When it comes to the topic of time management, I consider myself to be a guru of sorts. I can squeeze more out of a day than just about anyone around. I work a full-time job, I run two side businesses from home, and I have a four-year old son who takes up a great deal of my spare time. But recently, when I had a spare moment to reflect (when I wasn’t trying to get twenty different things done) I realized that I had taken time management to an extreme. In a nutshell, I wasn’t enjoying life as much as I wanted to. Sure, I can juggle everything effectively, but at the end of the day, what is more important—staying on top of every little detail at my job and my two side businesses, or making sure that I am enjoying life to its fullest? Here are some insights on the matter.
Effect On Self
By becoming so focused and honed in on getting the most out of every minute of every day, I realized that I wasn’t enjoying life the way I want to. Running these two side businesses in my spare time has resulted in a fairly decent and steady side income, but if I don’t allow myself the time to enjoy these increased revenues, then what’s the point? I found myself feeling more “ragged” as time passed. And in addition, too tired to enjoy certain events in my family’s life.
Effect On Children
I absolutely knew it was time to slow down a bit when it was having an effect on the time I spend with my son. I recently became too tired to actually play with my son, becoming more content to sit in front of the TV and watch cartoons. Of course, I received no complaints from my son, but I knew in the back of my mind that this was not how I wanted to spend time with him. He could see the change in me too. He began to not ask to do certain activities, because he already knew the answer would be that “Daddy’s too tired”. This was a huge red flag for me and a sign that I needed to re-evaluate my priorities.
Re-evaluate Priorities
Going through this process was quite a transformation for me. Basically, how it works in my current personal life is that the more time I have to devote to my businesses, the more money I make. I soon became a slave to this theory. Now, I have come to realize that devoting a little less time to the businesses and a little more time to doing the things that I enjoy doing will result in slightly less revenues, but a greater satisfaction out of life.
No Longer Obsessed With Deadlines
Before I came to this realization, I was obsessed with hitting deadlines. I always showed up for work 15 minutes early, just to get a jump on the day. If I had a deadline to meet for one of my side businesses, I would stay up as late as I needed to, or did whatever it took, to ensure hitting this deadline. I was, in a sense, addicted to these deadlines. Since I have now backed off a bit, I realized that in the grand scheme of things, arriving to work a few minutes late or missing a deadline from one of the businesses that I am the sole owner of is not the end of the world. It called to mind a quote that I heard a long time ago that went something like “People that consistently are late for things are generally happier people.” I never understood that quote until now.
In The End
My final word on the subject is this: executing time management to its fullest is very advantageous for you in both your personal and professional lives. However, it can be taken to extremes. No matter what you’ve got going on at work or at home, ALWAYS budget some time for just yourself to do just as you wish. Don’t ever let the achievement of professional goals (whether it’s a day job or a side business) EVER get in the way of spending time with your loved ones. They should always come first in your life. And finally, if you like to squeeze every possible second out of every day, realize that every once in a while, it’s OK to kick back, relax, and do something you enjoy (or even nothing at all). After all, to expand the quote form Socrates, “the unfulfilled life is not worth living.” I hope you found this article to be helpful and informative.
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