Posted on January 29, 2020 by dragonspitapothecary
We always think we have time. We can get it all done we just need more time. It will only take a few minutes so we won’t be that late. It can seriously seem like we are constantly running late, never catching up or we are simply out of time. I feel like I don’t have enough time a lot in my days and I go from one thing to the next in an attempt to get all that I need to do done. It’s exhausting and I’m tired of being late. Actually for many of us being late is the new being on time.
I think most of us can relate to feeling like we don’t have enough time to do everything we’re supposed to, need to do or even want to do. I often feel like I’m rushing and never quite getting to the part where I have time to do the things I’d like to do. I hate that sometimes I can simply describe my time as being short on sleep, short on time for things I care about doing and short on patience as a result. When I am running late I feel flustered, I get impatient quickly and even a little snappy at those around me. It then sometimes sets the mood for the rest of the day all because I feel this pressure of time. When did time become such a rare commodity in my days?
Oh sure we can talk about prioritizing things in my day. I in fact have a beautiful new planner for this year where I had the good intention of making pretty schedules, maybe some meal prep plans and to-do lists that were able to be accomplished. Yes if only it were as easy as writing it down and having it execute according to plan and schedule. Alas that will work until there’s some emergency at work or home that requires me to shift from my well planned and structured day to deal with that fire. On the very night of my hair appointments that are scheduled for a whole year in advance because my hairdresser is so hard to get in with I will have a work trip come up that forces me to cancel that hair appointment. Then I will have to shuffle other things or skip an appointment to keep up with my hair needs. This is life quite regularly. My hair will not be the only thing that frizzes as a result. My nerves are shot and life in the fast lane just isn’t that much fun sometimes.
When I do get that precious few minutes I so desperately crave and can do anything my heart desires, guess what I’m most likely doing! The very same thing most of us do when we have a spare minute, I’m looking at my phone or tablet, checking emails or social media or sharing some quirky meme. Oh I am so guilty of wasting away my spare minutes in this way. Before I know it 30 or 40 minutes has passed and I’ve been checked out on my social media not doing what I really wanted to do. Like take a walk or work on a quilt or just read a book, like an actual real book. Sometimes I truly am my own worse enemy when it comes to robbing myself of time.
So this year I’ve challenged myself to change that scenario and start reclaiming my time as my own. Yes all those precious free moments I’ve been idling away in front of a phone are now up for grabs. This isn’t going to be easy at all and everyone who is a regular reader of my blog knows I am one that will rebel if a challenge is too much. However, in this case it is a necessity and I admit between just regular life demands and my own time wasted I am robbing myself of the time I want and need. This is after all a good time of year to start something new so this is my strategy for claiming back my time:
We already have the rule of no electronics at the dinner table. This has always been our household rule and it works well. I’m going to extend that to myself and say no electronics in the kitchen. Do you know how many times I have overcooked something because I was scrolling on my technology rather than focusing? Unless I need a recipe I’m going to work on not taking my technology as my partner in the kitchen. Maybe instead I’ll try doing some squats while I cook or some meal prep tasks. Ok well that is probably pushing it but you get what I’m saying here. There is now some extra time to focus on what I’m doing rather than multi-tasking.
When I have that precious few minutes in between tasks or chores or errands and it’s at least 15 minutes, I’m going to first see if I can do any of the things I say I always want to do, like take a walk or use our home’s workout equipment. This will be particularly challenging for me because finding motivation to say ok here’s 15 minutes let’s go walk isn’t always something I’m interested in doing. Sometimes 15 minutes to sit on the couch and vegetate sounds incredible but that is what’s caused my time waste on social media too. So here we go with 15 minute window walking challenges where I can also scroll if I feel the calling!
Meditation. So on my list of try it this year stuff is meditation. I have never been consistent at it and don’t have much patience for it. However, now that I am reclaiming my spare minutes like coins in the bottom of my purse I realize I do have time to try this more and make it a good thing in my life. There are essential oils all over my house with pretty diffusers so at any time I have those precious spare minutes I’m going to turn one on and try this whole meditation thing again. Since my phone is always with me too I can probably find some pretty meditative music to go with it.
I don’t know if what I’ve thought about for reclaiming my time will work but I do know letting go of the invisible cord between me and technology is a positive step forward and I definitely need to take more steps this year. I also don’t know if 15 minute windows will change my health or my outlook but I’m willing to give it a try. It just doesn’t feel good to be so snappy at people all the time, out of patience and constantly feeling like I’m in catch up mode.
If you’d like to try what I’m using for meditation support in my diffuser simply click here: dragonspitapothecary.com/meditation-support.
Tell me how you’re going to reclaim your spare time this year?
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