The Struggle of Time Management

Let me preface this by saying that I don't necessarily feel qualified to write on this topic because I still struggle. But that's also the very reason I need to write it.

Time management has almost always been an issue for me. I've been a chronic procrastinator going back as far as I can remember. If something needed to be done but it wasn't something I was excited to do (or it wasn't easy), I'd find anything else to do, convince myself that this hard thing could wait, then pick it up at the absolute last minute, panicked that I don't have enough time to really do my best. This has unfortunately followed me into adulthood...well, more like I carried it with me.

But with a budding business, a job, a child, etc. etc. etc.,  that couldn't be my default anymore. If I was going to actually have results, I had to become intentional with how I used my time. Now, for the sake of full disclosure, I still struggle with this, and that's partially because I struggle with settling on what I consider a priority. If I'm doing something, I inevitably think that there's something else that's more important that I need to be doing instead, and by the end of the day, I have a bunch of half done stuff and no energy. It's too much.

I had to start with first being self aware, and using my strengths and weaknesses to my advantage. For example, I know that I'm a morning person. No matter the time, I wake up with a racing mind and all the energy you'd ever want. I'm clear and focused. So, I began getting up at 5a to guarantee myself time to shower and still have at least an hour to work uninterrupted before anyone wakes up. I'm able to start my day in such a way that I feel less like I'm not getting anything done because I already knocked out the hardest thing at the crack of dawn.

I also know that in order for me to feel fulfilled, I have to spend time away from the laptop. As much as I struggle with feeling like whatever I'm doing in that moment isn't the most important thing I could be doing, without question my most important role in life is to be a mother. Knowing that makes it so much easier to let go of the shameful feeling that I should be writing or editing when I'm pretending to be Captain America protecting the couch from The Hulk. 

Are you a morning bird like me or a night owl? Can you steal any time away to do something to propel you forward, or do you have strict times where you know you can work (again, like myself)? Answer those questions, and you'll be able to start building a plan to use your time to reach your goals, and alleviate some of the stress that comes with life as a wearer of many hats.

Good luck on your journey, and I'll talk to you soon.