Have you just left the nest, started travelling, are a divorced parent, going to live and work abroad, have bad organisational skills or have you entered a new phase of your life and are finding it hard to carry out everything?
To take a look at it clearly, it’s helpful to put your week’s agenda on paper i.e. Sunday to Sunday.
- Everything that you are doing i.e. from the minute you get up till you go to bed. I know it’s time-consuming but, in the end, it would be worth it.
- Then write down the other tasks you do on the monthly basis and the ones you do every other month
- Remember the ones you have to do according to the seasons as well.
On the other hand, make a list of all the things you want to do or accomplish. The ones you keep telling yourself you want to do first. Even if you have over 100 on that list keep writing it down. Start with the ones you want to achieve first.
I bet you are asking yourself a few questions after doing that. Perhaps you’re asking or saying, “Wow! I can’t believe I’ve been doing this like this,” or “I have been doing this for that person or with this person and look at how much time I am spending with people who really show up for me,” or “But there’s an app to help me with managing this so why am I doing this particular task manually?”
Now you get me and why this is important to sort out? Taking the time to learn a new system will benefit you in the long run.
- Okay now just brainstorm from the list of tasks you have starting from the time you get up to all your other tasks. Is there an easier way to do them than the current way you’ve been doing it?
- See where you can save yourself time (if you do see a good way if not it’s still okay).
- Now see what is not necessary and if you can cut it out of the list or cut the habit out. While you’re deciding that think about how bad you want the first 5 goals. This should make things easier.
- If you find that you have made time but it’s not enough then ask yourself what it will take to reach goal number 1. Would you need to focus on goal number 1 for 1 year or 3 years? How bad do you want it?
- Once you’ve answered those questions can you move timeslots on your agenda to achieve this goal? Perhaps you’ve made enough time to reach 2 goals.
It’s better to reach at least one of your goals than spending your life thinking, regretting and procrastinating. The more you can reach of course the better but be aware of burnout. I will write about this topic one day.
A few tips – now that you’ve prioritised things and found a way around it.
If you’re getting people’s help to get you more time, ensure that you’re not manipulating them into that or taking their time from them to live the life they have created for themselves. Remember, if we’ve created these consequences, we can’t blame or be bitter towards others and we should take care of what we can, usually people that truly love and care for you will want to help you out. Remember even the little help you get is more help than others in the world even got. So be grateful for that. Value and show appreciation for the people who help you and are there for you.
I have seen so many families fall apart, heard how members of a family treat others without respect yet they want to be respected by the outside world, they want to please others, yet little does the outside world know about the little respect and gratitude that person has for people in their own home. First, you need to treat yourself with respect before you can treat anyone else with respect. Respect those who were there for you from the beginning and still help you today than those who were never there to see your struggle or help you. You know who the talkers are so respect the friends and people you can call on.
Hopefully, you’re also giving up what isn’t true to you or your life and not only taking help all the time from others without making sacrifices or doing your bit.
Life is short and here’s what I will leave you with.
“Dead people receive more flowers than the living ones because regret is stronger than gratitude.” Quote by Anne Frank
T. Dench Patel
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Note: Do keep referring back to this site as much as possible, as I grow, a more profound perspective may form and so I will always come back to each of these articles to reevaluate them.
