Your time is your life

Have you ever heard this quote?

“How you spend your time is how you spend your life.”

If you are not thrilled with the way the last 24 hours of your life have gone, it can be startling to let the full force of the quote’s meaning sink in. 

Using the hours of your day in a way that is aligned with your priorities is not easy or simple, but it is worthwhile. 

If you are like me, you have recently added more activities and intentions into the daily mix. Seeing people! Going places! Dreaming bigger!

But on the days when my plans exceed what the day can hold, I feel deflated and disappointed. I start trying to figure out who or what went wrong, which can look like blaming others or judging myself. This does not feel good. And it takes more of my time and energy. 

When I work with clients around time management, I find our most fruitful discussions focus first on values and intentions. Once someone is in touch with their priorities and most important values, it becomes immediately clearer how to structure time in a way that is more in sync.

Of course the work doesn’t stop here. Using our precious time and energy in a way that aligns with our priorities also requires strong and compassionate boundaries, as well as support structures for when we get distracted. 

In the next couple of weeks, as we collectively begin the transition into busier lives, I will be sharing with you some of my favorite, well-used and much appreciated perspectives and tools to help you:

• Identify what type of time you need (not all time is equal!)
• Get in touch with your “inner conductor” 
• Manage focus, not time

My hope is for you to relate to time as a resource to be used, rather than a restrictive boss. My wish for you is sustained movement towards what your heart desires.