By Marie Dufour, RD – Gail, the first assistant who ever worked with me, once –to make fun of me– gave me a mug that read, “I have no time to get organized.” The message stuck and I’ve spent the last 30 years distilling these few words. It’s not about how much time we have, but what we choose to do with it. That goes for all the areas of our lives: work, family, play, spirituality and development.
Just like making the decision to lose weight, exercise, or stop smoking, time management starts with a commitment to change. Then, it is about planning, delegating, controlling the environment, understanding one self, and finally decide what to change about one’s attitudes and actions.
We manage our bank accounts; so can we manage our time account. Entire books have been written on the subject, but here are my key points for today. When it comes to your personal goal of living a healthy lifestyle:
1 – Examine how you are currently spending your time. Are the time hogs of email, Facebook, twitter, telephone calls and all social networking activities ruining your personal time bank account? Set aside specific times for social activities and respect them.
2 – Be selfish. Set aside time for yourself FIRST. It can be small chunks of time during the day (4 x 15min x 7 days), one medium slice at the end of the day (1hr x 7 days), or a whole day on the weekend (7 h x 1 day). Whichever savings plan you choose or make up for yourself, stick to it. People around you will notice, might grumble at first, but will respect your privacy in the end.
3 – Make the most of it. Treat this time for yourself as a high-interest account: make it work to its best yield. For example:
- At the gym, choose combined exercises that work the upper and lower body while raising the heart rate and double your yield.
- If meditation is your daily escape, have your texts and subjects ready beforehand.
- If reading a good book or studying a new subject is what makes you feel better, pick a time and place free of distractions. Surely, having the kids around or the neighbor’s music blaring are going to run you into personal time bankruptcy.
There is NO time credit. Once spent, it’s gone. Call me a miser, but as a time-scrooge I’m known for not answering the phone, not watching television, and disappearing for an hour every day. What’s your savings plan?
Filed under: Lifestyle , exercise, healthy lifestyle, healthy living, Marie Dufour RD, saving time, stress eating, time management, weight control
