At MIF we love checklists. They help you not waste mental fuel on routine operations, not fill your memory with details, and at the same time remember the important things. Checklists can be used not only at work, but also in your personal life to create healthy habits, take care of yourself and get everything done. That's why we made beautiful, colorful checklists with hearts, houses and acorns for different occasions. We tell you what habits they will help you acquire.
How a checklist saves lives, or Why it works
Switch
Many people think that checklists are too simple to really make a difference. But simple tools always work best. Checklists can not only help in life, but also save it. Don't believe me? Here's the story.
Clinic patients are often placed on an intravenous drip. If an infection gets into the IV, the consequences can be very serious. Tired of “drip infections,” Dr. Peter Pronovost of Johns Hopkins University compiled a five-section checklist.
It contained direct advice: the doctor should wash his hands before inserting an IV, the patient’s skin should be treated with an antiseptic, and so on. No scientific innovations, nothing controversial. However, the results were surprising: within 18 months after introducing the checklist into the practice of one hospital, infections had practically disappeared, and the hospital had saved approximately $175 million on the treatment of associated complications.
The checklist has saved more than 1,500 lives.
How did such a simple measure become so powerful? Checklists teach people better and show them a reliable way to do things right. This is just what you need to start taking action and not go astray.
If checklists can help in something as serious as medicine, is it any wonder that they can make our lives easier? Here are 8 habits that are easy to implement using checklists.
Create good habits
Superman out of habit
Think for a minute about what you would like to do in life, but never got around to it. Maybe you've always dreamed of getting a graduate degree or doctorate, running a marathon, writing a book, starting a business, going on a trip, or restoring a vintage car...
Now remember the last time you took a step towards this goal or did something you loved?
Few people talk about dreams when they talk about paying the electric bill or filing a tax return. But for some reason in life we give the main place to this: routine tasks that simply save us from current problems. And we leave activities that lead to big goals for later. Which never comes.
Plan the things that are important to you right now.
Write them down on your checklist and do one thing every day. It's not difficult and doesn't take long. The main thing is to start.
Checklist of important things that can no longer be put off
Get enough sleep
Personal boundaries
We bet you don’t need to be told about the benefits of sleep and the dangers of lack of sleep. We've all heard this a hundred times. The question is: how to start getting enough sleep? After all, there are always more important things to do. That's why we need a plan.
Determine what time you want to wake up and count back 8 hours. This is the time when you need to fall asleep. Count down from it some more time needed to prepare for bed. How many minutes will it take to lock the door, wash your face, and read before bed?
Here is an approximate ritual: 22:00 - turn on the dishwasher, check the front door, 22:15 - brush your teeth, 22:30 - go to bed with a book, 23:00 - fall asleep.
To help - a checklist with sleepy houses. Your task is to put the entire village to sleep. How quickly can you deal with this?
A checklist with sleepy houses will help you keep track of your vacation
Eat healthy
Closer to the body
Counting calories and running around the store every day looking for celery is tiring. There is an easier way to enrich your diet - the balanced plate method. The benefit is that you don't have to restrict or weigh your food, count calories or study ingredients. All you need are your eyes and a reminder checklist.
Balanced checklist for proper nutrition
One important feature: the basis of the diet should be plant foods. Why? Because they supply the body with fiber, vitamins and minerals. Two or even three-quarters of a balanced plate consists of plant foods - fruits, vegetables, legumes, seeds, nuts and whole grains. If you work hard at filling this part of the plate adequately, the rest won't matter much.
A balanced plate gives energy, improves digestion, maintains normal intestinal microflora, improves immunity and helps maintain optimal shape. Just hang the checklist on the refrigerator and eat healthy.
Keep a diary
Diary as a way to yourself
A diary helps you keep track of events in your life, track dynamics and growth, and remember important milestones. He serves as a personal psychotherapist: by pouring out our thoughts and feelings on paper, we become calmer, understand ourselves better, find ways and opportunities that we did not see due to seething emotions.
Many people give up journaling due to lack of time. The book “Diary as a Path to Yourself” has a wonderful way to keep a diary very quickly, literally in one minute a day. This is the way.
