Can you provide your own structure?

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I find myself needing a high amount of structure and yet being fairly awful at providing it for myself.

Anyone else?

How do you fix it?

What makes you believe you're awful at providing structure to yourself?

It seems as if your kids' needs, plus your success on your job, provide enough required structure.

It seems as if you've been a success at both.

Now....if you have into debt...that would be another matter.

I guess one could always improve--I hope I'm not constraining self-improvement in any way

--but then, I think: if it ain't broke, don't fix it. There are people who are always seeking perfection, never find it--and, thus, are never happy. As a result, they are always in a "crisis."

--Then again, as I think further, It seems that, possibly, my advice would have the effect of constraining you from evolving further.

The best answer, in this case, might be:

I would be content with what I have--but, amid that contentment, I would seek to evolve to a higher plane in all things.

I think there's something special about you--and that either you, or those you raise, will do great things in the future. I can't put a finger as to why--I just have a gut feeling.

I use lists, calendars, and try to get started early. Since things often skip my mind or I wind up doing anything other than what I'm supposed to be doing, it gives me a way to track what needs to be done on any given day and when deadlines are coming up.

I also use a lot of lists and calendars. If I don't write something down, it will not get done. So basically I make a to-do list for every day. It's how I succeed in school because I make detailed study schedules and it's how I get everything else done that needs doing too like cleaning my house or bathing my dog or whatever. It is also useful to remind me to call people. I highly recommend it.

I sit down at the beginning of every week and make a detailed schedule for each day, then I revise it as I go along if needed. I use the schedules all the time. I try to break things down into small parts: not just "clean house" but sweep, mop, wipe counters, etc. I write down exactly which lectures I need to study each day. It was hard at first before I had an idea of how much time different tasks take but eventually I figured out how much I could plan for each day without being overwhelmed while still getting everything done for the most part. Then I cross things off as I go along. I also try to prioritize it so that I do the most important things first, that way if I have planned too much, I at least get the important stuff done. It also helps to do the things you want to do least early on because it is easier to make excuses at the end of the day when you are tired

Another +1 for lists, calendars, alarms, and alerts. I get overwhelmed with daily schedules lately, so I do weekly. I end up repeating lists in different areas if it's important, so I'll keep getting fresh reminders.