TikTok creator and self-described “resident fairy godmother” Charlie recently shared five things she stopped doing to make life less “unnecessarily difficult.” She thinks these small tweaks could make other people’s lives easier, too.
#1 Feeling pressure to place all items where they’re “supposed” to go.
For example, rather than putting clothes away in a closet (which makes her forget what she actually has), Charlie hangs them on a rack. Keeping them “out in the open” in her line of sight makes it easier to remember what’s available.
#2 Not allowing herself to have more than one of the items that she frequently needs.
While she still aims to be “mindful of the environment,” Charlie does find that buying multiples of some things (sunscreen and phone chargers, for example) and leaving them in multiple places (such as around the house, in her bag, or in the car) at once is much less of a hassle than attempting to transport them from place to place. It’s also less wasteful, since the previous strategy ended with her losing those items.
#3 Believing the “proper” way of doing something is better, even when it’s less convenient.
Here, Charlie reasoned that using “shortcuts” like pre-chopped vegetables and microwaveable rice gives her a much higher chance of actually cooking a nutritious meal.
She argued that, at least in her case, “shame” drove her to choose propriety over anything that actually benefited her.
#4 Sticking to routines that seem to work for other people, even when they didn’t work for her.
Charlie admitted that after adopting, adapting, and inevitably abandoning the same wellness morning routine “17 times,” she finally embraced the fact that she actually needs more variety and novelty. Lo and behold, that simple switch made her mornings much easier.
#5 Assuming that having difficulty with something meant she had done something “wrong.”
Charlie said this was a “big one” because it caused her to think more objectively. She learned to focus on what she can control and make work for her, rather than unnecessarily putting herself down.
Charlie concluded that the recurring theme with all of these is dropping “all these rigid rules around what you’re supposed to do as an adult.”
This was something many viewers could relate to—whether they kept multiple items, bought more convenient but still nutritious food, or found their own ways to handle household chores.
As one person wrote, “I think the moment I became an adult was when I started working with the person that I am rather than the person I think I should be.”
So, if you need motivation to exercise your free will today, here it is.
