My answer to that question was definitively “Yes!” when I ran across it in a blog from Tim Ferriss, author of the 4 Hour Workweek. How about you? If you also want more time, you could find the following exercise very helpful like I did. If you’re not familiar with Tim, he’s authored several books on how to “hack” your body and your life to get maximal results with minimal effort. Some steps in this exercise might not apply to you, but I’m willing to bet that if you really do it, you’ll get some great insights from the steps that do apply. I hope you enjoy it!
Step 1 is to unplug and reset.
Forget what people expect. (An interesting thing to look at!)
Forget what’s popular. (As our parents used to say, “because everybody’s doing it” is not a good reason!)
Look at what consumes your time. (Be creative here- As a personal example of thinking outside the box on this, I happen to love Lesser Evil popcorn cooked in coconut oil. Sounds innocent, right? Nope! Any time I eat it, I feel sluggish afterward for several hours. I counted that as one thing that consumes my time.)
Step 2 is to map out your Ideal Day or your Ideal Lifestyle.
Daydream on this one! It’s amazing how this simple step makes you aware of little things you can implement right now. One of mine was an early morning walk, which I’ve been able to work into my schedule. Here are a couple of pics from my walks. It really sets me up for a great rest of the day!
Step 3 is to ask, What does this Lifestyle cost?
Depending on your answers to Step 2, you might realize that you really don’t need as much money as you thought you did. Or you might realize that to travel like you want or get pedicures every week, you should look at ways to increase your income or decrease spending on things that you really don’t enjoy. Whatever this financial target is, you make that your target and start working toward it.
Step 4 is to Eliminate static, noise, or even people that interfere with getting to this target.
For me, that involved going back to Step 1 as a part of the answer. I also looked at my current day/lifestyle in comparison to the Ideal. I had to admit that scrolling on social media brought a lot of static and noise, not to mention consuming time. Ouch!
Step 5 is to Automate and Delegate.
Would putting certain bills on autopay help? Could you delegate certain tasks to other family members? Could an email auto-reply help? This year I decided to delegate mowing my yard to a company, and the $55 I spend every other week has saved me several hours of precious weekend time.
After the above exercise, this has been helpful!
Let me tell you, my Ideal Day/Lifestyle step was specific and wonderful!! So now, when I’m tempted to sit in front of the computer or spend my time, money or energy in some way, I ask myself…. Does this contribute to my Ideal Life? With the picture of what I REALLY want firmly in my mind, those other energy-wasters are not so desirable. Does that mean I don’t scroll online anymore? Nope. What it means is that I don’t mindlessly do it anymore.
I hope this gives you some ah-ha moments and creates a bit more time for the things that are truly uplifting to YOU!
Disclaimer: This should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway: I am not a medical doctor and nothing in this newsletter should be taken as medical advice. Discuss all medical issues with your own MD.
