new level of satisfaction and pride.

I'd love to hear your thoughts :) 

Let me know what comes up for you on this topic? Does it resonate? Do you feel like much of what you do is being taken for granted (by yourself or others)?

Warmly, 

Caroline