Yes, that’s right…this blog post is about making time for you. I know for so many of you it’s a big challenge. I know that 99.9% of my readers are women and if you’re like most, your plate is more than full. There are a lot of things that get onto your calendar, but you aren’t one of them and that has to change. When you give yourself the time to do the things that you love to do or want to do without thinking about anything or anyone else, it actually makes the rest of your life work.
If you want to be able to focus on all of the things on your agenda, you’ve got to take care of you first. I like to use the example of the instructions you get from the flight attendant before take off. When it comes to the oxygen mask, you have to put ours on first THEN help children, elders or others with theirs. Your me time is like your oxygen mask.
When I teach clients to plan, the first thing that we get in their calendar is their time to themselves, followed by time off from their business. Then we add the project and other business related items. Giving this time to yourself is so important. How long has it been since you had me time? Can you even remember?
Instead of trying to squeeze in more time for work and family duties, make the time for you. It’s essential to your health. Stress produces cortisol, which can impact overall health. Furthermore, it’s necessary for you to be at your best for your family, friends and your clients. Getting in that me time contributes to being the best you that you can be.
Figure out how you’re going to spend your me time. Choose an activity and schedule it once a week. You can also consider adding time at the beginning or end of your day just for you. As time goes on you add additional times. As you plan each week, get your me time in there first. If you find that you just can’t seem to make yourself schedule the time, you might want to ask yourself if there’s something else going on around self worth.
If you always feel short on time, if you’ve got a tight schedule, feel guilty about spending time by yourself, don’t take care of yourself first, if you feel like you should be doing something when you have free time, or fill all of the open spaces in your calendar with something, say “yes” before you check to see if you’re available…you clearly don’t have enough time to yourself. Remember, me time is your oxygen mask. It allows you to be able to take care of everything and everyone else.