If your life is not going as you want it to right now…….

If you are not satisfied with the way you live your life right now, here are some things you can do to make it better. Start with the first task in Week 1,  then add a further task each week so that you are covering all 8 areas by Week 8.  

Week 1– Join the wake daily up at 5am club.  It does not have to be so early, as long as you can find one hour every morning when you will be alone without any interruptions. Use this hour to complete these three 20 minute tasks in any order you want:

20 minutes of exercise with at least 10 minutes of cardio, 5 minutes of weights or resistance and 5 minutes of stretching. If you are not sure how to do any part,  find an online video. 

20 minutes of reading to learn a new skill or acquire knowledge. 

20 minutes of gentle relaxation and meditation.

Repeat this one hour routine daily, even at weekends or days off work.

Week 2– Make a plan to declutter your possessions.  Assign some time each week to tackle a specific room or area and put things into keep and dispose piles. Organize the things you keep so they are accessible, anything in a container can be labelled for easy identification. Donate or dispose of stuff every week.

Week 3– If your spending is out of control, cut up the credit cards or reduce them to just one. Cancel subscriptions to things that are non-essential like cable TV, music streaming or Apps. Track your spending with a free App or a notepad to accurately record your outgoings.  Make decisions on what you can afford and create a realistic budget for essentials like food, shelter, heating, commuting and self care/medical.  Allocate spending for entertainment and fun but stick within your budget.   If you are overwhelmed go see a financial adviser. Allocate time to this task weekly.

Week 4– Reduce your screen time from phones, computers and TV.  Put your phone on silent for most of the day so you are not interrupted by unscheduled calls, texts or notifications.   Consider giving up social media completely, it is not an essential part of healthy living.  Spend more time in nature taking walks or bike riding. Stop and smell the roses. Make a plan to focus on this each week.

Week 5– Prioritize experiences over material possessions.   Find joy in simple things like writing, reading, spending time with loved ones or just taking a walk. Every week, find time to reach out to a friend or loved one you have drifted from.

Week 6– Plan your time effectively and leave gaps between tasks to allow for over-run or downtime. Practice single tasking and try to finish a task before starting a new one. Learn to say no to things that are not important to you and focus more on what is. Check in on this aspect weekly

Week 7– Practice self care to ensure your physical, mental and spiritual well being is not being ignored.  If you need to lose weight, start a diet and exercise program. If your drinking habits are excessive, considering having a totally dry month. Join a group with shared interests and consider volunteering as a way to donate your time helping others. Verify you have addressed this at least one a week.

Week 8– Look back and reflect on how your life has improved, allocate more time on areas that are not yet yielding results.  Reward yourself with some outrageous, decadent, delicious, guilt-free self indulgence.

work work work work fishing work work fishing work fishing work fishing fishing work fishing fishing work fishing

In the early days of my career

I was very ambitious and worked hard

Long hours and weekends were consumed

By my relentless drive to reach every working goal

As soon as I achieved a promotion

I set myself a new target for the next one

It was like running on a treadmill

That went faster and higher without a break

One day a good friend said he was concerned

That my work-life balance was all wrong

He said we were going on a fishing trip

To take my mind off work for one day

I thought it was a waste of time but agreed

We caught no fish the first day

Vowing to try again the following weekend

And so started a new passion outside my job

My fishing knowledge improved through focused learning

Progressing from pure leisure to competitions

Pitching my fishing skills against others

Winning lots of trophies and prizes

My performance at work also improved

I no longer worked weekends

Enjoying more time with my family

Fishing was my weekly stress relief

My work-life balance was restored

It took me a long time to realize

That fishing is a form of meditation

Clearing your mind of all random thoughts

As you focus on a single thing 

If you practice meditation you can find the answers  

To problems that had seemed unsolvable 

Retirement put an end to working goals

Replaced by goals for learning, lifestyle, family and friendships

I rarely go fishing now but I do find time to meditate daily

Namaste