How do you find time in your busy, fast-paced life?
It’s one of the biggest challenges we all face. Just count the times you say to yourself, “If only I had a few more hours today!”
You’re always wishing you had more time, right? But what do you do when something unexpected happens and you find yourself with time on your hands?
Those time snippets may not seem for much, but together they add up and can easily be re-framed as time windfalls!
Try these scenarios on for size:
- You are driving to work with a To Do List a mile long and a schedule that is packed. A traffic jam stops you in your tracks.
- You have invited some friends over for dinner. Everything is ready, and they call to say they are running late.
- The teleclass you signed up for starts in half an hour. You planned things so efficiently that you are ready NOW … and waiting.
How can you make the most of these unexpected time windfalls?
Well, for starters, while it’s natural to feel frustrated and at sea in your altered circumstances, remind yourself that you have a choice in this moment – and it’s a choice that transforms your time.
- You can drum your fingers impatiently and fume, or
- You can take a deep breath, and reframe this as a windfall!
Shifting your frame from negative to positive will free you up to USE this time!
Think about tasks that are portable or achievable in small pieces.
- Are there some phone calls you could make while sitting in traffic? How about adjustments you can make proactively to your day’s schedule?
- While you are waiting for your dinner guests, can you write a couple of cards that you have been meaning to send? How about doing a small household chore that you never get to?
- Consider seeing what it feels like to meditate, while you wait for that teleclass to begin!
Time is precious, and you work hard to organize yourself and use your time well. Sometimes the more organized you are, the more challenging it can be to know what to do with an unexpected half hour.
When unplanned time comes into your hands, keep in mind these absolutes about time:
- You cannot save time or store it.
- You need to use it while you have it.
- Whether you use it or not, it will pass and be gone.
Make the most of your moments – both the ones you plan for, and the ones that seek you out and surprise you in a traffic jam or a supermarket line! In every moment that you spend mindfully, you are living fully and you are finding time.
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