Spending time well
Mornings are my favorite time of the day
One of the things I really value in life are mornings.
At no other time of the day is there such a sense of excitement and hope, such a smell of freshly baked bread, coffee, and fresh air, and such a beautiful sight with empty streets full of golden hour light.
The best thing about the morning is that I get to do so many enjoyable things without distractions.
For example, I get to go for a walk. Apart from improving your sleep, this allows me to fully enjoy what the morning has to offer, free from the pressure of time. I sit down somewhere to take out my notebook and write for a few minutes – and the words flow freely because everything is so quiet.
When I’m back home, I stretch my body and meditate. I do these things knowing that I’m being very kind to myself – and my body and mind thank me by feeling refreshed.
But there are some days when I get impatient and look at all these activities and think, “This is taking too long! I should cut this down so I can get to work earlier.”
But almost as quickly comes the realization that the reason I’m doing this is because I treasure all of this so much.
To reduce it would make my days – and therefore my life – so much less enjoyable.
It is time well spent.
Spend some of your time thinking about the questions below. It’s time well spent, I promise. ❤️
💡 Reflecting on time well spent
(Like always, you can download the Notion template of this issue of Grow Your Mind to take structured notes.)
What does the concept of "time well spent" mean to you?
How do you prioritize and allocate your time to ensure it aligns with your values and aspirations? How can you have more of "time well spent", and less of "time poorly spent"?
What activities or experiences make you lose track of time?
When do you feel most in tune with the present moment and your surroundings? Do you experience losing track of time as something positive, negative, or something else? What do these activities and experiences have in common?
If you knew you only had a week to live, how would that change the way you approach each day?
What would become more or less important to you? Would there be things you’d want to take care of? Would you have any regrets? Another way to think about this is to ask yourself: “If each day was only 12 hours long, what would I cut out?”
🙏 Thanks!
Thank you for being part of Mental Garden. As always, I hope you liked what you’ve read.
The subject of how we spend our time is extremely important. Thinking about it connects us to something that is at the core of being human – the finitude of our lives. There are only so many things we have time to do, and we all share the pain of that knowledge. Even if we lived indefinitely, we would still miss out on an infinity of experiences.
Think about the questions above – and then act on your insights 🙃
With gratitude,
Marc 🌱
PS: time warp