Why Being Teachable Is the First Step to Peaceful Productivity

Every year, I usually choose two words.
One is personal — something I want to grow in.
The other is for my home — a word that reflects the atmosphere I want to nurture and the rhythms I want to strengthen.

One year, that word was structure.

I had a very specific picture in mind of what that would look like. Sleek digital home organizers. Uploaded recipes and color-coded menus. Beautiful systems that looked Insta-worthy, polished, and put together. I then began implementing these new structures...

But instead of feeling structured, I felt busy.
Instead of peaceful, I felt frustrated.

I was still missing deadlines and appointments. Still rushing across town after promising to be somewhere else. Still feeling like I was always catching up — even though I had all the tools.

That’s when I realized something important: I wasn’t lacking structure.
I was lacking teachability.

So I did the one thing I hadn’t done yet — I surrendered the picture I had built in my head. I told God I didn’t want my version of structure anymore. I wanted to learn what structure was supposed to look like for my life, not what it looked like online.

Not shiny.
Not impressive.
Not complicated.

That’s when everything began to simplify — the Goshen way.

Simplicity has always been my natural rhythm. It’s unhurried. It’s grounded. It leaves room for the Holy Spirit instead of crowding every moment with noise. When life is simple, I don’t feel boxed in or overstimulated. I feel present.

So instead of adding more systems, I stripped things back.

I returned to physical planners and binders. I simplified my home. Especially the kitchen. I realized I don’t actually love fancy dishware or perfectly matched sets. I love quirky thrifted glassware. Real wood. Pieces with character and warmth. Structure, for me, started to feel rooted instead of rigid.

And with that shift, peace returned.

The same thing happened with meal planning. I invited God into it instead of rushing through it on autopilot. I let go of my trusty go-to recipes — the ones I was really good at and never had to measure — and returned to my love for Italian cooking. This time, I slowed down. I cooked intentionally. I started from scratch.

At first, everything took longer. I felt clumsy. I had to look things up. I had to learn again. But along the way, something shifted. I began to understand the why behind what I was doing — how flavors build, why timing matters, why certain ingredients belong where they do.

And then something surprising happened.
I got faster.
More confident.
More present.

Being teachable required humility — not self-criticism. Not perfection. Just a willingness to learn without condemning myself for not already knowing.

That’s when it clicked: peaceful productivity doesn’t come from mastering systems — it comes from staying teachable.

When we stop striving to appear capable and allow God to guide us step by step, productivity becomes lighter. Kinder. More sustainable. We move forward not because we’re pushing harder, but because we’re finally aligned.

Sometimes the most productive thing you can do
is admit you need help —
and let God teach you what works for you.

Hugs,