We all know the name of the “Thief of Time” its our good friend “Procrastination” – but if he steels time – who actually makes it?
Last weeks post about Parkinsons Law really got me thinking about time, and where we get it from. Yes of course, we all have 7 days in our week and 24 hours in our day – we can’t change that, but some people seem to manage to achieve so much more than others.
I used to have a full time job, gym habit, dog to walk, house to keep etc etc and still found time to pack for my holidays. My retired mum, yes she has a gym habit although not as bad as mine, but no dog yet still wont make arrangements the week before she goes on holiday because she has to pack. Where did I get the extra time from? Now I’m working from home I feel I exhibit behaviour more like my Mum than the former me with a full time job.
So as I set myself a goal to get a grip on my rather sloppy recent attempts at time management, I analyse my previous behaviour.
My former life was compartmentalised (I’ll apologise if that’s not in the dictionary). Work time was work time and very structured and home time was well, home time. It wasn’t the work/life balance I wanted but it was balanced in a rather precarious manner.
Yet being my own boss hasn’t yet given the work/life balance I wanted simply because its become a work/life jumble. The housework is slipping and my leisure time interspersed with checking emails and social media.
So February’s challenge – if you wish to join me is to get my work/life balance balanced. Compartmentalisation of my week will mean that work time is work time and home time is home time. It has to be flexible – of course it does I’m in business, but this is what I plan to do:
- Planning what my working week will look like on a Monday morning
- Shorten my working week, giving myself 2x half days off
- Giving my working day a definite end by switching off my laptop
- Give myself challenging goals to achieve every day
- Reward myself, chocolate, time off, walk, ebay, etc for achieving those goals
Who makes the time? Well it must be me!
Making time for yourself when running a business can be tricky and its easy for things to fall out of balance. If your work/life balance isn’t what you want it to be coaching can make all the difference. For more information about one-to-one online or face-to-face coaching solutions visit Reflections Coaching
Related articles
- Work Life Balance for The Small Business Owner (socyberty.com)
- Top 10 Distractions When Working from Home (powerhomebiz.com)
2 Responses
I suffer from the same syndrome – found myself browsing on Gap this morning as I’d got distracted by an email! And I know I’ll end up working this evening. So this sounds like a good challenge.
Yes – a challenge it is – I’ve slipped a little today and I know the downside of that is I’ll need to do some stuff tomorrow – my designated ‘home’ day