“Make time for yourself”. How often do we hear these words? Wise words they may be, and often we need to hear them. However, they are misleading and as ever, because the language is not right, I do not believe we take them on-board. Nobody can “make time” for themselves or anybody else. They can choose to give time. They can decide that something or someone deserves their time and give a certain amount of it.
To truly commit to making change, we need to believe the messages we are giving ourselves. No matter how often I tell myself to “make time for myself” I cannot achieve this objective. I know this and therefore I do not take it seriously – and surprise, surprise, I do not “make time for myself.” However, I know I can choose to give myself time. I can make a real commitment to myself and dedicate time in my hectic schedule to myself. Time that allows me to be and renew my energy; time that is vital to my health and well being; time that I deserve.
Three ways I give myself time each month:
1) Dinah Days – I have one day a month blocked out in working hours for myself. Every month and no exceptions. If a date has to be changed, it is replaced with a new date straight away.
2) Friend Time – Giving myself time to be with my friends becomes more and more important to me. I have dinner with a friend every month and get together with a group of friends every two months for a day out. We all get so much from the time we give ourselves and each other.
3) Early Day – I finish work at 3pm one day a week and spend the time with my husband or daughter. Finishing early makes me highly efficient on that day and allows me to give myself time to acknowledge the successes and challenges of the week so far.
You can give your time to whoever you choose – just make sure you are on the list – you deserve it.
comments
I always ensure that my weekends are spent on me (whether that's with family or my other half). I also now get the privilege of spending half a day every other month with my Mum. This time spent together helps us to regenerate our energy & just have a great time. We will talk business and that's great as it's in a comfortable environment (the best ideas are always made in these situations).
Any business owner will know that they do not spend enough time on themselves, if they just gave themselves 30 minutes a day to relax then they could get so much more done.
Love this Dinah, thank you.
Hannah
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