How do you find time to do the things you want in life? It is very common to have the feeling that you do not have the time to do the things you want, to get that precious time on your own, to have the time to follow your dreams, to develop, to learn more. Because there is so much going on in the day-to-day life taking up all our time, leaving no time (or energy) for what you really want. Once you are done with the grocery shopping, the cooking, the cleaning, the taking care of kids, doing school work, or your needed working hours (yes, the list can go on and on. I think you know the feeling :-)), then you are collapsing in the couch, in front of the TV, or scrolling on your mobile, before going to sleep, feeling exhausted. Thinking that, TOMORROW, then I will find the time for me. And ending up repeating the same pattern as yesterday, over and over again.
So how do you do then?! To find that precious time that we are in need of, that will make us feel really good? First, I would say, you need to choose. You need to decide on one thing that you want to focus on. If it is a hobby you want to develop, taking a class, learning a new thing, starting to exercise if you do not already, spending more time with your kids or friends, or it can be just deciding that you want half an hour of me-time every day.
Then start monitoring what you are doing during the days. Without judging or trying to change anything at first, just write in a journal on activities and timings, like when you get out of bed and when you go to sleep. And the big things during the day that you spend your time on. Do this for a week or two, you are done when you start seeing a pattern.
Next thing is to make a plan on what you want your days to be like, with including this one thing to focus on, for at least 30 minutes every day. And maybe you find that you are not that effective in some areas? Like planning the grocery shopping for instance, maybe you are going to the store a lot of times during a week, and you could easily reduce this by planning a bit more? Also, you can think about getting up a bit earlier, to find the time for your focus area before you need to start your day-to-day activities. And how can you make things more simple? Is there a shortcut for some things that you are spending too much time on, that you would like to change into other things that you really enjoy?
Once you have a plan on how you want to spend your days, it is time to make things happen! You set the alarm (you will need it), you get to bed when planned and you start, bit by bit, one day at a time, turning your days into days where there IS time for yourself and your dreams. I know, there can be a lot of challenges with doing this, so you need of course to adapt this to what is working for you and your life situation. And remember that even the seemingly small changes can make a difference over time.
To keep track of the changes I would continue writing a journal on your days, your timings and your activities, to see how you transform your life into a life where you do have time!
I hope this thoughts will help you, it is a very easy process of time management, but you will see that it can make a big difference over time.
Wish you the best. Take Care. Namaste.
Beayogawoman 