In the evening, on the wall calendar, write down only one epithet that characterizes your day. Below it, place another one describing your dreams for tomorrow. This will be a fun exercise in creating your own reality.
The method is very good, but writing on the calendar is inconvenient. In addition, we use Google calendar, which is not intended for this. That's why we made a special checklist.
Diary checklist to help you create your own reality
Saying "thank you"
Control your happiness hormones
No, no, we're not talking about politeness now. We are talking about how many positive emotions there are in your life. Not enough? Then make it a habit to find 3 things every day for which you can say “thank you” to life or others.
It may be difficult at first, but gradually you will see more and more reasons and joyful events. Is there hot water in the tap? Thank you. Did the sun come out in the morning? Thank you. Did the coffee turn out just the way you like it? Thank you.
To remember to say thank you, we have made a special checklist. When you start filling it, the number of pleasant moments will begin to increase like a snowball. Having filled out the checklist to the end, you can re-read it and rejoice at how much good there is in your life. Give it a try. This checklist is truly magical.
Gratitude checklist
Read books
Reading more is not a matter of time, but of habit. People who read a lot do it everywhere: in traffic jams and queues, on the subway and trams, at lunch and before bed. Even if you manage to grab only 5 pages at a time, in total this gives a noticeable movement forward.
But do you know what it takes to make it work? Reading list and books at hand. If you have a free minute, but there is no book, your hand will automatically reach for the phone, your eyes will bury itself in social networks and goodbye, time that could be devoted to a wonderful, unforgettable, desired and long-awaited book.
To prevent this from happening, we made a bookshelf - in the form of a checklist, of course. Write here the names of the books you want to read and don't forget to buy them. And then read and color the spines.
Reader's checklist
Take care of yourself
The most important thing that is so easy to forget. Remember what they say on the plane: put your oxygen mask on yourself first, then help others. It's the same with care. If you don't take care of yourself, you simply won't be able to take care of others. So before you help your friends move, finish a quarterly report for a colleague, and prepare an eight-course dinner for your beloved family, think: have you already taken care of yourself?
By starting to take care of yourself now, you'll be more likely to become the person you want to be.
Mothers of future kindergarteners often make the traditional mistake of all caring parents - they buy too many things in anticipation of visiting this preschool institution. To save the family budget (and at the same time your nerves!), we have compiled a checklist of necessary purchases.
#1: Pajamas
Two sets of sleepwear will be enough. Opt for cotton pajamas. Check with the teachers about the temperature regime at a time when the central heating is not yet working. If there is no heater in the bedroom, your child may also need a set of warm pajamas.
#2: Panties
Is your baby heading to nursery? Even if the baby is already potty friendly, buy 5-7 panties. And let them lie in the locker - they will come in handy. For a child entering the junior group, 3-4 panties will be enough. Most likely, they will remain there - but for your peace of mind that the child is always dry, this is necessary.
#3: Mikey
- wear under a T-shirt in the cold season;
- Sleeping in a T-shirt is hot.
#4: Tights
The optimal quantity is 7-8 pairs. Tights should not be tight, easy to put on and not “bubble” at the knees.
#5: Shoes
Many parents buy closed slippers for their children in kindergarten. But, as practice shows, it is better to opt for sandals with a closed “toe” - so as not to cling to the carpet and avoid falls. Pay attention to the presence of an instep support and a hard back.
Shoes must have Velcro. This is due to the fact that at an early age children do not yet know how to tie their own shoelaces. Therefore, educators ask parents to purchase shoes that the child can fasten and unfasten without outside help.
No. 7: Sportswear
In kindergarten it is traditional: black shorts, white T-shirt, white socks, Czech shoes. One set is enough.
#8: T-shirts
To make your baby comfortable in kindergarten, dress him in T-shirts that do not have laces, ties or buttons. Firstly, the child cannot cope with them on his own, and secondly, the presence of unnecessary parts creates discomfort.
No. 9: Jacket or vest
If it’s cool in the kindergarten, the baby will need something that can be thrown over his shoulders. However, as practice shows, this happens very rarely. But caring mothers always leave a blouse in the children's locker - just in case.
