Wednesday, July 15, 2009

The Question of Time

Sometimes I'm asked about how I find the time to get everything done in my life. I do enjoy being busy and can juggle full time work with part time projects. I'm not sure if there's a secret to getting the most out of your time but I recently described it to a group in these terms:

Let's say you enjoy TV programs like American Idol. You like watching people chase their dreams, which can be fun. But are you more interested in watching someone else achieve their dreams, than in chasing your own? Maybe that answer help you prioritize your time.

I've found that the best time management practices often include a repurposing of "down time." In no way am I saying that you should stop enjoying TV and other sources of entertainment. But are you committing so much time to those programs that you're cheating yourself out of achieving your hopes and dreams?

It can be easy to fall into patterns where you pursue the comfortable and familiar and put off your goals until you, "get around to them."

To gauge an activity, ask these questions: Does it enrich me? Does it make me think? How will achieving my goal make me feel? Would it feel better than what I'm doing now?

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