If someone asks what you do in your free time and you say,
“What free time?”, there’s a really good chance you’re doing it wrong. We’ve
all been there: short periods of time where you just don’t have two free
minutes to put together. Those times might include the birth of a new baby, a
rush to completion for a work or school project, or even preparation for or the
actual act of moving from one home to another. But, in general, school should
not be a reason to have no free time. But if that’s the case for you, it’s time
to level up.
But I’m so busy, you say. I have so much to do. How will I
ever find free time? Well, the first step, then, would be to track your time.
There are TONS of time tracking apps in the app store (on your phone, silly) or
you can go the good old pen and paper or even Excel spreadsheet route. But the
important thing is to track everything! Every potty break (where you bring your
phone and spend 30 minutes reading the news), every meal (in front of the TV),
every time you walk your dog or clean the house! Track it all! Once you have a few
days’ worth of data, you should get a clear view of where the bulk of your time
is going.
So what to do with all that data?
·
Where are you spending time that you’d rather
not? Are you sucked into a social media application for too long each day?
Here’s a great place you can carve out more free time! Put limits on it! Maybe
only check social media first thing in the morning and right after dinner.
You’ll have to work to resist the urge to check it – those Facebook likes and
Instagram hearts give you a hit of dopamine that is literally addictive! Be
kind to yourself and set reasonable goals.
·
Where are you spending time that could be better
or more efficiently spent? If you are writing a paper, for example, and you’re
taking notes by hand, you end up having to type them all later as you write.
Instead, get into a habit of taking notes electronically (where it can be saved
and never eaten by a dog!) – this will be faster in the first place and will
make writing the paper even quicker as you can copy and paste your work (no
plagiarizing!).
·
How much is your time worth? If it takes you an
hour to change the oil in the car but you could have it done in 20 minutes on
your way home from work, is it worth $20? That depends on you – but at some
point your time is worth more money than what it would cost to hire the job
out. I recently hired a painter to paint my dining room. Yes, I’m completely
capable of painting it myself but I hate painting a lot and it would have taken
me a week between prep, painting, and putting it all back together. The painter
came in and painted two amazing, thick coats in two hours. That was worth every
penny.
·
Are you spending your time doing both the things
you need to do and the things you want to do? If you’re like many adults, your
to-do list will literally never end; if you only focus on the things that are
on the to-do list, you’ll never do anything for yourself. Are there things that
can wait while you spend time having family dinners, doing activities with
families and friends, or having some time alone to recharge your own batteries?
It is just as important to take care of yourself as it is to clean the floors
or do the laundry.
·
How much time are you spending having fun? We
each only get one life (as far as we know), so be sure you’re getting some
enjoyment out of each day!
What if, after collecting all that data, you think – hey,
I’m doing OK! I’ve got a good mix of personal, professional, and academic
things going on and I haven’t neglected any one area of my life? You, my
friend, are doing a stellar job of time management! If you’re happy and you
know it, don’t fix what isn’t broken!
But I would challenge you, oh master of personal time, is there any way
you have time to level up? Could you spare an hour or two to give back to your
community? There are so many good opportunities:
·
Volunteer to walk dogs or play with the animals
at your local shelter! Ask them what you can do – many need people to take and
post pictures of animals on social media, so if you have a phone you can help
an animal find a home!
·
Pick up trash along the roads in your
neighborhood or community! We live near a lot of waterways, so picking up trash
along beaches and rivers is always an option.
·
Visit an assisted living center or nursing home!
My grandmother recently passed away at 98 years old and she spent the last six
months of her life in assisted living. I can’t tell you how much it brightens
everyone’s day when anyone comes to visit! Whether you’re there to visit one
person you know or just everyone in general, every person who lives in and
works at an assisted living center will be happy to see you!
There are so many ways you can level up how you spend your
free time! What are some ideas you are implementing in your own life?
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