No. 10: Iron-on stickers with the child’s name
Clothes closets in kindergarten are like black holes - things often get lost in them. So sign your child's things. This can be done using special thermal stickers or in a simple way - write the baby’s name with a ballpoint pen on the wrong side of a T-shirt, shorts, or shoe soles.
What completely unnecessary things did you buy for your child in kindergarten? Share in the comments - a note to other mothers!
Photo: South Marston Primary, Novak Djokovic Foundation, JSTOR Daily, Papilio Early Learning
The article was written for the magazine " Mama's life,spb" (September 2013)
I am publishing it on my blog as a detailed guide to creating checklists. You will find out what this tool is, how it helps mothers (even the least organized) create their own system of activities with children and practice regularly, without spending extra energy and time on it. Get a set of checklists>>
Checklists - an easy way to create your own system of activities with your child
Child development is a topic of interest to all caring parents. How to develop a baby at home harmoniously and comprehensively, and not miss anything? And most importantly, how to organize yourself?
Most mothers were once disciplined workers and employees, but with the advent of a child, life becomes different. The main task is to serve a person whose needs and behavior are constantly changing. The list of household chores does not end, and my husband also tries to throw in a couple of errands (after all, you are sitting at home!). Our women’s “I want” and “I can” are constantly making adjustments to the daily routine; every day the child expresses his desires more and more confidently. And to be honest, being at home, in your own cozy territory, is relaxing.
How can not the most organized women still create their own working system for child development?
What if I'm against schedules?!
I began to embody the ideas of “early development” and apply popular methods when my daughter was just 3 months old, because even in the last months of pregnancy I read a lot about development and was imbued with the idea that it is important to give “food for the mind” from the first months of life. I contracted a disease common among mothers: I downloaded from the Internet everything related to educational activities and toys for infants and preschoolers (for growth!).
To streamline my pedagogical aspirations, I tried many times to draw up schedules and daily routines. I tried to use ready-made development plans obtained on the Internet. All this didn't work because:
- I usually forgot to look at these schedules, remembering about them only late in the evening when the child fell asleep.
- I made a schedule, imagining the ideal day when everything would work out, instead of taking a sober look at the real possibilities – mine and the child’s.
- Other people's plans did not take into account our daughter and I's characteristics, interests and habits.
- I tried to implement everything at once. Sudden changes in your usual life are so tiring that it is very easy to give up on everything.
What to do? Materials accumulated - a sea. What exactly should you do? How can a lover of freedom and improvisation develop a child comprehensively and harmoniously, in accordance with the needs of his age, without constantly checking the schedule, which I simply forget about?
Checklists - reverse schedule
After a number of sleepless nights, the “insight” came. Is it worth breaking yourself and your habits if you can change the plan? This is how the idea of creating checklists came about.
Many people have probably come across checklists. Essentially, this is a set of test questions, by answering which we check the condition of a particular item of interest to us. A checklist for activities with children is a list of these same activities, with a grid for marking completion.
During the day I played with my daughter as much as I wanted, depending on my mood. When the child calmed down, I noted on the prepared list of activities that we had accomplished that day. Analyzing these mini-reports, I soon came up with my own system of regular classes.
How do checklists differ from regular schedules and routines, and why do I recommend using them for “freedom-loving” moms? This miracle list eliminates the need to constantly keep in mind when and what to do with your child. You will have your own development map, which you don’t have to strictly follow, just do what you want with your child. And before going to bed, in a calm environment, quickly fill out the checklist and immediately see how productive the day was, be sure to praise yourself and come up with activities for tomorrow. You will spend no more than 10 minutes a day on this.
How to make your own checklist
A lyrical digression about laziness. I once came across a useful remark about two types of lazy people. The first ones don’t want to do anything at all (unproductive laziness), while others agree to first work hard, use their brains, and then be properly lazy. Such laziness acts as the engine of progress. Think about it: all our electronic home assistants, numerous digital gadgets, are designed to do some kind of work for a person. I hope you also belong to the second type of lazy person and agree to work a little on the system so that later the system will work for you.
First we need to create list of activities. This is the most time-consuming stage. What activities are included in the checklist? Those that you consider important and useful for your child and whose presence you want to control in daily life.
