Everyone I talk to has dreams.
Dreams to travel, to record an album, to write a song, to make a difference, to leave a mark on the world.
Almost every blog I read these days is talking about dreams. It seems like we are in a dream crises.
So many options are available to us, we’re not sure where to start. Or we’re simply afraid of starting because with starting comes the risk of failure.
And nobody wants to fail, right?
I always get questions related to how I blog so much (I think it’s because I have OCB – obsessive compulsive blogging).
On top of this I’m always hearing people say, “I wish I had more time for…”
With all that needs done: job, kids, spouse, activities, liesure, how is there time for anything else?
It’s Not A Matter Of Time
To be honest, time is not the issue. Resistance is the issue. It’s easy to work but it’s difficult to work smart. It’s easy to be busy but it’s tough to do the things that really matter. It’s easy to fill your time with stuff, it’s difficult to work on your dream.
Finding more time to do what’s important isn’t just about doing less. It’s about being more intentional with your time.
The other day I read an insightful interview with Seth Godin. In this interview, Seth talks about how he doesn’t do meetings, isn’t on facebook, and doesn’t watch TV. A lame existence you might say?
Well, Seth has to be one of the most productive people I’ve ever seen. He is constantly writing blogs, books, starting businesses, and speaking all over the place. He’s decided what’s important to him and eliminated distraction.
A Simple Exercise For Doing Something Awesome
This blog post isn’t revolutionary. But it will help you. If you apply this simple exercise, you may just find that your dreams are more achievable than you thought.
Here we go:
1. Define what you want to do more of
What do you want to do? Start a blog? Write a book? Record an album? Exercise? Get out of bed?
Being successful starts with naming what you want. Think about what has been nagging on your mind. What is the one thing that would make a huge difference in your life if you just started it?
Got it? Good. Let’s move on…
2. Decide what commitments you may need to let go of
Are there physical commitments you have that are holding you back? Are you wasting energy on something that isn’t important?
Be careful here. There are some commitments you need to keep. I hope you’re seriously committed to a local church. I hope you’re investing yourself in a small group. I hope and pray you are not neglecting your home.
But if you’re pouring precious time into something that’s not helping you get where you need to go, cut it out.
3. Schedule it
What doesn’t get scheduled doesn’t get done.
It’s amazing how scheduling seems to open up more time than you knew existed. I’m convinced there’s nothing more important than for creatives to become best friends with their calendars and their goals.
How often have you said, “I wish I just had more time to (fill in the blank)”. Well, when was the last time you scheduled time to do it? Trust me, there’s power in getting it on the calendar and getting it done.
4. Cut out unnecessary time-wasters
Sometimes it’s even good things you need to let go of. In order to focus on some of the bigger projects I’m pursuing, I’ve had to cut back on the number of blogs I read and comment on. I simply don’t have time to do that even though I enjoy it. I’ve also stopped hanging out too much on Facebook.
As my friend Michael blogged about, maybe you need to stop reading my blog and start creating something. I hope you don’t stop reading my blog, but please do if it means you will release what God has placed inside you.
5. Do it even if you don’t feel like it
The initial high of being consistent and starting a habit wears off almost instantly. Real life sets in. It becomes work.
But don’t allow yourself to slack. Keep an appointment with yourself. This is the only way to make progress on what matters.
Question: What is something you wish you had more time for? How can you make it happen? Let us know in the comments!
I wish I had more time to soak in the presence of God without thinking that I have other stuff to do.( to be honest, I don’t remember the last time)The way I think I will make this happen is by choosing a day that I don’t have anything scheduled and take a couple of hours and go to the beach or something and just do that.I began riding my bike to work and thought that with those 45 minutes 2 twice a day I would have time to talk to God but I find my mind wondering about nothing and I can’t concentrate.
I feel the same, Khamille. I think we’ve lost the discipline of just soaking in God’s presence. So necessary.
That’s nice that you have such easy access to the beach 🙂
I wish I had more time with my wife. She works 1.5 hours away right now so she spends a lot of time on the road.
So we’ve recently been working on scheduling time with each other because if we don’t, we’d never get to see each other.
Wow, that’s quite the commute! I agree, it’s important for married couples to schedule time together or it just doesn’t happen. I needed to be challenged in this today, man. Thanks.
It is quite the commute. But we gotta do what we gotta do. Jobs are tough to find in our city and since we are a re-start church things are tight.
But God is good and has provided.
Inspiring to hear how you guys are living this ministry out, bro. Keep it up.
Having an infant at home has created some time management challenges, but thankfully I am an organized person and even more importantly, thank God He is bigger than my challenges!
It was difficult after having the baby to let go of somethings, but God has been leading me through my “control issues”. I have learned to let some of the weeding in my garden go, I don’t paint my nails and I have cut back on watching TV.
What I wish I had more time for is reading, I have my daily Bible devotional, but I don’t have the time anymore to read for pleasure and I miss that. But right now, it is more important to focus on writing and getting published than on entertaining my mind with a good book. I would cut TV completely out, but I like watching the News and feel it is important to stay current with what is transpiring in our world.
Interesting. I tend to think that reading is an important aspect to good writing. If you’re not filling up, there’s not much to give out. Where do you find inspiration for your writing?
I agree, I guess I should have clarified more, I am currently in the process of reading 5 books and have a list a mile long of other books I want to read. I do my daily Bible study and in between taking care of my son, cleaning house, caring for our pets, spending time with my husband and writing, I read (not necessarily in that order).
I used to be able to finish a novel in a few days, I am not used it taking a few weeks instead.
So I guess I do read, I just don’t get the luxury of spending hours doing it the way I used to, but my babies worth it! I love him sooooo much!
Great post. I have found scheduling time for it is so extremely important. And view that scheduled time as a very important commitment…a commitment to your future. Treat it like you would almost treat a very important interview and understand that progress towards your goal can appear nearly invisible. This is where the resistance enters in to sabotage everything. But keep at it and progress will be made.
Great insight, Don. Treating it like a job interview is unique. I think what makes dream chasing hard is the lack of accountability and seclusion of it. I think we need dream accountability partners!
Agreed!
Thank you for covering this topic. I have adhd, three kids, and a lot of interests, social connections and commitments. Cutting out external and internal distraction, setting up a schedule, reminders, managing smooth transitions and minding boundaries is a lot of work. You are correct about prioritizing & scheduling. The work I was designed and put in place can happen effectively and bring a return on investment. That is if I am intentional enough and positioned to evaluate, acquire, and give what is required to nurture it.
Good insights. I realized recently that I often feel busy even when I’m not. I’ve realized I need to get a better rhythm to my days so that I can get more accomplished. For me this means getting up earlier as the morning hours tend to be my most productive.