Time management – Something to Ponder About

Marc and Angel always have incredibly profound words for me. I have abridged their content and distilled the essence of their words to the all important phrases and added some ideas from my own experiences. I hope these have meaning for you. They definitely have meaning for me.

Are your habits and routines sucking up your happiness?

Oftentimes we unknowingly hold on to little, obsessive habits that cause us a great deal of stress and unhappiness. Even when we feel that something is wrong, we fail to seek the changes we need to make and instead cling to what’s not working, simply because it’s what we’re accustomed to. It is familiarity, that makes us feel secure, whilst causing us unnecessary stress. It’s time to give up the habits that no longer serve your well-being and embrace the positive changes you need to be happy.

Today is the perfect day to give up…

The need to be busy.

Busyness is often confused with productivity. They are two different things. Busy is running in place on a treadmill; productivity is actually getting somewhere worthwhile. These days technology gives us this constant feeling that there is so much to do and not enough time to do it. We are always connected to something that wants our attention, or something that could be done. This feeling creates stress. The more behind you think you are, the more stressed out you are going to feel.

Stress is not good for you. It makes it difficult to think, connect with others and it is associated with a plethora of physical ailments that lead to unhappiness.

Tip: Stop trying to be busy. Put first things first and give up the rest. Organization, meditation, improved time management and efficiency and a change in perception are all ways to manage stress. You must learn to let go. Release the excess. You were never able to do it all anyway.

Disorganization and laziness.

We complain that there are not enough hours in a day to accomplish all that we want, yet our laziness often leads us to many wasteful hours of disorganization. The discipline it takes to sort through a messy desk, counter, closet or mind takes time. Becoming organized is a habit. Start with something small, like your office desk or even making your bed after you get up.

Tip: Studies have shown that people who make their beds are statistically more productive, profitable and peaceful in their lives and careers. Interesting, isn’t it? But not surprising.

Fear of… everything.

Fear is one of the biggest reasons why we don’t move ahead in our lives. Fear of failing and fear of succeeding. Fear of the unknown. Fear of fear. As long as we are alive, we are prone to some level of fear. Ironically, to feel alive we must overcome that fear with action. As Bill Cosby once said, “Decide that you want it more than you are afraid of it.”

Tip: Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that your happiness and growth is more important than it. Do something every day that stretches your comfort zone and helps you face what your fear.

Something to ponder about today.

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Are your habits and routines sucking up your happiness?

Today is the perfect day to give up…

– Judging others.

When you judge someone else,you suffer. It is an outward display of inward inferiority and anger. No one person is better than another. The individual who cleans the bathroom at a fast food restaurant is no less of a person than the CEO that uses it.

Tip: Understand that everyone has value, and the right to be here. We are all part of the collective human race. We are one. Your joy is my joy and your suffering is my suffering.

– Procrastinating.

Procrastination is stagnation. There is no other way to say it. When you procrastinate, nothing much is happening.

We procrastinate for all sorts of reasons. When we are afraid of the outcome, we are unsure how to complete the task and when we just don’t feel like taking action.

And the thing is, we spend more time aggravating ourselves with worry about how long or how difficult the task is going to be rather than just doing it. More often than not, if you just start your task, you will be pleasantly surprised at how easily you are able to accomplish it.

Tip: The ten minute trick: When you think you might be procrastinating, trick yourself with just doing “10 minutes” and then procrastinate some more. Before you know it, twenty minutes will have passed or you might have even completed the task.

– Living in the past.

The past is gone for good and yet we spend so much time thinking about what happened yesterday, at the complete expense of today. Keeping your thoughts stuck in the past is especially detrimental to your contentment. You are a product of your environment. Your environment has helped to shape how you think and feel about yourself. Everyone has been presented with life challenges along their journey – you aren’t alone. It is whether you are stuck in the patterns of the past or have moved past them.

Tip: If you are harboring resentment, anger, frustration or other negative feelings from your past, don’t ignore these feelings. Do something constructive about it so that you can move into the present.

– Anticipating the future.

We spend so much time in this moment, wanting to be in the next one, that we are missing our lives.

For example, while taking a shower, you might be thinking about that cup of coffee you want to make, and while you are drinking your coffee, you might be thinking about your commute to work. You are never consciously present right where you are and therefore cannot enjoy the moment you are in – the moment we call “life.”

Tip: Now is the only time you have. Now is life. Make sure you are fully experiencing it, before it passes.

Something to ponder about today, but only in the moment!!

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