I’ve always felt like there weren’t enough hours in the day, more so in the last two years because I’ve managed to turn myself into a raging workaholic. Working 9 to 5, Monday to Friday, going to college on Saturdays and spending countless hours each evening writing a thesis will do that to you. My plan had always been to educate myself into a better paid, more stimulating job. Now that I’m coming to the end of my Masters and with the recession wreaking havoc with the country I’m confident that this plan won’t work out. I won’t be becoming a passionate career person any time soon.
I’m being a realist.
This isn’t pessimism. I’m trying to be realistic, and I’ve taken something extremely positive from this realisation. I might not have more money in my pocket, but I’ll have so much more time. Time to re-read the books on my shelf. To be creative, to write, to take 100′s more photos. To lie on my bed listening to music for hours. To spend evenings with my friends and not worry about missing out on a night of college work. To chase a whim and embrace an opportunity. To volunteer my time to a cause that needs bodies and minds. To learn new skills, and teach my own.
I don’t need money to do these things, I just need time. Soon I’ll have a lot more of that, and I’m grateful for the consolation prize.
Reading a fab book at the moment called the MindGym about controlling time. Like yourself, I’m constantly busy. As I’ve learned from the book, I’m a complete adrenalin junkie so I purposefully like to be manic and underslept. I wonder if there are meetings for that…
I’m all about the looking positively at the R-word. Time is one thing I have – it’s just about using it well.
Using my time WELL is exactly my goal :)
Wow. Nail. Head. Smart and timely that.
Cheers Ciara.
“Time to re-read the books on my shelf. To be creative, to write, to take 100’s more photos. To lie on my bed listening to music for hours. To spend evenings with my friends and not worry about missing out on a night of college work. To chase a whim and embrace an opportunity. To volunteer my time to a cause that needs bodies and minds. To learn new skills, and teach my own.”
I’m ticking off all those things Sinead and wondering when I’ll have the time to do them.
Embrace the moment when you get it.
I guess we could all do with some more time.
Well said, Sinéad! With that sense of perspective you will find it easy to fill the extra hours well, and to weather the economic worries. My take on time and money (and everything) has changed radically over the years. Being workaholic was useful for study, writing or some other project, but the new approach suits me better: moments are lived fully and they stretch and swell, so a long walk feels like a weekend away, and a night’s sleep is as good as a health retreat. Underlying it all is the peace of mind that comes from complete acceptance of, and gratitude for, the limited time I have. Now, if only I could bottle that and sell it…
Right now I’m feeling that there aren’t enough hours in the day, hope to embrace these moments you speak of soon.
I like your writings, Sinéad, enjoy yours posts on Twitter, as I have no access there at the moment [happens too often] thought I’d check out your website again.
In regards to being creative, photography and writing you mention above, I need to get back at that both of those myself, and play trad Irish music again. Tying in the cyber with the psychology, its great to be in touch with people, fam, friends, new and old, the connectivity of it, but perhaps its just to easyness of the e-world takes us away from being out there and doing things that we enjoy, and are lucky to have gifts at.. I am new to Twitter, but find myself spending a lot of time there, and enjoy it, on a lot of fronts and interests, when I am locked out, like withdrawal pains. Hope this is not TMI, wonder what you think ?