Getting back into the swing of things can be tough. If you’re anything like us, you’re tired, you miss your routine, you probably developed a habit for eating sugar every 45 minutes or so… In an effort to live lives of intent, we want to make sure we’re focused and acting with purpose. This means we want to face our time wasters head on. So what are the things that are intentionally or unknowingly taking all your time or providing distractions? Are you trying to escape or are you getting sucked in? Our intent is to identify the time wasters. You too? Here are 3 places to check yourself:
- Social Media
This one is obvious. As of last year, 76% of Americans had a social media profile so it any surprise how much time is going towards keeping up, creating experiences and managing relationships that aren’t right in front of you? The thing about social media is that everyone has the ability to update constantly, which is great in some ways and terrible in others. We have words like “FOMO” now because your fear of missing out can be constantly confirmed these days. If social media is helping you stay connected, great, but if you’ve found yourself getting wrapped up in keeping up so much so that you are missing out on what is in front of you, it’s time to find ways to put a cap on it. - Menial Tasks
Menial tasks are the kind of things that require 5 minutes if you stay on top of them daily, but a lot of times we put them off until they’re a mountain and then they become our go-to time wasters when we have something pressing in front of us. We can’t deal with a work project until the laundry is done! We don’t have time to get back in the gym until we’ve sorted through all the kid’s stuff once and for all! The tough part of this time waster is that it’s tangible and right in front of you. You can see the dishes piling up in front of you, so what do you do? This is a time waster that requires a little daily discipline. Staying on top of routine maintenance means that you don’t have a go-to when you need a distraction. It also means you’re much more likely to find clarity of mind when you have clarity of physical space. - The Expectations of Others
It feels insensitive to consider others a time waste, but when you lack proper boundaries, you can find yourself running all over the place without really accomplishing anything. Without realizing it, we can be looking for a distraction in coming to the rescue of everyone else without ever dealing with our own issues. Again, with the expectations and needs of other, you are often facing real issues. Someone has to get your mom to her doctor’s appointment. Someone has to make the snacks for soccer. Someone has to grow their business. Those things are real but does it have to mean that there is ZERO space for wholeness? Like a fad diet, an unbalanced schedule is hard to maintain longterm. Kids grow up. Jobs come and go. If you aren’t able to function as a whole person, it eventually catches up. So if you’re making others a blind priority, consider it a time waster. There will always be a fire to put out. Trust us.
Are there any time wasters you recognize?
A better question may be what are you running from?
Ultimately, what is the scary thing waiting on the other side of showing up?
Perhaps your time waster is all that stands between you and the success you hope for!
The post Intent of the Day: Identifying the Time Wasters appeared first on Intent Blog.
