“If only I had more time I could do….”
I am sure you have said the phrase above or a phrase like it.
People like to blame time for not getting things done or being able to do something.
I don’t have time to work out.
I don’t have time to read.
I don’t have time to cook.
I don’t have time to (insert whatever you want to do here)
You can have more time because there is more than enough of it. Time is not going anywhere. Instead you have to look at how you are spending your time and how you are thinking about it.
When you look around during your day it is easy to spot people who are rushing around. The ones with the overwhelmed look on their face and tense body rushing through the grocery store because they need that milk and they are on a phone call.
Has that ever been you?
It is very easy to get into the mindset that time is running out. Your brain will support you when you begin thinking that. The brain wants to keep you alive and the way it did that a long time ago was to send you danger signals creating a sense of urgency.
Your brain loves to support you in whatever environment you are creating. You say you are running out of time your brain is right there with you. It is going to seek to make you right and put you in that place of urgency. Your body will be fired signals to reinforce it.
You may sweat or get really tense when you say you are running out of time. Remember your brain is looking to support you so take care in what you tell it.
People say they run out of time. But, you can’t run out of time. There is always more time. Time has not stopped it has not gone anywhere. What has happened is that the time has not been used in a purposeful way.
During your day there is guranteed to be things that you can stop to get more time right now.
There are things you are doing that can stopped to instantly create time in your day.
Stop Multitasking
Multitasking is a secret time waster. It tricks us into believing if we are doing more things at one time then we are getting more done.
This is not the case. When you multitask your attention is being shifted between multiple things.
Each time you switch between those tasks you are having to refocus. Refocusing takes time. Some tasks more than others will display this.
For example you may try to check your emails on your phone while you make breakfast.
Both are fairly simple tasks that can be done with ease. But, everytime you are reading your email you are not giving the amount of attention you could be to cooking your eggs. This will either cause you to overcook the eggs or delay the process. This works the other way too, you pause to stir the eggs and then shift back to your email. But you forgot that you were mid thought and send out a half finished email.
Simple tasks are tempting to combine. In the end you are just making them both take much longer.
Start Focusing
Instead of multitasking set aside an amount of time to check your email, get that completely done and then make your omelette.
Not only will the time it takes you shorten because you can focus on that one thing but the quality of what you are doing is going to improve as well.
Stop Putting Out Fires
A notification pops up on your phone and you automatically swipe it open to check.
There are fake alarms that happen all the time. You don’t have to check on that notification, answer the phone call, or respond to that email right this second.
Technology has made more things instant than ever before. It connects us in ways we could have never imagined. I mean facetime is vastly different than those rotary phones back in the day.
As lovely as technology you are wasting time when you react to your notifications. You need to get out of reactive mode.
Start being intentional
I am in no way telling you to ditch the cell phone or quit social media. They can certainly have space in your life but do not let it take you away from the task at hand.
When you start working on something turn your phone on silent, turn it over, or even put it in a drawer. Out of sight, out of mind.
Before you pull out your phone to check it consider what you are doing or what you should be doing. Set constraints around when you check your social media so it isn’t taking the place of tasks that should be done.
Stop Doing All the Things
People will bombard you with invites and events. It is great to feel wanted but you do not have to be on every planning committee or go to every dinner out that your friends are having.
Spending your time in too many places means your time spent there is not your best.
The impulse “of course, I’ll be there” needs to be turned into let me check my calendar. Even if you don’t have a calendar!
Give yourself the space to make the decision in a clear manner.
Filling up your time is more than likely going to lead you into overwhelm. It is hard to enjoy any of the events when you are worried about getting to the next one.
Start Being Deliberate
Participate in events that make sense and you want to. There is no need to say yest to every invite.
Pick two fundraisers a year and be clear about what is important. That may mean family members birthday parties are the event you are going to do on a particular weekend and all other invites are declined.
Whatever rules you want to set in place make it manageable. When you start feeling that rushing around coming on you know you need to take a look at what you took on.
Your time is valuable do not give it away when there is somewhere else it is better spent.
Stop being Unclear about What You Want
Indecision is a major time waster. When you aren’t sure what you want to do you can’t do it.
Look at the age old debate of where to go to eat. Before you know it it’s been two hours you’re hungry and still don’t have food.
In a bigger picture look at how you spend your time daily. Are you putting your time towards an end goal? Do you know what you are seeking in your life?
Not knowing yourself or what you want will lead you down many wrong paths. You will seek things that make no sense. Finding your true wants let’s you zone in on where to spend your time.
Start Making Decisions
Make a decision and stick to it.
There is never going to be the perfect answer. You are not going to find a light up arrow that shows you the way.
All you can do is make the best decision you can based on the information you have.
It is okay to look into things but don’t let that last forever.
Have a direction that you are working towards. It will help guide those decisions when you are clear about what you want.
Stop Waiting Until Last Minute
Deadlines do not sneak up on us. That todo list item did not come out of nowhere.
It does create a false sense of urgency. All other tasks have to be dropped to turn your attention to it because it has to be done right now.
Start Thinking Ahead
Do things before they reach the critical point. You will be able to give them the attention they need.
Taking care of the tasks before you have no choice to will also free up your mind space to think clearly. When you have something you need to take care of hovering in the back of your mind it can be very bothersome.
Take the time to look at when major items need to be done and make sure to do them when it makes sense.
Stop making things important when they aren’t
The laundry probably doesn’t need to be at the top of your list.
We are good at making things important when they can be held off. Assess whether the task you are pushing to number one on the list is appropriate.
There may be times you have no pants and pants are important so do the laundry but make sure you are doing the laundry because you really need to.
The time it takes to do that task could be better put to use.
Where we should be spending our time to move us to the next level can be scary. Rather than doing the things that will bring us closer to our goals we fill our time with busy work to make it seem we don’t have time for the other things.
Start Knowing what is really important
You will know when something is important to take care of because it is going to affect something in a major way.
The task itself does not have to be huge but, when compounded with the other things you are doing it will make an impact.
Ask yourself if what you are doing right now is going to move the needle. What is it’s purpose and what is it going to do for you?
At this point you now have so much time on your hands you can tackle that goal you have been putting off.
It is easy to get caught in the overwhelm of life. Everyone talks about how busy they are but, when you look a little deeper the things they are doing aren’t bringing them anywhere.
You have the control over your time and how you are using it. Decide what is important in your life and where you want to go.
When you are presented an event or a task if it doesn’t fit into that life then there is no reason for you to take it on.
Remember that time itself is not going anywhere.
You have the same amount of time in a day that anyone else has. How you are using it will determine the results that you see.
Stop doing the things above and see how much time you can gain in your life.
