Day 20:       Find Extra Time In Your Day

    How much time do you waste in any given day?  I don’t know about you, but I can waste absolutely hours on end.  Sudoku (a horrible habit), checking email several times an hour, looking through clutter for things I need, or just putzin’ around.  We all have times when we need to “veg out”; times when the stresses of the day need to be put on hold and we shut our minds off.  But there is an awful lot of time wasted in our day. 

    So start observing yourself.  What do you do when you are undecided as to what to do?  I work out of my home and I found that whenever I transitioned from one task to another, I would go and check the refrigerator and cabinets to hunt for a snack.  It finally dawned on me that I wasn’t hungry.  (It also dawned on me that if there was nothing good to eat twenty minutes ago, it wasn’t going to magically appear in my kitchen now.)  I was just using the trip to the kitchen as something to do until I could face my next task.  And the more I dreaded doing the task, the more little things I could find to do instead of actually working.  So, to find more time in your day, look for your personal time wasters, whether it is calling friends to chat, doing a puzzle or surfing the web.

    Here is where working off lists really helps.  If you know what you need to do, you don’t have to spend several minutes in-between tasks wondering what you should do next.  Sometimes I pick and choose – I may do a simple task if I know I only have a few minutes before a conference call.  I try to do my hard stuff earlier in the morning when my brain is still fresh and relatively uncluttered. 

    The biggest time waster I can think of is TV.  We all have favorite shows but we end up watching whatever is on, whether we think it is good or not.  Television is magnetic.  It draws you in.  If the set is on, you are going to watch it, that is the bottom line.  So, I recommend you use the Off button.  “Oh my God Barbara!  Are you telling me there is another button besides channel, volume and mute?  You can turn a TV off?”  Yes.  You have my permission.  When I have a major project due  I will actually unplug the TV or throw a tablecloth over it so I am not tempted. 

    If you are watching re-runs of re-runs; if you have seen an episode more than three times, then you don’t need to sit there and watch it again.  Use that time productively.  I have a re-run exercise program.  If I have seen the episode before, the rule is that I have to walk in place while the show is on and do crunches during the commercials.  When you put this exercise plan into place you will see how much easier it is to turn the TV off.  :-)

    So if you have no time, find time.  It is a treasure buried in your day.  Take the time to dig it up and show it some respect.  Time can be your biggest ally or your largest problem.  It is there waiting for you.  It is time to take control of it.