Well here we are again, September, old friend.
Despite the millions of schoolchildren everywhere lamenting the end of summer and the beginning of another school year, I happen to L-O-V-E this time of year. It feels like New Year’s No. 2 to me.
I think the concept of September=Fresh Start became deeply ingrained in me thanks to the annual back-to-school shopping ritual that took place from kindergarten through college. Buying new notebooks, new pencils, carefully crafting your “look” for that coming year … it all held so much promise and so much possibility.
As Tom Hanks said to Meg Ryan in “You’ve Got Mail,” celebrating this time of year, “I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address.”
The late Nora Ephron hit the nail on the head with that line; there is real romance to be found in a fresh start, a clean slate and a brand spankin’ new notebook. (Oh yeah, Moleskine. I’m talking to you. Wink wink.)
Anyway, did you grab favorite notebook and trusty writing implement? Good. Now, let’s circle back to our plans from that first post and get back to our Master Plan. (Here is where you are free to maniacally tap your fingers together and say “Mwah ahh ahhh ahhhhhh … MASTER PLAAAAANNNN … only if you want to. No judgement.”)
I mentioned in my first post how my mind was blown wide open by the simple fact that there are 168 hours in a given week. Laura Vanderkam has written a very inspiring book and crafted an entire website devoted to helping peeps like you and me make the most of them. I suggested that you download the spreadsheet she offers to start tracking how you are actually using all those precious minutes and hours. Let’s start there.
Here’s what I found when I crunched the numbers for my own weekly schedule. I’ll tell ya, Mamas, it ain’t pretty right now. I’m a single mom in a tricky situation with a tight budget. Right now, I have roughly 21 hours a week of “Me Time” (yay!). However, it is available at rather odd hours: the hour before my kids get up every day, my lunch hour and the hour after my kids fall asleep but before I lose consciousness. (Lame, I know, but I’m old and this mama needs her 8 hours.) A frustrating bummer yes, but I’m not going to let that stop me from pursuing my non-mom priorities.
I was recently reading my horoscope online and came across a line that has become a time management mantra for me: “Your freedoms lie in your disciplines.” (And, apologies to the astrologer who deserves credit for that sage advice. I can’t remember who it was!)
At first glance, the line sounds rather esoteric, but in essence that is some seriously practical advice. When boiled down, what it says to me is: hey, the more focused you are on the things you MUST do, the more freedom (i.e. time) you will have to do the stuff you WANT to do.
Brilliant, eh?
Repeat after me: Your freedoms lie in your disciplines.
Ok mamas, once you’ve crunched your numbers, drop me a line in the comments section and let me know what you discover. Next time, we’re going to start making plans for how to use those precious minutes, and hopefully, hours. This is gonna be fun!
XO,
Mama
PS: Please stop by MamasDayOff.com and say hello!
