Time. Use it Wisely (Part 1)

Photo by Kelly Hafermann

You can’t make more of it.  You aren’t promised any more than right now.  Don’t waste it.

Let’s kick off this section by getting back in control* of our time.  Gather up every scrap of paper, school calendar, doctor appointment ticket, and any other physical thing you have an important date written on.  Next, gather up all the important  birthdays/anniversaries….oh, maybe you don’t have those yet….start collecting them…get a list of names and dates on your iPhone, Google list, or notepad…just start collecting.  Collect your digital stuff too…put emails with important reminders in a folder, or actually add them to your digital calendar.  Don’t forget your Traditions Worksheets from here!  Just get them all in one place.

You can take a day or two to do that….

While you’re finding all of these items, let’s see where you’re spending your time NOW.  I’ve given you a spreadsheet that lists every hour of the day, for every day of the week.  Print one out.  Date it.  Carry it around with you and every ½ hour…write down what you just spend that time doing.  You might be surprised.  You should actually write this down instead of listing it on your phone…it will be more effective.

**Warning** – Rant Approaching:

And…if you just said “You. Are. Crazy.  There’s no way I’m doing that!”, OR “What a PAIN – Forget it lady!”….then guess what?

You probably aren’t serious about getting control of your time.  You can’t change what you don’t track.  And if you’re still reading this, I’m assuming you want to change how your time is spent.

I am willing to bet you think your spending your time differently than you actually are.  Tracking what you’re doing now will help you be okay with the changes you will make later, because you will understand why you are doing it.  Instead of just feeling bad about saying no to something.  Or assuming you just “don’t have time”.

So…if you’re unwilling to track where you spend your time now, you might just be more interested in staying in denial than making things better.

**End of Rant**

Gather your stuff and start tracking how you spend your days.  Step 2 is coming soon.

*Control is actually an illusion.  You can’t really control anything but your own choices.  But you can make plans and spend your time wisely when you can.  Then when things blow up or you have an emergency, you will be able to stay calm and adjust your day/week/month accordingly. You will be in control of your choices about time.