Category Archives: mindbodygreen

 “Fitting in Health: Time Management”

“There has been a great misunderstanding between life and time.  Time is thought to consist of three tenses: past, present, future — which is wrong.  Time consists only of past and future.  It is life which consists of the present.  So those who want to live, for them there is no other way than to live this moment.  Only the present is existential.  The past is simply a collection of memories, and the future is nothing but your imaginations, your dreams.  Reality is herenow”. — Osho

“Time is on my side.  Yes it is”. — Rolling Stones

Every day has 24 hours, yet we always wish the days were longer. They will never be.   It’s easier said than done, but still possible.  It’s up to you to manage your time more efficiently.  There are so many things that are wanted to be done, like exercise, eating well, reading a book, seeing a movie, going away for a few days, writing, even drinking water, and yet are not, and our mental and physical health is negatively affected.

I am guilty as well.  There were times when I asked myself the same question (even while writing this article), and the same answer would always repeat: do less of __X___. Anything that could be thought of to be that variable is filed under the heading of Procrastination.  Do less of procrastination. (In the 21st Century, procrastination = computer/iPhone/television). With procrastination comes excuses: “but I needed to”, “but you don’t understand”, “but I felt”, etc….

Some may say “but my job prevents me from having free time“.  It’s a big statement. You need money to support yourself and others, but what are you supporting if you can’t enjoy living? How much do you love your job and career? More than living healthy? I worked a career, that I enjoyed, that was no less than 12 hours daily and as long as 17 hours or more, going straight home to bed, to wake up and do it again. Health was down the list. I switched careers and left money for freedom and health, while still keeping ties to my first career without the stresses.  Can you adjust your schedule? Get a new job? If not to all: then with the time you have, you can still make amazing changes.

Also, try new vocabulary. Use the word “transform” instead of “change”.  Think of “change” as money, or what you would need to do with clothes or the channel.  Transform your way of behaving, transform your way of thinking, transform your schedule, transform your living situation.  The word “transform” is much more powerful and uplifting than the word “change”, with the connotation of needing to rid of something.

These may be some questions to ask yourself first before taking action.

1. What do you need time for? Why?

2. What is stopping me from doing what I want/need to do? Why?

3. What are my excuses? Why?

4. Do I blame myself or others? Why?

5. What usually takes priority to cause my poor time management? Why?

In light of the concept that we all wish we had just one more hour on the clock, here are 13 ways to find more time:

1. Prioritize.

2. Give yourself extra or “buffer” time to get somewhere.

3. Put tasks and other events on the calendar, even assumed “mundane” tasks which usually rest on the back burner, like: buy light bulb for bathroom.

4. Change or “transform” your routine. (ie: begin to schedule time for yourself)

5. Wake up earlier on the weekends.

6. Breathe. To breathe slows down the heart, creates space between your thoughts. Calms the mind and body, which enables you to be present.

7. Stop blaming other people and things, and turn the finger around on to yourself.

8. Get more sleep. (But how? Schedule it.)

9. Not eating enough? Bring food with you.

10. Be creative. (ie: multitask. Some say they can’t do that. Ever brush your teeth and watch television at the same time? That’s multitasking. Start off with small or a few tasks and go from there.

11. Become flexible.  If something happens that was not planned, then take care of it.  Try not to use up your energy stressing about something you cannot change.  There are many things that occur that are out of your control, and to let it all be, is the way to be.  You cannot change the tide, the rotation of the earth, someone’s sneezing, traffic….

12. Try to remove this sentence from your line of thinking: “There’s always tomorrow”.

13. Stop complaining and do something!

Bonus: Upon sharing this topic with a manager of a local athletic center, she jumped on the concept of just saying “no”; meaning, say “no” to not only those who request some of your time when you are unable to give it, even though you are incredibly forthcoming and love to give yourself to others, you still come first; also, say “no” to yourself when you get distracted and feel the pull away from your priorities, even when it is “me time”.  Close the door to your office, either literally or figuratively.

If you are married, have kids, have a family, have parents, siblings, a girlfriend, boyfriend, pets, or anyone that you love… give them time too.  It’s a delicate balance, but by giving them time, life seems endless.

Note from Gabriel Sanders: I recently moved from NYC to Lakewood Ranch, Florida, and am teaching as much yoga as possible, while giving my girlfriend, Carey Yaruss, much of my time (as well as our two cats), writing, exercising, going to the beach, seeing friends, and also working in my second career of Sound Production.  

Related articles

• Managing Your Time (liveforfriday.net)
• 4 Tried-and-True Time Management Techniques (money.usnews.com)
• Procrastinators Unite…Tomorrow: Are Your Bad Habits Holding You Back? (hellobeautiful.com)
• Is Procrastination Holding Your Creativity Prisoner? (connect2consciousness.wordpress.com)
• R.I.P. Procrastination… (thatotherjenn.wordpress.com)
• Time management tips that’ll work for your life (penelopetrunk.com)