Before leaving Texas, I was concerned about how I would spend my time in New Zealand since I was not allowed to work there legally. I am someone who craves activity and challenge in my life, whether it’s physical or intellectual. If I don’t have new pursuits, I get bored, and that can lead to feeling depressed.
In New Zealand, I have signed up for photography classes, and I am starting to get the hang of them. I discovered some essential technical tips to capture great images. I’m really enjoying my travels and applying my photography knowledge, but I know there’s still a lot for me to learn.
My blog keeps me busy. I have tons of stuff to write because it reflects my life, which is always on the move. I’m happy to see that I’m improving at writing, especially since English is my third language.
“Life is too short to do the things you don’t love doing.”
– Bruce Dickinson
Despite the unpleasant cold and wet weather, I’ve been traveling as much as possible. It’s been raining nonstop.
I have signed up for online classes with the University of Phoenix. I believe I am an eternal student because I love to learn. I am currently taking human resource management to complement my business degree and enhance my marketability for remote job opportunities. These courses cover employment laws, and there is a lot of material to read.
Then, I also pursue projects for personal enjoyment, such as crafting and sewing.
On top of that, I have to take care of Smokey and Mary Jane and handle all the cooking.
I have too much to do and not enough time.
I believe this is an ongoing issue for many individuals, certainly for myself.
How do you manage everything? How can you find focus and peace amidst a busy schedule while still accomplishing tasks? How can we handle this in a balanced manner?
“We think too much and feel too little”
– Charlie Chaplin
Here is how it works, at least from my perspective:
Take a moment to be present.
Stop and notice how your body feels. Spend a few seconds observing the physical sensations of your surroundings (sounds, light, touch sensations, etc.). You don’t need to spend a whole minute. Just 10 or 15 seconds is enough.
Simply observe how you’re feeling, your surroundings, and your thoughts affect you.
“In the chaotic moment, I close my eyes, slowly taking air in as far as my lungs will allow. Pausing at the bottom of my breath I mentally say, “I recalculate, reset and refresh” allowing my exhale to release the tension… Repeating if necessary.”
-unknown
You’ll come to the realization that you can’t accomplish everything all at once. You need to navigate through the chaos by prioritizing what needs to be done immediately, what needs to be done today, what needs to be done this week, and what can wait.
You should focus on urgency as well as what is meaningful and important. I suggest being ruthless and cutting out as much as possible. Not everything needs to be addressed today.
The list is now more manageable, and you have some breathing room.
With a lot on your plate, it’s hard to pick one thing to focus on … Yes, there are many other things you can focus on. Yes, they’re stressing you out and making it hard to concentrate. But think about it this way: if you allow it all to be in your head all the time, that will always be your mode of being.
You’ll always be thinking about everything, stressing out about it all, with a frazzled mind … unless you start changing your way of doing things.
Choose something to focus on. Prioritize that one task and fully immerse yourself in it. Block out any other distractions. Devote all your attention to it. Consider it a practice of letting go of everything else and embracing focus and simplicity.
Here is a thought: Practice letting go. As you let go of your ideal, open yourself to reality and smile. Be grateful for the moment you actually have instead of wishing for the one you don’t have. Smile and be happy now rather than waiting for happiness to come at some unspecified date.
In the end, will these suggestions clear away your to-do list? No. You’ll always have a lot of things on your list and not enough time to do them all. What this does is help you to deal with that fact and make you more mindful and focused on the reality of having a long to-do list and limited time to complete it.
Life is too short to spend most of it stressed out by an unchangeable fact. We don’t have to waste our time and mental energy worrying about too much to do. Instead, we can smile and be happy doing what we can do now.
“At the end of the day, life is too short to worry.”
– Lauren Ash