How 30 Minutes of “Me Time” Per Day Increases My Productivity
It’s fantastic to be alive in the twenty-first century. The things we have access to every day allow us to live extremely convenient lives.
We can now talk to friends on the other side of the world in real time, and we can order our favorite food through a phone app and have it delivered within 30 minutes. This is a far cry from 50 years ago, when a letter could take up to a month to travel from London to New York. And if you lived in 1950s London, you most likely had never heard of pizza.
We have much to be thankful for, but with all of this convenience comes a few drawbacks. We have become more reliant on our electronic devices, which demand our attention every minute of the day, because it is so much easier to contact other people.
The days of turning off the phone when you wanted some peace and quiet are long gone. You could also enjoy complete solitude if you decided to go hiking in the hills on a weekend.
People would give you strange looks if you didn’t have your phone on you. We have to make an excuse, such as the battery dying or your phone being stolen.
You only need 30 minutes.
All of these distractions and demands for our attention erode our ability to concentrate on ourselves. Instead, we are encouraged to concentrate on other people. However, if you set aside some time each day for yourself, you will be able to identify and focus on your priorities and the things you desire for yourself.
When you focus on your priorities, you will begin to achieve the things you have always desired. This can also make you a positive role model for others. You begin to lead others rather than simply following.
Robin Sharma has spoken and written extensively about The 5 AM Club. This is where you get up at 5 a.m., exercise for 20 minutes, plan for 20 minutes, and learn for 20 minutes. Giving yourself one hour each day to focus on yourself helps to set the tone for a fantastic day.
This may not be for everyone, but if you can go to bed early enough, you will feel better every morning.
To reap the productivity benefits of solitude and “me time,” you do not need to devote an entire hour to yourself each day.
You only need 30 minutes.
There are many things you can do in 30 minutes, and the majority of them will increase your productivity. Here are a few examples:
Concentrate on Your Priorities
Many people claim they never have time to work on their goals and aspirations. However, if you allow yourself enough time to reflect on your day and plan for the next, you will be able to better focus on your priorities and plan how you will spend your time doing them.
The 2+8 Prioritization System is a simple method that can help people focus on their priorities. In this system, you set two objectives that you must complete within the day and eight other tasks that are related to these objectives that you will attempt to complete.
It only takes ten minutes, but the results can be spectacular. It means that you start your day with a plan and an intention, which helps you resist the temptation to give in to other people’s priorities.
As the late Jim Rohn so eloquently stated:
“If you don’t create your own life plan, chances are you’ll end up following someone else’s. Guess what they have in store for you? “Not a lot.”
When you start the day with a plan, your productivity skyrockets. When you don’t have a plan, the smallest details can take over your day.
Me-time allows your mind to rest.
With so much going on in the world, it is easy to become engrossed in the drama and fears of daily life. In reality, very few of these dramas and events have any lasting impact on you.
Your mind is programmed to seek out dangers and magnify them to make them appear more serious than they are. This is how our forefathers survived hundreds of thousands of years ago on the savannahs.
However, the dangers that we are programmed to avoid no longer exist. News organizations, on the other hand, discovered that sensationalized news sells. They fill the void by telling us scary stories that cause us to react in predictable ways, such as panic buying toilet paper.
Giving yourself a little time each day to break free from this cycle and focus on your priorities provides you with much-needed perspective in this volatile world. This will allow you to complete your most important tasks without becoming distracted by other, less important tasks.
It is critical to schedule downtime for yourself and your mind. It keeps you focused on the present moment and the things that are most important to you.
Anchors keep you anchored
Having a few anchors in your life helps you stay focused on what is important. Create a self-care routine in the morning, schedule daily exercises, and spend quality time with your family. These are necessities that should not be negotiated.
Your boss, customers, friends, and coworkers should never be allowed to take that time away from you, and the only way they can is if you allow them to.
People like Gary Vaynerchuk put in a lot of effort. Nonetheless, according to their schedules, they devote two or three hours per day to family time and at least one hour to exercise. These are their daily anchors, and they are unchangeable.
Your most valuable asset is your time. Time, health, and energy are never guaranteed and can be taken away from you in an instant. It is critical to protect your time, and you should learn to say no to things that do not interest you.
Of course, it’s easier to say than it is to do, but so is learning to play golf or the guitar. You can learn to play these at a reasonable level with practice and a few weeks of consistent practice, and the same goes for learning to say no.
It will be difficult and uncomfortable at first, and you will feel guilty. However, after a while, you will stop being a yes-man. Instead, you will learn to say no and safeguard your own time. You will be able to concentrate on the activities that are important to you.
Make me-time a non-negotiable part of your daily routine.
Schedule 30 minutes for yourself every day. Put it on your calendar and make sure no one can take it away from you. Use this time to plan your day, read a book, meditate, or simply get some fresh air without interruptions.
If you struggle to make me time a non-negotiable part of your day, you can always try to learn how to make time for yourself.
Allow your mind to wander in order to appreciate the things around you and gain new perspectives on life. Doing so keeps you focused on your life and priorities, and you will notice an increase in productivity as a result of being more focused on the truly important things.
