I like this time of year. I like the changing colours on the trees. I like wearing warm, cosy clothes. And I really like gaining an extra hour when the clocks change!
Almost everyone I know is pressed for time, always rushing and often running late. Getting an extra hour is a gift!
Previously, I have been quite a time obsessed type of person, feeling stressed when I encounter a delay.
Recently, I added a reminder to my phone that pops up twice a day. It says: “I have all the time I need for everything”. It’s an affirmation that is helping me to have perspective about time and deadlines.
In addition, I’m trying out some other strategies to help with having more time.
1. Before I go to bed in the evening, I make decisions for the next day, choices like what clothes I’ll wear. Doing this the night before means I’m quite purposeful as I am looking forward to going to sleep, and I don’t delay. This then leads to a more streamlined morning, as I get straight into my day’s priorities.
2. I have started to reduce the time I spend making minor decisions. For example, when someone mentions a good film or TV show, I put a note in my phone, and follow that recommendation as opposed to losing time weighing up different options. Various studies have shown that people spend an average of 20 minutes or more choosing what to watch on TV.
3. I am trying to set time limits for unimportant tasks like scrolling through social media. An academic I know allows herself 10 minutes of scrolling through Twitter after 50 minutes of concentrated work. In his book, “Atomic Habits”, James Clear shares that he gets his assistant to change his social media passwords on Monday morning so he can’t access his accounts until he gets the new passwords sent to him at the weekend. I haven’t gone quite that far but it’s an idea worth considering.
What would you add to the list?
Feature Image credit: Malvestida Magazine via Unsplash
Sinead Huskisson 