Over a decade ago, in April 2013, I spoke at a conference in the Portland, Oregon, area. They put me up in a lovely guest house in the country. It was a healing and restful stay—oh, how I longed for that same calm in the midst of June!
That June, the stress hit me hard. I had recovered from an accident and from technical challenges that took my websites offline for over seven and a half months. Now, everything had piled up, pressing down on me. To make sense of it all, I mapped out my responsibilities, drawing circles for each and clustering details around them. The result? My page looked like fireworks!
Yet, nothing on that page felt like something I could remove. It was summer, and each day, I jumped out of bed, working nonstop to catch up.
Overwhelmed and exhausted, I showed my chart to my best friend, Lenore. She studied it, then gently asked, "Donna, where are you? I don’t see you on this page."
She was right. With all those circles, I hadn’t made space for myself—no time to recharge, no moments to refresh. I had entered full "crisis mode," running from sunup to bedtime without feeling like I was making progress. Victory seemed so far away!
Determined to reclaim my calm, my friend and I sat down and created a plan to lay a strong daily foundation.
My Ditch-the-Stress Rules & Original Routine
Ditch The Stress Rules
- I couldn’t discuss what I was doing with anyone for 90 days.
- No phone or computer during my foundational time.
- Use a timer!
- Start with seven essential foundational habits.
- Plan a weekly menu
- Decorate a composition book to create a beautiful Victory Journal for recording my journey.
- Develop a Victory Lady Dailies Menu—a simple habit rhythm written on a colored paint chip the size of an index card. This pocket-sized guide helped me stay on track until my new routine became second nature. I made new ones as I refined my plan.
That very night, I bought a 60-minute timer and went to bed with great anticipation. The next morning, I put my plan into action.
On my first day, my list was this and I needed it to be this way.
My Original Routine
Weekly
- Create two dinner menus—an A Menu and a B Menu—to prepare for unexpected disruptions. The B menu was my idea!
Daily
1. Morning walk
2. Shower
3. Breakfast
4. Laundry
5. Dinner Prep
6. 30-minute power clean
7. 30-minute personal devotional
That first morning, as I sat doing my devotional, something unexpected happened. Earlier, while starting the laundry, I had noticed a basket of unfolded clothes. I took a few moments to fold and put them away. Now, as I sat at the dining table, I had a front-row seat as my husband entered the laundry room looking for clean underwear.
The basket was empty. Confused, he checked the washer and dryer. Then, he walked down the hall to our bedroom. Our dresser was in full view. He opened his drawer and, to his surprise, found it full of neatly folded clothes.
At that moment, I felt the shift happening. I was doing the right thing. I was becoming a Victory Lady.
By the end of that first day, calm and peace had already begun to return.
The next morning, I adjusted my routine—waking up earlier so I could complete my devotions before my walk. I also moved dinner prep to be part of breakfast and the after-breakfast cleanup. Within three weeks, my 30-minute Power Clean transformed my home into a peaceful, organized space.
By fall, I had added homeschooling to my daily schedule.
Are you feeling overwhelmed? Would a few simple routines help you feel less stressed? What do you do to invite calm?
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