Happy New Year and welcome to my 2014 series, get REAL. Each week I’ll be blogging about an issue that can greatly contribute to our self-growth and success. What’s holding us back? What can we do to live out our purpose? I’m kicking off the series with getting real about TIME. I’ll embed the video each week here or you can view them on my YouTube channel. 

Challenge: Keep a daily log for a week to see how much time you REALLY spend doing activities and BE HONEST. That’s the whole point of calling it get real because we can’t fake this stuff or it won’t help.

After each activity, note if you were PRESENT or if you were trying to multi-task and what you ENDED UP DOING. For example, you may have logged on to check email and start on a project, but instead logged into Facebook and then from there read two articles, watched three viral videos and filled out a quiz. So WIN time would’ve been your INTENTION and WASTED time would’ve been the wormhole you slipped into. Budgeting our time is MORE THAN a to-do list or planner since what we actually spend time doing is usually not on the list. (I also call this my squirrel circus.)

At the end of the day, assess how you spent that time and note what you could do differently. I think you’ll find solutions faster that you think and can ADJUST and transform your day.

MY TIME CHALLENGE AND COMMITMENT:
I spend WAY too much time online – to the tune of an hour each day that I shouldn’t be on. Some days even more than that. I also WORK TOO MUCH (likely because I’ve wasted time online or managed my time poorly earlier in the day) and I OFTEN CHECK MY PHONE IN THE PRESENCE OF LOVED ONES. To accomplish  this, I have to leave my phone in my purse or another room to be present. Maybe after awhile I’ll have more discipline. So I’m committing to LEAVE WI-FI OFF when I’m working on a project since it seems I click on things online almost subconsciously. I’m also only going to check social media 3x per day (though I’ll have some pre-scheduled posts populating for me) which is down from sometimes checking it every hour. Yikes. That will be HARD for me.

I’m also committing to spending less time working after 5 p.m. – also to help my brain wind down so I can sleep better/deeper. I’ll try not to be anything with a screen after 8 p.m. so I can use that time in my planner or with kids or husband or reading a physical book or magazine. Also a hot bath with sea salts is good for unwinding. Yet remember to GET REAL about it because if you think you still need to work some in the evenings or weekends, note that and fit it in. See how you could be more productive at different times of day doing different tasks. I do work 7 days a week BUT I have a flexible schedule. Not everyone has that and remember this list is unique for YOU. What works for one person may not work for another.

I hope to use these early weeks of 2014 to figure out the best time of day for certain tasks including NOT READING EMAIL FIRST but doing CREATIVE WORK FIRST such as working on my novel and writing posts for Sooner Spaces and then using the “brain dead” time of day of early afternoon for things like video editing or emailing people back. I’ll also try to schedule video shoots for late morning or early afternoon for the same reason. I don’t want to waste my best creative time (early and mid-morning) on things like driving and production work.

CUT any “fillers” that weren’t contributing to your professional or personal goals or happiness or bonding with loved ones. Watch TV just because it’s on? Turn it off. Spending time online just because you have an hour to kill? How else could you spend that hour that would make you feel more content – such as calling an old friend or working on a hobby?

Link to article about the best time management apps. I personally like Rescue Time so I may use that again besides my native techniques.

So what about you? Blog or journal about getting real about time in 2014. If you blog about this and want to tag me, I’ll share it. If you interested in spending more time on your home or DIY, we’ll have a GO: Get Organized challenge EACH SATURDAY all year long starting Saturday the 11th over on SoonerSpaces.com.