There is no prize for being the busiest gal around, but we all seem to be competing for it anyway. And even if we aren’t trying to be busy, it seems to happen anyway. If only losing weight were that easy!
When I open up my calendar to see what’s happening in the next few days, I know how I feel when it’s back to back meetings and presentations for days on end. But there are a few things I’ve done to make sure what’s important to me gets on there as well.
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- Schedule your want-to’s first. If you don’t put workouts, kid concerts, and social time on your calendar while it’s still empty, it will get filled up, and those things will fall by the wayside. I put placeholders in for workouts and family stuff as far in advance as possible, to make sure that time gets protected.
You can also put work blocks on there to make sure you aren’t so busy meeting about what needs to be done that you don’t have any time to do it! You can always schedule generic work blocks, and then the week before figure out how you want to spend that time. - Build in buffers. As an introvert, this was one of the most important changes I made to my calendar. I build in an extra half hour when booking meetings, to give me time to get my head straight before it starts, and to make notes about follow-ups and to-dos once it’s over.
This also gives me a little time alone during the day, which is key to helping me show up at my best. Even little slivers of space between events help me stay fresh. Try it!
- Say no. Just because someone asks you to do something doesn’t mean you have to say yes. Even if you technically have time, or would really like to help, you can say no. And while no is a complete sentence, this video has a few ideas on how to nicely decline.
When I first started to say no, I felt bad. But then I realized that if you are honest and explain that you just don’t have space for the committee/meeting/volunteer whatever, people are pretty understanding. They’re busy too, so they get it!
- Schedule your want-to’s first. If you don’t put workouts, kid concerts, and social time on your calendar while it’s still empty, it will get filled up, and those things will fall by the wayside. I put placeholders in for workouts and family stuff as far in advance as possible, to make sure that time gets protected.
So, people, take control of your calendar in 2020!
Clear off the stuff you don’t want on there, and make space for what you do. And be sure to find time to enjoy a few minutes off from the rat race. You’ll have plenty of time to thank me later!
