Life is made up of variables, many variables, most of which we cannot control or predict; other people’s punctuality, efficiency or reliance, the traffic, weather, if we are sick or well.

Then there are the things that seem definite; times for work or school, appointments, sport and other activities.

There are situations that occur daily such as preparing food, showering, sleeping etc

Of course, there are lots of other things that I haven’t mentioned! But you get the idea.

Putting even just these all together can be pretty busy, depending on how many are in a household, how many regular commitments you all have, etc.

So, it doesn’t take a genius to see that some kind of a plan would benefit the overall running of any house, even if you are the only one in it.

There are a couple of real benefits from making a plan, some that are obvious and some that are not often talked about.

A plan is a way of creating a clear focus to achieving a task, especially if it is a complex one. The task in hand may have several parts to complete and so it helps to see them clearly outlined as individual steps. This is especially true if some of these steps require someone else apart from you. Take the task of building an outside seating area, something that a lot of people invested in during covid, in this example, depending on your own skill set, you may need to get in a gardener to landscape the area or an electrician to sort out lighting, whereas most people can buy the furniture yourself.

When a plan has several parts to it, it allows you to do the parts in segments over time, making it much easier to see how the task can be completed.

When you plan a day, a week or a month, it’s the same idea; the time is broken into segments. The segments are time spans for going to work, school, any appointments, making dinner, putting kids to bed, sport or any other task which you know needs to happen.

It has become fashionable to appear busy. And people are busy, but I do feel we can improve on that. I feel that we all could plan better, myself included, better is always out there. At the end of the day, any task will grow into the time frame you give it. In other words, if you have 20 minutes to clean the bathroom, you will do it in that time, but if you have no reason to stop until 45 minutes passes, you will take 45 minute to clean the same bathroom.

You can hear it all around you all the time; I have no time, no time to do whatever is suggested – to go for a walk, exercise classes, bake your own bread, whatever. Take note, next time someone suggests to you to do something; go to the yoga class, meet for coffee, do a course… what do you say? It’s just our nature to not be able to see the time for this new activity because we know we are always doing something, hence where could we then fit this new thing??

The advantage you have when you write a plan, is that you can see clearly the time frames that are used and then the time frames that are left. And the time frames that are left is what I want to talk!

The time frame that is free, is the key to change!

But you don’t know it’s there if you don’t lay out the plan first!!

The fact that there is a free time span allows you to look at some self-care… you know the thing that you really thought you never had time for! Now it’s time for change! Let March be the month for this new beginning for you.

Carve out that time span. Clean the bathroom in ten minutes less, delegate here and there, spend 20 minutes less on screen-time… whatever. When you make your plan you will see the time spans, then reflect on where does the rest of the time go and you will see where you can do better.

And now allocate a time slot for you, even just half an hour once a week! The very same as the others in the house have their activities, this is now yours! What you choose to do is up to you, you can do whatever makes you feel good and if that is looking out the window or taking a nap, well that’s great! Do It!!

I would love to hear how you get on with this! Would love to hear some of your me-time activities… you can leave a comment on the social media post for this blog.