This list will be individual for each mother-baby pair, because we all have different capabilities: mothers on maternity leave are with the child all day, and working people see their children only in the evenings and on weekends. Also, each of us has our own ideas about what exactly should be developed and when. Children also contribute to the creation of the “menu” of activities: from the first months they are able to show what is interesting to them and what is not.
To help you, here is an approximate list of areas of development.
- Speech development.
- Physical development.
- Sensory development (sense organs: vision, hearing, smell, taste, tactile sensations).
- Fine motor skills.
- Intellectual development (thinking, logic, attention, memory).
- Socialization and communication skills.
- Self-care and household skills.
- Creation.
- Getting to know the world around you.
- Basics of mathematical knowledge.
- General ideas (color, size, shapes, comparisons, directions).
- Musical development, singing, playing musical instruments.
- Emotional development.
- Aesthetic development.
- Humanities cycle (history, geography).
Decide which areas of development are most relevant to you (we include them in your daily plan), and what you plan to address from time to time. You can number the list in order of importance or highlight items in different colors. I think you understand that studying 10-15 areas every day will be difficult for both you and the child. We will leave “optional” areas for weekly lists, but for now we are faced with the task of creating a working “daily day”.
Next, write down all the games and activities that you already use, group them by areas of development. Before us is the basis of the future list, the current state of affairs. If you want to strengthen any of the areas, add to the list several additional classes from this area, as well as from those that you would like to master in the near future. The Internet will tell you which age-appropriate games and activities may be included in each section.
How detailed should I describe the games? The main thing is that the list is convenient to use. If one list of “highway directions” is enough for you, use it. I am for average detail, when both areas are designated, and a “mandatory minimum” of specific activities. For example, in the “physical development” section, I highlight the following items: massage, exercise at the sports complex, exercises on a fitball, hardening with water, and so on. The list should not take more than 1-1.5 pages so that the whole picture of how things are going with your homework is before your eyes.
For those who love details, there is a way to quickly create your own game library - write cheat sheets. For each topic that requires detail, we brainstorm - we come up with ideas, remember them, look for ideas on the Internet and write them down on small cardboard pieces of paper that are convenient to take with you on a walk or to quickly look at at home. Another example: an article like “10 games with dice” can easily be turned into such a cheat sheet, supplemented with your own options.
You can include activities you have already mastered (playing finger games every day) to increase your motivation (an extra “tick” at the end of the day) or remove them from the list, focusing on mastering something new.
I’ll upset you right away - the list will need to be updated every few months. Children's capabilities grow quickly, interests change, especially quickly in the first year of a baby's life. I radically changed the content of the sheets at 6, 10 months, 1.2, 1.5, 2.2 years.
In order for the checklist to be ready for work, all that remains is to enter the list of activities into a table, where the lines contain the selected activities, grouped by area, and many narrow columns form a grid for marks of completion by day.
How it works?
You play with your baby every day for your own pleasure, and in the evening you quickly go through the list, putting “pluses” or “ticks” next to each item that you managed to accomplish during the day. In just a few days you will have a clear picture of the current state of your “developmental system”. You will immediately see what you have been doing enough, what you completely forgot about, what you would like to try again. Today we ran and jumped a lot, and tomorrow we need to work with encyclopedias or logic games.
We do this with “forgotten” items. First, we give ourselves a firm promise “I’ll do it tomorrow!” If it doesn’t work and you’ve been forgetting for a week, for example, to give your child a brush and paints, you can stick a sticker in a visible place or put a reminder on your phone. Look at your list more critically: perhaps you overdid it with detail or with load. Think about it: is it forgetfulness from distraction and fatigue or internal resistance to this “mandatory creative activity”? Experienced mothers say that it is better not to fight such internal barriers, but simply put it off until better times, when both you and the child are ready for it.
An important advantage of this system is the opportunity to praise yourself every day. Each progress mark is a small compliment, a vaccination against harmful thoughts from the series: “I’m a bad mother! I don’t spend much time with my child!” You'll be surprised how much you actually get done.
