Fortune Cookie Wisdom

I was looking for something in the pantry, and found an old fortune cookie that we must have thrown in there.  (No, I didn't eat the cookie....for all I know it could have been in there for a year).  But, the temptation to look at the fortune was too great....so I opened it.

"Begin.....the rest is easy."

Starting something is always the hardest step.  We always want to start it "tomorrow" because procrastination is our friend, right?  WRONG!  Procrastination is a paralyzing fear of starting. 

I have been avoiding re-making our budget.  I had a budget sheet that was only working so-so, but it was something that I tinkered with.  Then the computer crashed, and I lost it (bad Mysti....why didn't you back it up???????).  Then I was using Mint.com, and that was sort of working so-so as well.  But I fell off the wagon of tracking it all (since Mint doesn't always categorize things where they need to go).  Eventually, I just stopped.

I still used the mental budget....but the hard core tracking fell by the wayside. 

So I opened Mint up again this morning and spent 10 minutes starting to fix things.  (And Jeff, if you are reading this....I know I still owe you a copy of our budget!!!).  What I learned in my 10 minutes of time are:

1)  It is sooooo much harder to go back and have to fix things than just keep up with it.
2)  For me....I need to visually see it broken down more (I know some people get bogged down with categories, but I need them).
3)  I have not budgeted properly for the kids' lunch expenses.

and

4)  Sometimes you need a blank slate to clear your mind, rather than fix what is broken.

That was a heavy 10 minutes......

Recently, I have been so mentally overwhelmed.  I have felt pulled in 50 different directions, and I am not doing a great job at anything.  Passable, but not my usual standards.  I function in order and organization.  And as soon as one area slips, the rest follow.  My weight has crept up in the past 3 months due to not planning and tracking.  My original plan for paying off Student Loan Snowball is off.  I have piles of papers that I need to sort.  I have phone calls to make and have been putting off.  It is chaotic to say the least.

So, I am going to take the fortune cookie advice...and just Begin.  I can't fix everything at once.....and I don't want to try.  But I have to start somewhere. 

I challenge you to Begin too.....take one thing that you have been putting off, and just do it.  Maybe you have to make a doctor's appointment....Maybe you have to take a bag of goods to be donated.  Whatever.  Doesn't matter.  Make that one thing a priority today and just BEGIN.