Hello everyone!
How are you? Getting back to the routine? So, the first full week of the school run is over and before you know it, it will be all over! How was it? It was your first week at the school run as well, wasn’t it? The first week was quite overwhelming for me. Haven’t quite got my head around the things yet. But we have done it before and will get there. In all the chaos and excitement, I haven’t had a few moments for myself to reflect upon and write. In between drop off, pick up, homework, your own work, the time is making adjustments and squeezing itself with such finesse that if you are not careful, you wouldn’t even notice the miraculous changes. Time is a tricky fellow indeed! I didn’t write anything for last week and it was very convenient not to do it. The factor of time (not having enough) will push you so much that there will be no time for doing the things that you like doing. For me, all I had to do was to sit with my computer with the word document on. But, in the name of ‘rush’, it just didn’t happen.
I thought I have to come up with a plan. How about 1 hour everyday, just to myself? To sit with a timer. I am trying to do that. I have set the alarm on for an hour and this is the time for me. In this timeframe, I need to sit down, think, and calm down. It’s not a big deal, is it? Just to be in the moment and not to worry about anything else. This will be my meditation hour. After all, meditation is ‘focusing’ and being to do something without getting distracted by anything else. It’s particularly important in the world that we live in, where there is an update almost every minute. Be it ‘WhatsApp’, ‘Facebook’, ‘Twitter’, you just name it and it’s there. So, it calls for a strategy to train and discipline our minds to focus for an hour, an hour in to yourself. Everything else can wait and if you wait enough, it gets sorted out on its own:-)
1 hour programme:
The only condition is…there is no excuse. Stick to one hour, the world problems can wait. The time of the hour is flexible, so you decide when you want that time for yourself. Particularly, if you are taking a break from your career, then 1 hour to yourself is a must for your own sanity. I am going to suggest a few ideas and you can add on to the list. Tailor it according to the areas of your interest. All it needs is a bit of discipline.
Career ladder
If you are planning to get back on the career ladder, then devote 1 hour strictly in looking for options and opportunities in the area of your work. Applying for jobs can be a tiring and frustrating experience, so stick to 1 hour and if possible, apply them from cafes. You will not feel lonely at least. If you see, in one week, (keeping the weekend aside) you will have 5 hours of looking at the things that you want to get back to, 20 hours of job applications in a month. That’s a good number and you know that you are doing a good job applying for them. Even if it’s one application or research in to an area, you have a solid hour to work on it. And if it doesn’t finish in an hour, leave it for the following day. It’s like climbing a mountain and celebrating at the little feats!
Learning something new
It’s just like a refresh button. Try it, learn something new. When was the last time you tried on learning something new? When we were students, either on our own or through our parents, we went for learning something new. But now, after having kids, we spend our entire time trying to make them learn. So how about 1 hour to yourself in learning a new thing. It will make your brain wonder, ‘wo what’s going on there, new feeds are coming in, instead of going out?’ I will tell you later on what I have in mind. I am also planning to learn something new. So when are you starting? Can’t wait to hear from you.
Decluttering
Instead of thinking of decluttering your house, just do it. Make up your mind and start doing it. 1 hour each day and five days later, your house will start breathing in and out again. Start with a plan. 1 room and 1 item a day. Start with the clothes, get those black bin liner bags ready. You will wonder, how much you can donate to charities and how much you can throw out. Don’t tire yourself out, do it in a time frame and leave the rest for the following day. Now, some people would like to do it in a slightly different way, but with a toddler around, I can’t carry on doing a task for more than 1 hour. Hence, this is my way of doing it without getting overwhelmed by the size of the work. Now, someday I too will make up my mind to declutter 🙂
Practicing
If you are into sports, writing, music, art or any creative field then spend 1 hour each day, practising your skills. You will be amazed with the progress. Force yourself in getting into the habit of working on it and you will be surprised.
So what do you think of my 1 hour programme? I hope it’s effective and you will try to give it a go. 1 hour to yourself. Let me know what do you think 🙂
Much love
Suranjita
Wonderfully written.
Looking forward to more and more.
Thank you so much Jayanti ba! I look forward to your posts as well! keep them coming…