Finding the Time

Photo from Ask My Sister Mary Martha

The first question that comes to my mind when I've decided to make something isn't how to accomplish it, but instead, just where am I going to find the time!  Having ungodly amounts of debt, the price of living and of course having to support my crafting habit, I've taken on 60 to 70 hour work weeks.  Thusly, most of my time is spent smiling at people I despise on the inside, instead of sitting at home snuggling with my cat and making something new.  When I first took on these busy schedules I made no attempts to find time for myself and trucked on until I burned out and had an emotional break down.  It was then that it became clear that finding "me time", even if it was only an hour a day, was beyond important.  Here are a few tips on how and were to find your "me time".

• Write a Schedule:  This might seem obvious, but I feel it's a tool many people don't use anymore.  I always write out all my work hours, appointments, and even free time on my calendar.  With this I have the perfect tool to help me with my next tip...
  
• Plan ahead!  And with that, stay organized too.  Each night before I go to bed, I prepare myself for the next day.  Set out my cloths for my first job, pack a change for the second job, lunch, and what ever you're currently working on.  This way, whenever you find that moment of down time, instead of taking out your phone to play your favorite addictive game, you can finish a few more rows with your knitting or rip that ridiculous seam you made.
  
• Know your opportunities:  Think about your day and find where you can steal a moment for yourself.  Even if you only have a half hour break for lunch in your day, it's something, and who says you can't eat and work at the same time.  Be careful though, I love to multitask and eating while working is nothing to me, but be sure not to be pressuring yourself to eat fast or complete too much in one break.  It's time for yourself to relax,
  not stress yourself out over a time limit.
  
• Look for slow jobs:  I understand not everyone can do this, nor are they always available, but if you can find one, your golden.  I knew I would need to work a lot, so I was sure to be on the hunt for at least one of my jobs to be low key.  What I found was a job as a receptionist at a motel down the road from my house.  It's often very quite and very few guests stop in at the office.  This allows me to be sewing in the back room, or crochet at the front desk on "busier" nights.
  
• Ditch your friends:  Don't take me too strictly on that tip.  I think it's perfectly fine to cancel a night out just to have an opportunity to find time alone and with your work.  But becoming a recluse isn't going to do you much good either.  I find this especially helpful to sit my my room and work on my project when I'm stressed out more then usual.  Turn on your favorite musical you've seen a million and a half times and sing along, or throw together some brownies to smell and drool over while you work.  It's especially important to eat at least half the brownies in one sitting when you might be stressed or worn out.  I don't care what people say, that much goodness when you're feeling down is nothing but good for you.

I hope these are of some help  to you.  I live a pretty hectic life for who I am, and these tips have helped me keep my sanity and find time for the things I enjoy doing.  Craft on!