Let's say you have an impressive list of plans for the day, and everything seems very important. Try combining activities. This saves a lot of time and makes you feel like a supermom. Let's say you have planned another creative activity - sculpting. Combine with mathematics: sculpt numbers, several identical figures that can be “added” and “subtracted”, “divided” (cut into parts, this is also a visual representation of fractions). Explain to your child how plants grow by making a sprout that turns into a flower from which a fruit ripens. Make and act out a fairy tale. So in half an hour you will touch on several topics at once and in the evening you will generously give yourself “pluses”.
Checklists for a week, two, a month...
Another tool is weekly and monthly checklists. We add everything that is left off the daily list to the reserve list and carefully study it. How often do you want to return to one direction or another? Select five of them (according to the number of weekdays) - this will be a weekly sheet, the rest - in a monthly plan. The principle is the same: it doesn’t matter what day and how well you worked out, the main thing is that the lesson took place, and the mark of completion is deservedly worth it. Perhaps this approach will help you avoid the syndrome of eternal procrastination.
How to move yourself
Checklists, while easy and unobtrusive, still assume that you are working with your child. How to get yourself moving if you can’t start classes? Read a book by any author of a popular development method: M. Montessori, G. Doman, Nikitins, the famous “After Three It’s Too Late” by M. Ibuka. They are a great motivator, at least for the first time, which is enough for you to be “infected” with their ideas and start taking action.
Do you want to work with your child regularly? Remember: the most effective training system is one compiled by you personally, for you and your child.
Therefore, in September I will most likely take a break and implement my ideas. Namely:
One checklist will be for the elder, so that he does not forget to feed the fish, for example, and do pull-ups. And the second one will be for me - what to do with the younger one.
In principle, the checklist is already ready. I also bought magnets for him. The idea is very cool and simple, I’ll definitely show it to you later.
- I want to do a few more themed weeks and systematize classes on Shichida technique(development of the right hemisphere of the brain).
Here's the plan:
1. TN “Farm”- We're playing it this week.
When I was drawing up the plan, I was afraid that it would be too much. But it turned out in reality that we managed to do everything, didn’t get tired, and that Svetozar needed just such a volume - 6-7 different classes a day, less is not interesting, he asks for more.
2. Games according to the Shichida method.
I only recently learned about the technique and am hooked! It helps to develop abilities such as visualization, intuition, photographic memory - all this is very useful and practical, it will definitely come in handy in life. I tried it with children - they are interested!
The only thing is that I haven’t yet had time to systematize my classes and create a daily routine. And then I received an invitation to the course, so next week, under the supervision of the leader, I will implement full-fledged classes for both children
At the same time, this same week I will be finishing the TN “Geometric Figures”.
3. TN “Geometric figures”.
Plus we will continue our Shichida classes.
Here, by the way, is our “Turnip” - a magnetic theater:
Well, the school year has already begun. Seryozha is entering 3rd grade. It will be necessary to reintroduce the motivation system. Last year I gave him pictures for each lesson he completed, this year I want to put stickers in the diary and for a certain amount - a gift.
If you don’t know, we are in family education, we study at home. And from time to time I have to motivate my son to do schoolwork.
4. TN “Fairy Tales”.
Honestly, if I have time, it will be. If I don’t have time, I’ll reschedule.
This is the plan I came up with for the next month
If you don’t conduct themed weeks, you don’t know where to start and what tasks to choose, I’ll tell you about it a little later. There's nothing complicated there
And I will definitely share with you the materials of the technical trainings that I have conducted and am planning to conduct again. Follow the newsletter
Don't forget that the child has a father (if you are a father, then don't forget that the father is you). Leave them alone (don’t be afraid, he, like you, also has no idea how to do it right), help establish a strong connection that is different from yours, trust and remember that the baby has two parents.
Check your baby's first aid kit regularly
Keep your home stocked with over-the-counter antipyretic drops, vasoconstrictor drops (as well as regular saline drops), nasal rinses, rehydration powders, antihistamines, patches, and healing ointments. In short, be prepared for sudden illness. Because children don’t seem to know how to get sick any other way.
Remember that your child is not you
Do everything possible to find out what he is like, what his character is, what his strengths and weaknesses are. Always remember: what you like (or liked in childhood) does not have to delight him. The approach that seemed logical to you may not be suitable for your child. In other words, your key will not fit it, you will have to puff. Imagine that you are participating in Fort Boyar.
