3 Simple Ways To Make An Extra Hour for Yourself

Khushboo Ramchandani
December 19, 2022
1 min read

Aren't there several times when we wished we had more than just 24 hours in a day? Whether you are an entrepreneur, a surgeon, a student, or even a mother, we've all struggled with days that are jam-packed amidst mind and body absorbing tasks that just make you want to crawl into bed and sleep within moments of your head touching the pillow.

For people that are working full-time (and more), these kinds of days are pretty common, and for the remarkable few, it is this their daily routine. Although you may at first be proud of yourself because you’re attaining short-term results, it eventually does affect your mental health and leaves you fumbling for a drink at 3 in the afternoon. Therefore, the need to set aside a minimum of one hour daily for yourself has been greater than ever. This is crucial if you lean more towards the introverted spectrum of personality and crave me-time quite often.

1. Prioritize YOURSELF

First thing's first, quit feeling guilty for taking some of your own time out for yourself. I've spoken to mothers who feel like they're missing out on watching their toddler grow because they had left to run simple errands. Not only is this approach unhealthy in the long-run, but it will also cause physiological stress on the mother which will ultimately affect the child. Self-care is not selfish!We also tend to get "pulled" in the direction of what is supposed to appeal to us. We all know reading is a fabulous habit, and that we're supposed to read frequently. But is that what you genuinely wish to do after a long, tough week? Or would you wish to do a mindless activity, like collecting shells on a beach? Or meditating? Or go for a night out with friends? Or just nap? It is YOUR time. Own it, make it yours, and carry no regrets. What you really need to keep asking yourself is, “Are you doing what really makes you happy?”

2. It's not you, it's your phone

You need to break up with your phone. I know, it’s painful, but it’s for the ultimate best for the two of you.I think we’ve all experienced this one point in our lives where we think to ourselves, “I’m just gonna watch one more Facebook video, and then I’m going straight back to work!”, and then the 2 minutes mirage ends and boom! It’s been 84 years.

Generally speaking, each and every one of us is guilty of spending way too much time on our phones than normal, and that needs to be brought to a halt, especially when it's time to look after yourself. I personally prefer using the Forest app which is a simple and effective way to keep your phone away, and possibly grow some trees in Africa in the process. I do understand how ironic the concept is; having to download an app on your phone that will help you keep your phone away. But hey, it works!Without the constant buzzing and beeping of your phone, it’s fairly easier to focus on yourself and think clearly, while checking things off your to-do list. Speaking of which...

3. Create personal to-do lists

We’ve all spent more time making these rather than doing the actual tasks. Here’s a tip: Make your bed first thing in the morning. And here's why...[embed]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sK3wJAxGfs[/embed]Another hack is to keep alternating between the simple and difficult ones as it creates a balance and frees you up quickly, leaving you to move on to the personalized tasks. For me, apps like streaks have been super effective in habit creation. And wunderlist has really helped me manage my tasks while classifying them as work or personal.[embed]http://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=iDbdXTMnOmE[/embed]

Conclusion

Making time for yourself in today's busy and demanding world is not easy, I agree, but with small and significant changes like putting yourself first,ditching the smartphone and making lists sure does make it a lot easier! It all rounds up to the idea that you don’t necessarily need to work hard, you could simply work smart and play hard.

Sundar Pichai had once quoted, "Success and stress don't need to go hand in hand".

Apart from many other things, we built Classcard - an all-in-one software built for easy student management, to help educators save sometime. If you are an educator, we'd love for you to try Classcard.

🏃
Entrepreneurship
Khushboo Ramchandani
Twitter

Up next