Sidetracked Home Executive

4. September 2009 by admin.

I was browsing in my church library the other day and I came across a book I just had to borrow. It’s called Sidetracked Home Executives by Pam Young and Peggy Jones. It described me to a ‘T’. A Sidetracked Home Executive (aka SHE) is someone who lives in constant chaos.Some characteristics of a SHE are:

• You’re afraid to open the Tupperware in the refrigerators.
• You spray deoderant on dirty socks and throw them in the dryer on ‘Air Fluff’ (I’ve never done that one…honest!!)
• You stack trays of dirty dishes in the shower. (Ditto.)
• Not folding clothes after they are finished drying. Living out of your laundry basket. 
• Forgetting to put clothes in the dryer. Two days later when you remember, they have that sour smell and so you have to re-wash them.
• Eating out because there’s no food in the refrigerator. (Or you just don’t feel like cooking.)
• Going on manic cleaning sessions when a guest arrives, but then after they leave…stop.
• Piling up papers, mail…stuff…and other crap….in different sections of the house because “They may be important someday.”
• Getting distracted easily.
• Searching for your keys…(or in my case, my eyeglasses) almost every single day. (It’s really sucks when I can’t find my glasses, especially when I just took them off three minutes ear;lier. You should see me frantically searching the house with squinty eyes.)
• Starting craft projects, gardening projects, or any project and not finishing it.
• Stuffing receipts in your purse after you make a purchase and then when the hubby asks for it…you can’t find it.
• You check out many books from the library and never read them…then end up paying late fines when you forget to return them. (I’ll read this book though..I promise.)

Most of this describes me. I am a ‘SHE’. The first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. When I first got married, my friend Marjorie suggested I go to the Fly Lady website for tips on how to run house (www.flylady.net) Fly Lady used to be a SHE until she came across this book: Sidetracked Home Executives. It took Fly Lady nine months to get her act together but she finally did.  For me, it’s taking over six years. Is there hope?

I signed up for her daily email list and started her 31 day Baby Step program in 2003. But then I stopped. Then, I re-signed up in 2007. Then I quit again. Then, I re-signed up earlier this year. But I fell off the bandwagon. Will I ever get organized? Will I ever stopped being so easily distracted? Will I ever have a system and STICK TO IT? What was I talking about? (LOL) 

Hubby says organization is a constant battle because your dishes may be clean today, but then they’ll get dirty tomorrow. Or your bed may be made up today, but then you’ll sleep in it tonight and then have to remake the bed.But I’m thinking: “Why don’t I just use paper plates? Then I won’t have to wash dishes.”And: “Why make up the bed if it’s just going to get messed up again?” Or: “Why take a shower everyday? When I can save water, and take one every other week.” (Okay, I’m kidding with this one.) But you know what I mean…right? Or am I the only one out there in cyber space who thinks this way.

I’ll be blogging regularly about my battle with my SHE-ness. Hopefully, you can find some inspiration, especially if you are a SHE.

P.S. I re-re-re-re-signed up for Fly Lady’s Baby Step Program today. Day One’s project is to shine my sink. Read about it here: http://flylady.net/pages/begin_babysteps.asp 

P.P.S. I’ll also share what I learned from the Sidetracked Home Executives book. If you want to read along with me, the book is available on Amazon.>

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