Our lives are busier than ever before. Our time is pressed by career, family, friends and sometimes even the things we want to do takes our precious time. Checking email or text messages on your phone is not considered ‘a break’.
So what is the process to take time out for ourselves? Where can we look for those openings in our busy schedule of not stop meetings and tasks that need to be accomplished daily? It sounds simple but we all know it’s not. Listed below are some steps to take a break.
Track what you do on a normal
It might sound odd, but we often actually don’t know where our time goes. Over the course
of a normal week, let’s attempt to keep track of what you do with your time. Carry a small
notebook and check your watch when you start different tasks at home and at work. If your
tied to the computer much of the day like me, I sometimes use a spreadsheet to handle this
process. Any surprises? Do you spend tons of time checking emails, responding to phone
calls, completing tasks you thought were a minor part of your workload? Try to think about
why these things take longer than you thought they would. Are you completely focused on
them or, because they are minor tasks, are you doing something else at the same time? As
we’ve been aware for a while now, multitasking is not always the best way to go. If tasks
take longer in reality than you expected or allowed for, you will always feel as if you are
behind schedule and ‘playing catch-up’. Knowing where your time goes is the first step to
finding some time for yourself. I find use to find myself checking and email and responding
to one or more that was not in my schedule to get done. All of the sudden, I’m 30 minutes
off schedule.
Make a Priorities List
This will work in conjunction with step one to help you determine whether you are spending your time on the things that are actually most important to you.
- Start by creating a brain dump of all the tasks you spend your time on (use your list from step one to help you) including your spare time.
- Check your list and see if there’s anything missing i.e. it’s important that you visit your Mom every month. Add it to your list. Consider driving time in addition to the visit time.
- Prioritize your tasks in order of importance.
- Compare the priority list with your time tracking list to make sure you have everything.
Plan a Break
Plan breaks throughout your daily schedule, including in your leisure time. We sometime fill our weekends with as much socializing or home duties as possible because our busy working lives leaves little time during the week to chat with a friend or take care of our home chores. When we pack our lives so fully, we leave no down time and we tend to feel as if we are rushing from one thing to another – from work to drinks with friends to a meal with a family member.
Regularly block out a weekend in your calendar. Give it a title like “My Time” or “”My Fun”. Don’t accept invitations on these weekends. And don’t wait for a free weekend to present itself because last minute invitations can easily swallow up your time. If you do actually get the weekend to yourself, you’re not ready for it. In your scheduled time off from your life, plan something that you want to do. Spend the weekend catching up on some reading, watching some TV or DVDs. Wander around a market, gardening, playing in the park with your kids… whatever it is that you will enjoy and will make you feel as if you have used your time in a fun manner. You’ll feel more refreshed and ready for your working week if you’ve actually treated yourself and allowed yourself the time you need to start feeling human again. In summary, know your time usage; know your priorities; and plan time for yourself. You’ll be more productive in the long run. You’re worth it!
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