Monday, June 17, 2013

Week Three: Where Does your Time go?



“Your hand can seize today, but not tomorrow; and thoughts of your tomorrow are nothing but desire. Don’t waste this breath, if your heart isn’t crazy, since "the rest of your life" won’t last forever.”
― Omar KhayyámQuatrains - Ballades

Time...we all want more of it. More Time to spend with loved ones, more time to create, more time to have FUN! Where in the world does all our Time go?

Back in the 90's I was introduced to a wonderful Life Coach....Cheryl Richardson. The first time I saw her was on the Oprah Show where she was talking about her book "Life Makeovers". My kids were just babies then and more often than not I was completely overwhelmed. Like so many of you I craved alone Time. Time to be with my thoughts, to find myself, to shower!:) Richardson's book was a life-changing one for me. Simple and to the point, I gained the tools I needed to have more balance in my life. This week's Theme is inspired from her book. I just KNOW it will open your eyes and make you go...I had NO idea how much Time I really DO have!!!

"Time is a created thing. To say I don't have time is like saying I don't want to..." Lao-Tzu

Richardson says...

"The truth is that WE control where our Time goes. Time is finite. We only get a certain amount 168 hours a week, 52 weeks a year; and that's if we don't die first. Time is a gift that most of us take for granted. We get so caught up in the busyness of our daily lives that we rarely stop and take  serious look at how we're spending this gift."



Change IS necessary! NOW is the Time to take control of yours!! This week I want you to answer the following questions:

*How long do you really work each week?
*How much Time do you spend caring for others?
*How much Time is spent caring for YOURSELF?
*How much Time do you spend on Social Media {this is a HUGE time waster for me}
*How much Time do you spend watching TV?

Now here is where the real fun begins. In Richardson's book "Life Makeovers" she suggests making an Absolute Yes List. Creating a list helps you remember what your priorities are...I have used this list throughout the years and it works!

To begin your list answer these two questions:

*What needs my attention at this Time in my life?
*What do I need to let go of?

Be sure and be HONEST with yourself here...write everything down that comes to mind. Answer these questions for all areas of your life, too...relationships, family, community, work, emotional, finances, etc. I know one of the Priorities in my life right now is my physical health. My goal this year is to eliminate my near dally migraines and lose 20 pounds.

Once you have made your lists {and they may be LONG} choose the FIVE that jump out at you the most. The ones that when you see them your heart tells you..."That one!". Now put your Absolute Yes List in your art journals so you can refer to it daily.

A sweet GIFT created by one of my son's friends just for ME!!!:)

Girls...the goal of my Life is to LOVE it!! I will create MY Absolute Yes List this week and strive to say YES to those things in my life that fill me up and make me whole.

Here are THREE reminders from Richardson on why it's so important to say NO to those things not on our YES list:

*Your self-care is extremely important 
*You don't need to over explain yourself on why you are saying NO...Just saying NO is ENOUGH!
*Doing things out of guilt and obligation is not doing things out of Love

Let's take our minutes and hours and days back, girls. Let's start saying NO to those things that bring us down and hurt our souls. 


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11 comments:

  1. Boy speaks to my mission statement doesn't it!

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  2. I really look forward to your posts each week, Leslie! I like your different take on this idea of taking back our time. So many "help books" instruct us to make intricate lists of how we spend our time, in order to evaluate how we can use it better. But I really like this idea of an "absolute YES list" to get us to focus on our priorities.

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  3. YOu Yes list really speaks to me. THis is going to be an awesome exercise to work through and I look forward to it.

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    1. Leticia...this list really will work:) Thanks for being here.

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  4. What another great set of questions - still working on last week's!
    Thanks for this course.

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    1. Beverly...you are so welcome. I am just happy you all are here doing this with me:)

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  5. I am loving this "course", friend. I am finally finding my rhythm in my journal, and I adore sitting down to take some time to contemplate the prompts. Thank you!

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  6. My five yeses for this season of my life: my marriage, my children, my relationship with God, my body, and my thesis. The page I made for my journal didn't turn out exactly like I wanted it to...but it was still fun, and I'm still learning.

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  7. Excellent ... I am making my Yes list this week.. and saying NO to what is not on my yes list. Thank you Leslie. xo Sun

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  8. Saying "No" is absolutely the most difficult thing I face in my life. I have always liked that I could be counted on... until I started failing to complete tasks because I had crammed my life so full by saying "yes" too many times. It's taken me 60 years to give myself permission to say no without guilt. This week's assignment will be eye-opening for me...a person who has filled her life with way too many activities. I feel like I can't enjoy what I do like because I'm so busy trying to keep others happy by agreeing to do whatever THEY need done. Thanks for the encouragement to straighten out the mess I created...and to forgive myself for doing it.

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I appreciate your thoughts and ideas...they inspire me!! I will be visiting you soon. Have a CREATIVE day!!