Want More Hours in the Day? So Do I!

Do you ever wish you could add just one more hour to the day?  Just enough time to finish that last little project or spend a little more time with the family?  I have to admit, I've had many of those days myself.  I'm no expert on time management or focus, and yet, I've learned small ways that have made big impacts on my days.  Here are some of them:

 1. Prepare for the next day.  What will you wear?  What will the kids and/or significant other wear?  Does anything need ironed, washed, or picked up from the dry cleaners?  Who needs a sack lunch and who will order?  What appointments do I need to prepare for?  Did I pre-set the coffee machine, because its always a better morning when the coffee starts automatically!

• Small things add up to a big deal....especially if you get up at 5am like I do.
• Having the "what are you going to wear today" war with your child the night before is SO much easier than when I'm pressed for time in the wee hours of the morning and haven't had coffee yet.
• When I can just throw on my clothes instead of standing for what seems like hours in front of my closet (in the dark b/c not everyone is up yet...ahem...spouse!), and realizing I have nothing to wear that doesn't need ironed...when I can confidently throw on my outfit for the day, it saves at least 10-15 minutes.  Add that to the "what are you going to wear" war I eliminated and there's an extra 30 minutes I've just gained!
• Many studies have shown that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  I want my kids to have a healthy breakfast instead of a Pop Tart in the car.  That 30 minutes I've just saved myself allows me to prepare a healthy meal for my little ones.  It also allows them time to eat it at the table instead of cramming it down in the car on the way to school.

2. Know what you want to accomplish for the day, week, month, and year.  Start big and work your way down.  This is great timing since we're nearing the end of the year and we're thinking about what we've accomplished and what we'd like to accomplish next year.  Pick a goal...any goal.  Just have something to work towards.  I like the saying that you are a better shopper when you have a list (or something like that).  How do you know how to get there if you don't know where you're going?  That's the same concept.  Each week I reflect back on the past week.  I look at what I've accomplished and what I've let slide.  I evaluate the importance of the goals I've set.  The reason I do that is b/c maybe they're not as important as I thought they were when I first set them.  

• We all have goals.  All of us.  I don't care who you are.  Even if that goal is getting a cup of coffee as soon as we wake up...that's a goal, right?  I find that when I identify some specific goals I feel a sense of accomplishment when I complete them.  Maybe you don't need that.  I certainly do and I know lots of people who, once they began goal setting, felt a wonderful sense of achievement after setting and hitting their goals for the day, week, month, or year. 
• Starting big and breaking it down to the month, week, year, or even day is way less overwhelming and allows me to be very intentional as I chip away at each goal or task.   

3. Tell someone...anyone and preferably a whole bunch of people your goal.  When I tell people my goals, a few things happen.  I put those goals into the universe.  Saying things out loud is very powerful.  Words are so much more powerful than we give them credit for.  Another reason I tell people my goals is so that they will hold me accountable.  Maybe not so much that they will check in on me, but in the back of my mind, I don't want to face people I've shared my goals with and know I haven't accomplished them.  Its accountability from within.  There are people I do ask to hold me accountable by checking in occasionally, but that's b/c I'm sick and I LOVE accountability!  No really, though, accountability isn't a bad thing.  Its actually very wonderful and can be liberating. 

• There are some great goal setting ideas (and even templates) here.
• We are at a time when we are busier and more accessible than ever.  Instead of running around and putting out fires, I feel so much more productive and less like I'm living life on auto pilot when I set specific goals for myself and track them.
• Accountability isn't a bad thing.  Embrace it.  Becomes friends with it!  Its such a wonderful feeling accomplishing goals-both personal and professional.

4. Follow the 80/20 Rule.  The video below explains this rule best:

The fact is, we'll never get more hours in the day.  Our time is limited here and making the best of it is important to me.  I feel so much better about myself when I'm living intentionally.  If I don't have purpose, I feel sort of lost and out of control.  If you like my tips here, stay tuned for more, or contact me here.