Do you feel like the whole world is crashing in on top of you? Believe it or not it happens to all of us from time to time, especially during the holiday season.

When we get busy, we feel that we don't have time to do even the simplest of routines. So what do we do? We let our Hot Spots take over our homes.

You come in the door tired and ready to drop your load wherever you can put it – then you crash. No wait, you have to throw something together for supper –and I mean throw! Because when you are finished, the kitchen looks like a bomb went off and you feel like you could get out of the way.
By this time you are so overwhelmed that you just want to hide, so you go to bed without doing the smallest of a before-bed routine and all of a sudden your home has exploded in your face and your husband is pitching one of his usual fits. Then ugly words are exchanged and you feel terrible.

Here is the secret to stopping this explosion before it starts: When you hear yourself saying that you don't have time or you don't have the energy to do something, stop dead in your tracks and set a timer for 5, 10, or even 15 minutes and do a quick pick up and put away. That is all it takes to make you not feel so overwhelmed.

Our Hot Spots attack more than our home. They hurt us inside by causing us to feel bad because we can't keep up, as well as zap our energy. Now I want you to pay close attention, you can start over anytime. You are never behind! Do you hear me?

That stinking thinking of "I don't have enough time" is for the birds. It is what got your home in the shape it was in. It's our perfectionism rearing its ugly head one more time. You can stop the downward spiral by replacing those terrible words, "I don't have time!" with "I can do just 5 minutes!"

This is a huge attitude adjustment for most of us. It takes time, and, worst of all, we don't even realize we are doing it. Now that it has been brought to your attention, you will hear yourself say those words. When you do, turn them around and just set your timer and do just a little.
I can hear you now! "BUT! I really don't have the time! She doesn't understand.” Well I am here to tell you that I used to think the same way and I have changed my negative thoughts into positive ones and you can, too. It all starts with the realization of what you are doing to yourself with those words. It is a form of WHINING! You know I don't allow whining!

I want for you what I have: PEACE! This peace came from letting go of negative thoughts and replacing them with positive actions. Even a little will go a long way toward helping you find this peace.

For more help getting rid of your CHAOS, check out her website and join her free mentoring group at  www.FlyLady.net or her book, Sink Reflections published by Random House and her New York Times Best Selling book, Body Clutter published by Simon and Schuster. Copyright 2010 Marla Cilley Used by permission in this publication.