Putters & Leavers.

In life there are putters and there are leavers. Everyone falls into one of these categories. You are either one or the other.

I'm a putter. Aka, a bit of a perfectionist.  All of my belongings have places. And my belongings can be easily found because they're always in their place. Unless Mr.K has used it. Because if he has, that means that he's left it somewhere else. Mr.K is a leaver. 

Let me give an example. In my kitchen cupboard sits a pretty little pot. It's a pale egg shell blue. The sole purpose of this pot is to hold keys. The key for the letterbox. The key for the cupboard with the electricity meter. The key for the gate. The key that we got when we moved in that we've never used because we still don't know what it opens. My house keys and my car keys. In fact, here's a picture. Please note, I've only listed my house keys and my car key. That's because I'm a putter. I get home and the first thing I do is go to the cupboard and put my keys in the pot. 

  

Ask me if Mr.K uses the pot. Go on, ask me. Simple answer, no. That's because he's a leaver. He'll come home from work and empty his pockets and leave the contents wherever he's standing. And normally, the contents of his pockets don't end up getting left in one place. His mobile might be left of the sofa, his wallet the dining table. His keys on top of the microwave and his loose change somewhere in the bedroom. Mr.K is a leaver.

Don't be fooled into thinking that I'm complaining about his leaver status. Yes, I would love it if he came home and put his keys in the pot. Heck, I would even love it if he just left all of his stuff in one place. Because when we go out and he can't remember where he's left all of his stuff it takes time. Serious time. But honestly, I'm not complaining. Because if we were both putters, if we were both perfectionist putters we'd probably kill one another. We would argue about the positioning of the cushions on the sofa or the way that the fridge is organised and we would become so irate that one of us would kill the other. And I'm glad that we're not both leavers. Because if we were both leavers we might just die. We would forget where we've put our keys and we would spend so long searching for them that death would eventually occur because we've forgotten to eat. 

You have to have a putter and a leaver. Balance. If you take out your imaginary observation notes you will see that all around you there are putters and there are leavers. By now you will have probably figured out which one you are. And by now you will have probably figured out that your husband or best friend or whoever is the opposite. 

But don't worry. Putter or leaver does not have to be a permanent label. You can learn and you can compromise and you can adjust. Over time. Putters can learn to not care so much about things like key pots and they can learn that its ok to leave things in places occasionally. That's right putters. Take a deep breath and repeat after me. It's ok to leave things in places. Occasionally. And leaver, you can learn too. You can learn to leave (or put...depends on how far your willing to go) your keys or your phone or your purse in the same place everyday. That's right. In the same place everyday. Imagine how much time you could save by doing that. The mind boddles.

I'm Becky and I'm a putter. Mr.K is my husband and he's a leaver. But we love each other anyway. 

*Inspiration for this post take from Jon Richardson Live at the Apollo.