Do You Value Your Time?

Many of us underestimate the value of time and take it for granted because time just goes on and on.  We often say ‘we’ll do it tomorrow’ or ‘l’ll do that when I have time’.

What we don’t understand is that time is a valuable resource – it may actually be our most valuable resource.

You have the same amount of time each day as world leaders, such as The President and the Prime Minister, the same amount of time as successful entrepreneurs like Richard Branson and Bill Gates.

Your education, social standing, financial status doesn’t make a difference to the amount of time you get – no matter what happens we all get exactly the same amount of time, 1,440 minutes a day.

Control of time is the key to being more efficient.  It is an important skill to develop so that we can accomplish more tasks than the average person each and every day.

• So, how do you spend your time?
• Does your day have a structure?
• Can that structure be improved?

The first step is to start measuring how long tasks take.

This will give you an indication whether you under or over schedule your day. The majority of us actually under estimate how long a task will take and that is why we often don’t get everything done we want to complete in a day.

Action

For the next week, whenever you are about to begin a task. Stop and estimate how long the task will take.

Then compare how long it actually took.

You can learn an incredible amount from this exercise.

Knowing how long even basic tasks such as getting ready of a morning may mean you now understand why you are always racing out the door a couple of minutes late.

It will allow you to more accurately estimate how much work you can complete in a day which in turn may change how you schedule your day.

You can do this is a notebook, on a scrap piece of paper or use the time tracking forms on the website www.lifestylerefocus.com.au/free-resources

Thank you and I look forward to sharing more tips, strategies and skills to support you to be more organised so that you too can create a better life.

“Be an inspiration to yourself and

you will be an inspiration to others.”

The Secret to a Wonderful Christmas - Enjoy Every Magical Moment

This time of year can be a busy time of year for so many people.  The school year concluding for children, finalising projects and tasks at work.  Facilities preparing for Christmas celebrations, many families then go on holidays so you have the preparation for holidays.  Then of course the Christmas cards to send and presents to buy.

I understand that it is a lot more for many of us than normal and that overwhelm, stress, exhaustion or whatever words relate to your situation start to be used in your language.

We can spend a lot of our time thinking about what’s next rather than actually enjoying the moment this time of year.  Can I encourage you to enjoy it, when you are wrapping presents put on Christmas music and wrap your gifts with happiness, excitement and love.

When you are catching up with friends, enjoy their company.  Whatever you are doing enjoy the moment because you are usually with people you love, who are special to you. When you are shopping you are shopping for those you love and to make the event fantastic for them.

Immerse yourself and be aware of the language you are using.  When you are asked “how are you” think of your answer, you can say “good” you can say “tired” you can say “stressed” or you can say “wonderful, thank you for asking” then smile.  Not only will you feel good the added benefit is they will feel good.

It is a wonderful special time of year, so enjoy every magical moment.

Wishing a Magical Christmas to you, your family and your loved ones.

Are You the Roadblock to Creating a Better Life?

Have you stopped lately to think about your life? What is happening in your life? Is this the life you want? What parts of your life do you love? What parts of your life annoy you? What parts of your life would you like some small improvements in?

Life is forever changing. We go through cycles in our lives which begin from the moment we are born. At that stage, we are a fully-dependent baby, and then we become a toddler, then a child, then a teenager. This is always such an interesting period where we are still a child and just breaking into being an adult, thinking we are an adult. This cycle goes on.

You could look at our school to work cycle. For many young children, it starts with playgroups, then kindergarten, then primary school, onto secondary school. After that, it is choices as to working or further study, eventually leading onto work.

Life doesn’t stop there. For many, it is the cycle of finding a partner, perhaps getting married, having children. This part is also a cycle, from being a two person house, to more than that, to then being, as they call it, “empty nesters”.

My point being that life is forever changing, but we often don’t change with it as well or as much as we should and can.

What do you want out of life? Have you taken the time to think about it? They do say we can have anything we want if we set our mind to it. That is where the problem is for many of us. We don’t set our mind to thinking about what it is we want. We are caught up in the circle of life. If you are finding it hard to think about then perhaps ponder on the questions at the start of this article:

·         What parts of your life do you love?

·         What parts of your life annoy you?

·         What part of your life would you like some small improvements in?

·         What parts of your life would you like some major improvements in?

You don’t have to answer all the questions at once as that may be too overwhelming. It may be best to think about some small areas for improvement.

So here are the steps:

• Think about the area of your life you would like a small improvement in.
• What is the change you would like to see?
• What do you have to start doing for this change to happen?
• What do you need to stop doing for this change to happen?
• When are you going to start?
• How will you know when you are successful?
• When will this change occur?

Fantastic, so now we are clear on what we need to do, how we need to do it, and when we need to do it.

So the key now is to take action. Nothing will change unless you take action to make the changes happen.

To finish, I would love to share one of my favourite Buddhist sayings. I really feel it sums up persistence, which is a skill we need to make some changes that will benefit us?

"In the confrontation between

the stream and the rock,

the stream always wins –

not through strength,

but through persistence."

So don’t be the roadblock to creating a better life for yourself. Take a little bit of time to think about your ideal life. Then think about one small change you can make today so that you are living the life you always dreamed.