Take small steps towards big goals
Don't think you can introduce solids like a ninja in four weeks. This is far from a fact. Be glad that broccoli puree is only on your pants today, and not in your hair like the day before yesterday. Don’t expect that a child who is used to co-sleeping will move into his own bed within a day (it happens, but don’t count on it just in case). Don't try to force your child to memorize all the letters of the alphabet in one day. So what if he confuses O and D, in two weeks he may well start reading.
Give your child responsibilities
Of course, he is still small. But he can help you set the table. It can interfere with the pancake dough (of course, you will finish it yourself later, but that’s a fact). He can put away toys before bed. Make the bed and put on pajamas (if age allows). Be sure to assign your child an area of responsibility depending on his age. Having your own responsibilities sends a message to him that you trust him, which in turn helps build self-esteem.
Photo source: pixabay.com
Don't turn into a butler
It is necessary for the child to know where his outerwear hangs and where the shoes he wears for walks are. Ideally, he should have his own hanger that he can reach and hang or take his jacket off the hook, depending on whether you are leaving or arriving. If he does this at three years old and is wildly proud of himself (because you know about positive reinforcement, right?), then at seven he won’t have to remind him that you are not a servant and have no idea where he put his down jacket.
Admit mistakes
You don’t have to pretend that because you’re an adult, you can do anything. Apologize when you mess up and you know it (moreover, often the child knows it too). Explain and talk.
Remember the napkins
Don't leave home without wet and dry wipes. It doesn't matter if you have a baby, a toddler, or a high school student. Really. Just keep tissues in your bag ALWAYS. They are your best friends.
Don't forget about your friends
By the way, about them, yes. It's clear that you now have tissues (and children!), but still, without adults who understand you, life can be boring and dull. While you are in the hell of the newborn period, it seems to you that you do not want to see anyone, but as soon as you exhale a little, you will understand how much you miss a person with whom you can talk in coherent sentences. Stay connected with friends who have experienced the fact that you have multiplied.
Develop good habits
Children are born to us, among other things, to make us better. When you have a baby, you have new possibilities (yes, including the possibility of going crazy from exhaustion). Start sorting garbage, drinking enough fluids (and wine, wine too!), walking ten kilometers a day, cooking breakfast, learning a foreign language, and then your child will catch up.
Read fairy tales
Be sure to read to your child every day. Spend at least five minutes doing this before bed - it's a great little tradition that builds taste, increases your vocabulary, stimulates your imagination and strengthens your bond.
Photo source: pixabay.com
Count
Do math from a very young age. But not based on benefits and cards, but based on real situations in life. Count the vegetables and fruits you buy at the supermarket. Name the shapes of objects. Use the terms “more”, “less”, “largest”, “smallest”, “medium” and so on. The basics of logic learned in the first few years of life will make your child's mind flexible and alert.
Keep your family archive in a safe place
Phone memory or laptop storage is not the best place to store family photos and videos. Don’t be lazy to buy more space in the cloud service to save all the important footage (which right now may not seem like it to you, but one day you yourself will want to see how tiny this big thing once was).
Be parents, not friends
The desire to become closer to the child sometimes leads parents a little in the wrong direction: your goal is not to be your child’s friend (believe me, the older he gets, the less he will appreciate your familiarity, especially during the period of separation request). You don’t have to strive to be a favorite—you don’t have to please your child every second. It's enough to just love him.
Spend time without your child
Mom and Dad need to go on dates, even if they have been married for ten years. Time together is necessary for all couples, and even more so for those who are raising children together. You can start with short coffee breaks in a cafe near your home, and after a few years try to go on vacation together for the first time. Try it!
Have a family cat party
Pokotofaniya at home with the whole family is wonderful. Reject all worries and forget about the everyday bustle. Your courses, development programs and a speed skating section for infants will be waiting for you. Turn on your favorite cartoons, eat cookies in bed, allow ice cream for lunch, don’t visit or host anyone. If you do this at least once a month, it will be very cool.
Confess your love
Feel free to express your feelings, talk about how much you love this creation, how cool it turned out and how proud you are of it. Many of us grew up in families where this kind of behavior was not considered necessary or even normal, but we need to change that and let our children know that it is okay to confess your love to those closest to you.