If Only I Could Have 30 Hours Each Day

The title of this post is going to get some very mixed feelings. Some of you will be thinking “Oh my gosh yes! Imagine what I could do with an extra six hours a day”. Some of you will be thinking the exact opposite, “Why on Earth would I want that many extra hours a day? I already have enough to deal with without jamming more into my day.” Seriously though, how many times do you wish for just an extra hour each day? For me, I am constantly on the go and I feel that I would honestly benefit from a 30 hour day. However we all know that this is not a possibility.

We often feel like we need extra time each day due to our insanely busy lifestyles. We have so much to balance with careers, family, relationships, health and exercise and of course our social lives; it’s never a wonder we feel so exhausted day in and day out. It’s like we are playing a massive game of Tetris each day. We are trying to make sure that all the pieces fit into place as they fall from above. All it takes is the wrong piece to fall and our daily load exceeds its limit and we reach the top. Game over. This is how I feel on almost a daily basis. The days that I don’t feel like this, it’s because I didn’t press the start button at all on my Tetris game. Instead I am so overwhelmed with the amount of tasks that I have to do that I refuse to play.

Does this sound like you? Don’t worry, you aren’t the only one. So many of us struggle to manage our time effectively. It’s a seriously hard task when you break it down. You only have 24 hours each day. How do you spend them? What you need to consider when managing your time is what your priorities are. If you had unlimited hours, what would your day look like? What would you end up doing with your extra hours? In my day I need to ensure that I get enough sleep, I exercise for an hour, I teach my classes, I plan my lessons, I complete my marking, I contact parents, I organise the school’s sports program, I cook a nutritious meal, I walk Hadlee, I spend time with my housemates and Tom, I prepare for the next day, I relax, I journal, I read and then I fall asleep to have it start all over again. Tired yet?

Six weeks ago I returned from Thailand and received a promotion at my work. It was not one that I had anticipated, therefore I had no time at all to prepare for my new role. Already my Tetris game is going into overload. My work load has increased dramatically to the point that I am crying of exhaustion each night. I have used every spare minute of my day to complete my work and I have lost sight of what my priorities are. Apart from my netball and touch football games, I have not exercised on a daily basis. For anyone who knows me, this is unheard of. I have literally not stepped foot in my gym in two months! I have stopped taking time out for myself for self love as I am too exhausted at night to care. Unless I do a Sunday meal prep, I eat food that does not support my digestive system like it should which makes me emotional and unwell. This is not the life I want to lead every day.

Recently I finished Dr Libby’s book Rushing Woman Syndrome (a review is coming soon). This book truly opened my eyes about time management and the impact it has on all five dimensions of health to to mention our body systems. I have certainly felt my health deteriorating the past six weeks, especially this week, due to my poor time management skills. I am working too hard and I am becoming counterproductive of my goals. It seems simple enough right, to slow down? Why is it so hard for us to do that? Why is it so hard for us to take the time that we need to better ourselves? It’s because we are not selfish enough. Yes you heard me correctly. We always putting other people and priorities in front of our own health.

A lot of us see things in the short term. We don’t worry about things that happen in the long term, like future illnesses from poor lifestyle choices. For example, if I don’t put these extra ten hours in at work this week to make this deadline, I will have the boss to answer to. So we work for far more than those extra ten hours, meet the deadline and we still have to face the boss. In that week did you look after yourself to the best of your ability? Or were you to scared about what your boss was going to do? In that week you did not participate in physical exercise at all. In that week you did not read any books or magazines for pleasure. In that week you did not sit down with a cup of herbal tea and your feet up for half an hour. All that you did was work. And be brutally honest, where did it get you? Did you end up making everyone else happy by devoting YOUR time to something that they benefited from?

I know this may be uneasy for some of you to hear, for me it is, but work is just work. You are a talented person who has skills that can take you to other opportunities if your work can’t support you. Your health however, it’s YOUR health! And you are solely responsible for it, not your boss. So take that time to exercise, run a bath, cook a beautiful nutritious meal or walk your dog. You deserve it. Our 24 hours each day was not meant to be consumed of twelve plus hours of work. That’s not how our minds and bodies are supposed to function. They need rest and they need play. I find that I am my most productive and energetic when I am exercising every morning, eating nutritious meals each day and having some relaxation time at night. Have I done this lately? Well no. Am I going to start doing this again? Of course. How am I going to manage my time better? Well that’s just going to have to wait for another post. xx