Do More of What Makes You Happy

A Tactical Plan for “Me-Time”!

Do you do more of what makes you happy? Well here we are nearing the end of the second month of 2023 already. And so it seems as if time if flying and we are all battling to keep up. Am I right? School, extra-murals, sport, test cycles, work, meetings, it never seems to end! Are you like me you may be feeling that you don’t have any time for yourself. Doing what you must do or what you have to do is way more important right?

No it isn’t. If you are wondering why you are feeling burnt out only 2 months after our end of year holidays it is for only one reason and one reason only. Quite simply you are running on empty. You are not filling your emotional or creative tank, feeding your soul or more simply put, doing what makes you happy.

The debate in my head goes something like this. I am a full time mom and employee and that is what I need to do first and foremost to keep the wheels in motion. Those are the responsibilities I cannot neglect and which have to come first. What is left after that is for me. Can you see where this is going?

If you don’t let me tell you – the problem is that the busyness of life fills up our days and our time and the consequence of that is that there is no time left for me. No leftovers.

This is not an “I have the answer” post!

Now I’m not going to kid myself or you that I have the silver bullet for one moment. No this is no “I have the answer” post. I’m just like you juggling and struggling through the days and weeks. Balance is a longed for illusion and I am beginning to think a lie to trick us into feeling we are something less than perfection.

What I can tell you is that I am trying. I am trying to take some time to do what feeds my soul. I love to be creative and make beautiful things, sometimes things which are just beautiful and have no real purpose. (See my upcoming post on how I am discovering and experiencing junk journalling). This calms me and somehow makes me feel more equipped to tackle the tiring week. Most weeks this means I will put my crafting down on a Sunday evening or afternoon and not pick it up again for a whole week but pick it up I will. I have managed to accomplish more this last few weeks this way than I did the whole of last year to be truthful. I’ll share some of what I have been trying in future blog posts to inspire you to try something new.

Seeing Progress

My experience is that doing more of what makes me happy has helped me get through the tiring weeks, the punishing schedules and the endless meetings. Because it breaks the endless grind of the “To-do” list it helps me sleep better and I think I am generally a better person to be around. Building a habit of more “me-time” and seeing progress has a knock-on effect as well and before you know it, it snowballs.

So don’t strive for balance, it will never happen, we know that. Instead strive for intention. This means intentionally doing something you love, what makes you happy and what makes you a better person. Enjoy your creativity and your crafting, no matter what that is. For example create something beautiful, read a book, learn to bake something new or watch that movie you have been wanting to watch for such a long time.

More importantly, it’s time for a tactical plan.

10 Step Tactical Plan:

Everyone needs a tactical plan!

Ditch the guilt first and foremost!
Out aside the admin! Nothing eats time like admin or “getting organised”. If you wait to get organised it will never happen.
Check the family’s schedules and your diary/planner and set aside some time for you. This doesn’t have to be at the same time or on the same day every week. Try to put it in your diary for a few weeks. You have to build a habit to really get into the swing of things or you will be dead in the water after 1 week.
Be agile, we all need to be flexible, but reschedule rather than cancel your me-time.
In need make supper ahead of time and stick in the fridge or freezer. Nothing spells disaster for me-time than hungry kids.
Let everyone know that you will be unavailable for that time and be strict about it.
Put your phone on silent so you don’t get distracted.
Make sure you have your crafting supplies, pick a book to read, a puzzle or a project to do.
Find a box or a storage solution for your project while you work. Make it a pretty one. We acknowledge that we won’t complete our project for a while so we need somewhere to store it while we complete it so we aren’t greeted by a mess daily. If we don’t the sight of it lying around will irritate us and we will end up shoving it in a cupboard to be forgotten. Admit it!
Most importantly, have fun and do more of what makes you happy!