One of the things I’m working on right now is the attempt to make time for what’s truly important in my life. What do I want to do with myself? I’ve had to rethink my entire life, thanks to the circumstances that led to my second cross-country move in a year.
I left a lot of stuff behind when I moved, but I’m also trying to decide what non-tangible things I should leave behind. I’ve got some emotional baggage that probably ought to be unloaded, and there are a number of habits that I think I want to get rid of as well. On top of that, there are some things that I think are really important that I want to work on.
As I’ve lived out of a suitcase for the last six weeks and tried to decide what to do next, I’ve been considering how I can make time for what’s truly important. Then I realized that I probably already have that time available to me. I just haven’t been using it very wisely.
Are Distractions Eating Up Your Time?
After spending time on the road, and being without a schedule, and spending time with family and my son, I realized that there are a lot of distractions eating up my time. Most of these distractions come in the form Internet rabbit holes. I get stuck on Facebook, or I go off on a tangent when I should be researching information for an article for my work. It also became apparent that I was letting entertainment (but not even entertainment I really care for) get in the way.
Plus, I found that I was distracted by obligations I didn’t care about. I spent a lot more time than I needed to worrying about what other people thought, and trying to make things work around others’ schedules. While it is sometimes important to re-arrange my own schedule to help those I care about, sometimes I was doing way too much of this for inadequate reasons.
Moving has allowed me to identify the distractions impacting me and my time and think about cutting them out. In fact, I am cutting them out and moving forward.
Putting Purpose First
I also decided that it was time to move forward with purpose. I realized I was treading water for the last two years, and I didn’t really have something to work toward. Sure, I was writing and providing for my family. However, I didn’t have another purpose, and I was just maintaining the status quo. Now I’m in a position to live with a little more intention. I want to be able to develop my talents a little more, and I want to feel as though I’m contributing to my community.
Plus, looking at how my son’s extracurricular activities are sure to pick up has me thinking about making sure to have time to support him — because that’s important to me. Restructuring my life hasn’t been easy, and it’s still a work in progress. But I’m finding time for what really matters in my life, and I feel better about things in general. And that’s something to be happy about.
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