By Daniel Morgan, Editor
Normally, when you think about time management, pictures of daily planners and schedules come to mind. There are tens of thousands of other how-to articles that I can refer you to if you want advice on meeting deadlines or balancing work and family. So, here are a few suggestions to better spend your time throughout the day and throughout your life.
First of all, you need to stop caring. Many people, myself included, spend far too much time worrying about anything and everything. Sometimes you just need to step back, take a breath, and say “I don’t give a (insert four-letter expletive of choice).”
I for one spend far too much time everyday worrying about what others think of me, and if you’re anything like me, you brood over such minuscule things that shouldn’t even cause you to blink twice.
“What if they really don’t like me?” “What if I’m trying to hard?” “I just said something dumb, now I’m going to replay that situation in my head for weeks.”
Sound familiar? Yeah, I’ve been there (well, I’m still there at times), and it’s not fun. Worrying about things is an integral, unchanging part of human nature. However, being a worrywart sucks. Sometimes you just need to push all of your self-doubt and stressors aside and just live.
Putting others first is great, and for me, it’s practically all I do. When you get to the point where you don’t consider yourself valuable or worth your time, then you’ve got a problem. It’s very likely that some of the people you spend far too much time catering to and worrying about wouldn’t think twice about how something affects you. Instead of spending your time worrying so much about everyone else, take some time to consider yourself. Also, it’s time to start taking some risks. Quit spending hours, weeks, and even years debating over whether it’s worth it to do something.
“What if this is a mistake; maybe I shouldn’t do it. But I want to, but I might not like it. Maybe I should quit now, but what if I regret it? I don’t know what to do.”
Take a chance, make a move, and DO IT. What’s the worst that can happen? I’ve regretted not doing something much more often than I have regretted taking a chance.
It’s time to move, and it’s time to quit worrying about every little thing. It’s not easy, believe me. I’m not quite to the point of not caring either (sometimes I’m far from it). But if you’re spending so much time stressing and sweating the small stuff, you’re simply wasting time.
If someone doesn’t like you, get over it and move on. If you want to do something, quit debating and go do it. If you’re tired of wasting your time with something and are caught up with something so daunting and stressful, stop. Sometimes it takes just as much courage and strength to quit as it does to keep going.
Once you get rid of consuming stressors and quit worrying so much, you’ll find you have much more time to relax, explore new things, and just do what you love.
Be happy, and quit wasting your time on petty details. Live your life by utilizing your time wisely.
Shari • Jan 12, 2017 at 3:47 am
Excellent article!!!