Monday's Mission: Time

I've had a couple of friends ask me for help, they're looking for assistance with getting their lives organized. Me? Really?? I'm not keeping any secrets nor do I possess special skills in the organizational arena, there aren't any easy answers to getting it all together and keeping it that way. At least there aren't any that I have found; I am dogged by the same distractions and struggle to keep up just like everyone else. I explained that, and yet, they persisted; they begged for an intervention. "Please, think about it" my friend looked me in the eye and implored the other day. I did think about it and have decided to do the only thing I can, share what works for me. I know how to beat those "time wasters" into submission, maybe I could offer some help, at least I will try.

Getting started will be a two-fold approach:

#1. Where do you want to go?

#2. How can you best get there?

Number one will involve a written objective. Do you seek more organization because you want to restructure your days so that you can finish more quilts? Do you simply feel like you're running in circles and you need a clearer focus? Whatever your objective is, either specific or more generalized, it needs to be written down so that you understand what your destination is. Over time that may change, and that's OK. Number two requires note book and a pen. For the next week write down everything that you do; all day, every day, and how much time you spend doing it. Mark down the activity on the left side of the sheet and the elapsed time beside it, on the right. Start a new page each day. In a few short days you'll easily identify time 'wasters'; some you'll be able to eliminate and others (your job, children, household chores) can't be eliminated but can be streamlined into a framework for time management. This 'keeping track' task will be one of the most important tools to organizing your days, don't worry about how it looks or what it says about how you spend your days; no one will see it except you. We all get the same number of hours every day, we can't 'bank' hours not used, we have to spend all of them every day. If you're ready to get started, grab a notebook, write down your objective and begin; right now, keeping track of where the minutes, hours and days go. Understanding how to best use the time we have comes down to stewardship, we don't want to squander God's gift to us! Next Monday we'll sort through the data and begin to put together some sample schedules (your road map) that will, perhaps, lighten your load and provide a more efficient approach to finding time to arrive at your stated objective (the destination). Let's go, time's a wastin'...

Life is Good!

“Nothing changes until something moves.” ~Unknown