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Time.  Let’s be honest.  It can be a constant struggle.  Time is the one commodity that you cannot make more of.  Time is fixed.  Once it’s gone, you can’t get it back.  Can you get more time?  Well, the answer is yes and no.

In a recent study, people reported that in order to get everything done that they felt they should get done within one day, they would need a day to be 40 hours long.  40 hours!  Reality is, each and every single person on this planet gets the same 24 hours in a day.  That’s it.  24 hours.  Within that 24 hours, research shows that most of us are actually only productive for about 3 hours.  

How you use your 24 hours each day is what makes all the difference.  So, while you can’t physically make more time and get a 40 hour day, you can prioritize your life and your time so that you spend your time doing what matters most to you.  You can make sure that in those few productive hours, you are getting things done that you value and consider important.

Look at your priorities.

When is the last time that you really looked at your day?  Take a good look at your calendar.  What is it filled with?  Look at your to-do list.  I would make a bet that it is a mile long.  As you make your to-do list, what if you focused less on the task completion and more on making sure you have the right tasks listed in the first place?

Time is absolutely our most precious commodity.  Is your calendar filled with things that you enjoy?  Are you spending the majority of your time doing things and investing in things that are taking your toward your goals?  If not, it’s time to make a change.  

If you don’t prioritize your life, someone or something else absolutely will.  Everything and everyone is competing for your time and attention.  You have got to take control over how you are spending your time.

But how?

Evaluate your Life Garden.

I heard an analogy months and months ago on a podcast, and I am sure you have heard a similar one.  It’s called the Life Garden.  Look at your life as a garden.  What plants would you plant?  I’m guessing that many of us would plant similar plants….family, health, spirituality, friendships, etc.  These life plants require care.  They need water (time) and attention.  

Unfortunately, weeds begin to creep into our life gardens.  These can be weeds of unrealistic expectations, commitments that we don’t really care about, constantly doing more than we should at work, social media, addictions, TV, and anything else that takes your attention away from what is really important to you.  Those weeds quickly begin to steal the water (time) and attention from your life plants.  If you allow this to happen, the weeds begin to grow and they begin to kill those life plants that were once so important.

So, what plants are in your garden?  Are you spending your time and attention nourishing those plants, or are you allowing weeds to suffocate them?  Take a good hard look and start pulling those weeds.   Maybe you need to learn to say “no” to a few things so that you can say “yes” to the things that matter.

Just stop with the social media.

Ugh.  Social media is a complete time suck.  It literally consumes hours and hours of our days and weeks.  Not only do many of us (I’m included here) spend way too much time scrolling, but then we spend countless hours thinking about what other people seem to have, dwelling on a comment or post that offended us, or daydreaming about why Johnny and Sally are constantly on vacation with their perfectly well behaved children.  Guys…we have to stop.

Social media can be an incredibly powerful tool if you use it responsibly.  If not, it will drag you away from just about anything that is important to you.  Think about how many times you go to a restaurant and people are literally sitting at the same table, and they are all on Facebook.  What the heck?  Put the phone down.  Have a conversation with the people at your table.  Actually sit and talk or read with your kids instead of scrolling through social media.  Get your workout done while your kids are practicing instead of searching Pinterest or Instagram.  Use your time.  Don’t let social media suck it away.

This one takes an honest evaluation.  Don’t let social media run your life, and don’t let yourself fall into the trap of comparing your real life to someone else’s highlight reel.

Use your drive time.

How much time do you spend in your car?  I’m guessing you are in the car a few hours a day commuting to and from work, sports, or sitting in the carline at school.  Use that time to educate yourself.  I’m all about a good jam session on the radio, but drive time could be used so much better.  

Download a podcast or an audiobook, and learn something while you are driving.

It’s all about you.

This is your life.  You aren’t living someone else’s life.  It doesn’t matter what the world says is important, what celebrities say is important, or what your social media accounts say is important.  If something is important to you, it matters.  You need to take action and start supporting the things that are important to YOU.  Remember, once your spend your time, you can’t get it back.  You have to take charge of your hours and your days.

Unfortunately, prioritizing your life and your time must happen daily.  Things will come up that will steal your time and leave you feeling like you need 40 hours to complete what needs to be done in just 24 (and oh yeah, you do need to sleep too).  

Evaluate your life garden.  Water your plants.  Pull the weeds.  Live the life that you want, not the life someone else is creating for you.  Complaining about not having enough time is wasting time.  You’ve got to prioritize your life.

Time is one of the many areas that we discuss in detail in our 12-week online health coaching course.  Our next course will begin in January 2019.  In this course, we address all pillars of health and wellness.  We work with you to overcome the barriers, excuses, and roadblocks that have held you back in the past.  We work to change your behavior so that you can make permanent changes.  If you desire to go beyond just fitness and nutrition and make positive changes in your health and wellness, this course is for you.  Check it out here.

~KP