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MAKING & TAKING TIME… The key to eliminating Stress

For what seems to be the first time in ages, I find myself today with some space and time that isn’t already committed. I am aware of feeling a sense of enormous relief and not sure how best to enjoy this unexpected luxury. A tiny gap between my old business year ending and my new one starting has opened up. I can feel myself aware of the space and the possibilities and the freedoms they offer; a bit like a dog that is let off the lead in a huge open park.

Why am I taking your time with this stuff? Because most of us are stuck on a treadmill of activity that never gives us any choices. There are kids to be picked up, shopping to get, meetings to attend and emails to read; all important, mostly necessary but still coming between us and any choice of how we should be spending our time. I was talking to someone the other day about the silliness of the idea of managing time, it is a resource and we have to choose how we spend it, whether we spend it or invest it; invest it in our happiness, growth and wellbeing.

If we are stuck in the same old routine, then we isolate ourselves from the possibility of self-directed change, and the only changes we encounter are those driven by others and therefore ones we have no control over, and this type of change is always scary. On one of my blogs yesterday we were discussing stress, and the syndrome I have just described is one of the prime causes of stress, which, as we all now, is a killer….

So what can you do about it? Don’t let your day fill up without thinking about it; schedule in some time for thinking and being. If you are a working person, this time adds hugely to your productivity and creativity, so don’t feel guilty, it is as necessary and as health-giving as breathing!

Grab 15 minutes ‘you’ time today and tell me how you spent it and the difference it made

“They say that time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” Andy Warhol

“Half our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save.” Will Rodgers

This entry was posted on Friday, January 4th, 2008 at 10:11 and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

7 Responses to “MAKING & TAKING TIME… The key to eliminating Stress”

  1. SarahArrow says:
    4 January , 2008 at 12:49

    I have become a big fan of your blogs and lately taken to following your advice.
    Today I took 15 minutes out of chasing the kids about to read a magazine.
    In the magazine was an article about Infrared Therapy and the Healing Powers of Music.

    I then rang my mum to tell her all about Infrared Saunas and their benefits and my sister in law to tell her about the other article – she is a music teacher and is very happy to see articles like that.

    It was nice to communicate to my family in a nice, positive way for a change, so thank you.

  2. Cora Stam says:
    4 January , 2008 at 22:46

    Hi Richard,

    another possibility is doing an easy job that can be done absent-minded,
    like vacuming the house, hammering nails, ordering your stamp-collection…
    It may give you the opportunity to reflect…

    Cora

  3. richardderwentcooke says:
    4 January , 2008 at 23:16

    Cora, That is a good tip and reminds me of some of the zen principles and practices. Certainly old monks used to use this kind of mediatation through action principle

  4. liz_l says:
    6 January , 2008 at 09:43

    You’re so right. I think that making and then acting on the decision to have your fifteen minutes gives you a feeling of more control and or power over what happens to you.

    It’s also good for your brain to give it a break. When you do so you may find that the solution to a problem just ‘pops into your head’.
    Thanks
    Liz

  5. richardderwentcooke says:
    6 January , 2008 at 09:45

    Liz
    I couldn’t agree more. I am a big fan of giving our brain a chance to whisper magic words in our inner ear

  6. ida_h says:
    6 January , 2008 at 10:06

    My biggest problem with time is ensuring that others that make demands on my time do earn it! How can I change this?

  7. richardderwentcooke says:
    6 January , 2008 at 10:15

    Ida, I agree (and my wife would certainly echo this one!)
    I think it is about finding that inner voice and knowing when you need to say “No”. [Check out today’s blog on Authenticity] Sometimes, if we don’t look after ourselves, we can’t help anyone else, it is a bit like the they say in the safety briefing on the planes “In the event of an incident, first fit your own mask”. This is definitely tougher for women than men.

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