Whether you’re a college student, full-time worker or a mom juggling ten things at once, it can be hard to find time to do the activities that make you happy. Free time gets filled with extra studying or another soccer practice for the kids and those hobbies tend to get lost. However, you don’t have to just give them up. It’s still possible to make time for things that don’t feel like work. Below are four ways to find time for what makes you feel most alive.
1. Stay Focused.
With distractions like social media, texting, and just plain procrastination, it can be hard to finish the work that needs to get done. Once you push the work off until later, the time for doing your favorite fun activities disappears in response. Instead of wasting the designated time you have during school or work, utilize it to get everything done. This will free up what’s left of the day for doing things you truly love. It will feel like hard work to get everything done within the designated time, but it will be well worth it in the end.
2. Maximize the in-between moments.
Often, there can be lulls in between different responsibilities. Maybe it’s a free hour between your last class and your organization meeting. Maybe it’s the half an hour between getting off work and needing to pick up the kids from school. Those small gaps of time are perfect to fit in the activities that make you happy. Go for a run, work on a painting, or focus on any other hobby that makes you feel like you’re living the best life for you. It may not be the ample hours of time you wish to spend but it will be enough to keep your spirits high.
3. Learn to be a night owl.
Once school or work is done, homework is accomplished, or the kids are in bed, there’s a few hours that can still be tapped into. It might be hard to get your mind and body motivated to do other hobbies after a long day, but it will refresh you in a completely different way than sleep can. If you truly want to fit in what you love, then small sacrifices, like an extra hour of sleep, will have to be made.
4. Be a weekend warrior.
Weekends are a perfect time to fit in what you love. These two days aren’t as hectic as the rest of the week. While there may still be events to fill the day, there is an opportunity to focus on your hobbies. Don’t waste this time sleeping in until noon or watching tv all day just to regret it later. Instead, use this break from work and school to do what makes you happy.
Fitting in your favorite activities isn’t impossible just because you have a hectic schedule, but it will take some motivation and planning. Maximize the free moments whether that’s during the day, at night or over the weekend. The hobbies you love don’t have to be sacrificed if you make it a priority to fit them in.
Reflect & Refresh 