Why is My Car is Always Out of Gas

Dear FlyLady,

Every time I am in a hurry; I look down and my car is about out of gas. Does FlyLady have a routine for helping me with my bad habit of running on empty.

Holding my Breath
FlyBaby S.

Dear Friends,

Did you know that you can actually fill up your car before it hits empty and you are running around on fumes? We don't usually do anything until we HAVE TO!

So you are driving to an appointment, work, or to pick up the children and notice that your fuel gauge is on the big "E" and you don't have time to stop and get gas, because you are already running ten minutes late. Then your car starts sputtering and you run out of gas, in the middle of a busy road.

Look at what this does to you and your family!

1. At this moment, you are under tremendous stress and almost in tears. This is not good for your health.

2. If you are running late for work, your reputation of being tardy has been validated once again.

3. You have to make excuses. No one wants to hear the same tawdry reasons for you being late.

4. Your children are waiting for you to pick them up. This is not good.

5. Your appointment has to be canceled and reschedule, what a waste of the professional's time and yours.

6. Now what about your safety issue? The traffic, and getting gas to get you moving again.

7. You are stranded in the middle of no where. What now!

8. You have to call and inconvenience, your husband or a friend to come and rescue you once again. What about the time they lose in their day, all because you didn't fill up when you needed to.

9. Getting help cost money.

10.Your children are crying and you are at your wits end.

11. Then you start to cry. Are you sick and tired of living this way?

What can you do to stop this from happening ever again?

Most of your life, you have been running on empty.

Empty of mind (No time to think)

Empty of body (You don't take care of yourself by eating good food)

Empty of spirit (You are depressed and feel martyred)

You run until you can no longer keep going. Does this sound familiar? Then you crash and burn, get sick or literally run out of gas.

You will not believe what I am going to tell you. The answer to this problem is to fix this into your routine. Your Basic Weekly Plan!

1. When you notice the fuel gauge on half a tank, then start looking for moments of time when you are not rushed to fill up.

2. Figure out how often you need to fill up and set a specific time of the week to do just that.

3. I keep a spare twenty dollar bill in my car, so I will always have the cash on hand to fill up when I get a chance. When you use it, you have to replace it, the next time you have cash in hand. If you are not on empty a twenty can almost fill you up.

4. I also like to fill up at pumps that let me use my credit card right at the pump. This keeps me from having to leave my vehicle, it also saves me time in the long run.

5. Connect filling up with car clean up. Every time you fill up, throw away your trash. Or every time you clean out and wash you car, you fill up. We have a car clean up challenge each Friday

If you will quit letting your fuel gauge steal your time, safety, and sanity, you will begin to find a small amount of peace in your life. Think about those little bits of time that you can rescue if you just do a little planning. I know that this is foreign to FlyBabies, but we can learn. I was so proud of myself today. I filled up with a quarter of a tank left in my car. Try it sometime. It is so liberating.

Now to the problem of you running on Empty.

Take breaks, Drink your water, plan just a little, do your routines and get dressed to shoes every morning when you get up and go to bed at a decent hour.

I am Flying with a Full Tank! How about you?

FlyLady

P.S. I consider that always having plenty of gas in the car is just like having your shoes on. You are ready for anything. That means any time an emergency happens, you are prepared! I have been setting my timer for 15 minutes all day long, to remind me to drink my water. My water bottle keeps me hydrated.