Something has got to give, or has it?
It is World Book Day on Thursday 2 March. A reminder of an activity that most of us would love to find the time to do more of (and also time to sigh for parents who need to find yet another fancy dress costume to send their children to nursery or school in…).
When I went back to work after maternity leave I had also moved home - this meant that I now had a 5 hour commute to contend with each day. Whilst I wasn't short of things to do on maternity leave, hours walking round with a baby sleeping in a carrier, did give me lots of time to listen to audiobooks. I learnt to use time creatively to fit in the things I wanted to do around or as part of the things I had to do. Applying this to my commute, I wrote out a list of all the things I would like to do and a list of all the different stages of my commute. I then did a matching exercise fitting the activity to the slots of time. As the days went by these activities became a habitual part of my commute and it stopped feeling like 5 hours of travel and started feeling more like part of my day.
When life changes, I re-do this exercise and re-match. It isn't a perfect science - but it certainly helps. It isn't always just about the matching either, it prompts me to consider how I spend my time giving me greater awareness about the things that I want to do that are good for me and the things that I would like to do less of. It is an exercise in matching and switching.
You may be thinking that you can see how this works for the small activities but what about the bigger things on your to-do-list? This exercise can be scaled up to think about your weeks or months or even years. The first step is getting the list of ingredients you would like to be part of your life. This means looking at all the aspects of your life with a focus on your values. This is a more involved exercise than mapping your day to find a slot for a podcast or a book and the output is also more meaningful. It gives you confidence and clarity about why you are doing the things you are doing and makes it easier to say 'no' to things that you do not need.
"You are the creator. Design your life based on your principles" Steven Covey (7 Habits of Highly Effective People)
Recommendations for World Book Day - non-fiction, fiction and one for the children
Sleep Smarter: another thing many of us feel we haven't got enough time to do is sleep. This books helps with this by giving tips to help you get to sleep quicker and sleep better. It starts by explaining the value of sleep then dedicates each chapter to a sleep tip. It is easy to read (or listen) with plenty of real-life examples making it engaging. It combines practical easy to follow guidance with compelling logic to help you change your habits to get more and better quality sleep.
Here is a feel for some of the top tips -
Get outside in the morning (ideally first thing) gives you a dose of melatonin which helps you sleep at night
Go to sleep and get up at the same time every day. This is just like the advice for toddlers - I have to say I have found it works for the children and for me.
No phone or any sort of device in the bedroom. You can set your phone to switch on to night mode
Drink coffee a couple of hours after waking up - this means that your body uses the natural kick you get from sleep before you have your morning coffee
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins: instead of reading on the commute the girl in this book discovers and solves a murder. I can't share too much as it will give away the plot. If you like a bit of mystery and drama this one is worth a read.
Green Eggs and Ham, Dr Seuss: Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr Seuss, wrote this book with a challenge of only using 50 words. He won the challenge and it is definitely a hit with my children (and me for that matter).
Finding time for reading
Like many others, reading has always been one of those activities that I wished I had more time to do. These days though, there are so many more ways to read which makes it much easier to fit it in. On the way home this evening, my children were getting pretty bored about half way home. I had a flick through Spotify and found that they had some podcasts narrating books. We sat and listened to some Dr Seuss, which inspired me to think of a rhyme about finding time...
Would you could you when you rise?
Before you get your coffee highs
Could you read it on the train?
On the tube or on a plane?
Would you play it in the car
When you are driving very far
Would you could you in your bed?
Just before you rest your head
Could you listen on your run?
Would it could it add some fun?
Or as you hike?
Or on your bike?
Or as you cook?
Take in a book
Next time you think you don’t have time
Think about this little rhyme
Find the spaces in your day
Read, relax or just hit play
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