Time to stop wasting time

Stop Wasting Time and Start Being Mum Your Way

In this episode we delve into the critical issue of time management and how mothers often squander their precious time, neglecting themselves in the process. 

Amanda starts by addressing the challenge of being overwhelmed, a primary reason for time wastage. She discusses how endless to-do lists and a lack of focus lead to reactive rather than productive actions. She emphasizes the need for clear prioritization and the importance of distinguishing between urgent and essential tasks.

Furthermore, Amanda emphasizes the significance of proper time management and effective to-do list prioritization. She encourages listeners to measure and time regular activities to gain a realistic understanding of how long they truly take. This awareness helps reduce stress and allows for better planning, ultimately saving time and creating space for personal pursuits.

The podcast also explores the issue of procrastination, breaking down the various factors that contribute to it. She also touches on the importance of aligning tasks with personal values and interests to stay motivated.

In conclusion, this episode provides valuable insights into recognising and addressing time-wasting behaviours that hinder mums from achieving balance and self-care. Amanda offers practical advice and encouragement for mums to take control of their time and prioritise their well-being.

Transcript

Welcome to the Being Mum podcast, the podcast for being a mum your way. I am your host, Amanda Forsey. Thank you so much for joining me. It is so important as mums to find a balance between giving to our families and giving to ourselves. And it's only by finding out what we truly value and care about out that we can live our lives in line with who we are and what we really want. Let's put the u and the y back into mummy. 

Hello. Thank you for joining me for this week's episode.

In one of the 1st episodes I released. I discussed some of the different ways that you could find time for yourself and ways that would help you prioritize it. If you haven't listened to it yet, please do go back and check it out as It's full of tips and practical ways to help you find me time, which can be a challenge in our busy mom lives. This week, I'm going to be talking about how we can be getting in our own way. Some of the behaviors and the patterns that we fall into actually cause us to waste time. 

You know, you get To decide where your time goes. So how do you want to spend it? If you don't decide, then the time will still pass. And usually it's spent doing everything for others And that leaves no time for you.

So let's take a look at how we might be wasting time. Being overwhelmed can be a big reason for us to waste time. If we're juggling a lot and have endless to do lists, then we don't know where to start. We aren't doing, but reacting. So things that are grabbing our attention  in the moment that we're so busy doing those things that we're just getting stuff done and those things seem urgent. And then we delay or we postpone the other tasks that are actually important. This lack of focus and being clear on what's really important means We're easily distracted by life, and it doesn't help us manage our time. 

Poor time management and not prioritising our do list and what matters most to us in our life is a huge time waster. I'm sure you've heard the phrase, if you fail to plan, plan to fail. So what can we do about it? Being overwhelmed puts us in a state of stress. And we aren't thinking clearly or managing our activities as best we can. One thing you can do Is to know how long something's gonna take and the steps that you need to do to achieve it. So whether it's doing the washing up, getting dinner ready, folding and sorting out clothes, Whatever it is, you can work out how long the activity actually takes. 

And don't just guess this. Okay? But measure it. Time it. So that you know Exactly how long that activity takes. And we're all guilty of thinking that a job is going to be quicker to do than it is. I'm sure you're crystal clear on how long it takes to get the kids to school because you don't want to be late. And so you know the exact time you have to leave, okay, when you walk out that door to make sure that you get there on time. Do this for the other areas in your life.

Okay. The laundry, the food shopping, making dinner, the cleaning. Look at all the regular jobs that you do and really work out how long may take and what the steps are to get them done. This is gonna help you plan the best way to do them, and take away the stress and anxiety that builds up around them. This awareness is going to help you save time, and it's going to get clear on where you can fit in time for yourself as well. The truth is that if we let them, then all the tasks and jobs of being a mum are going to expand to fill up all of our time. Okay? They'll fill up all the time available. And if we're leaving things to the last minute, then we're gonna be feeling stressed and overwhelmed and like we aren't good enough because we can't get on top of things.

And that's not true. Okay? It's just poor time management skills, and we can totally learn those. Now I wanna talk about a big time waster which I struggle with, and that's procrastination. There are different reasons why we procrastinate. So I'm gonna touch on them and you can see if any resonate with you. So perfectionism. We often have set ourselves very high expectations that our homes are clean, tidy, organized, they look beautiful, that our kids eat home cooked and nutritious meals, and their toys are tidy and put away after they play with them, and not all over the floor as usually the case in my house. That they attend various after school activities, and they do all their homework without a battle of wills.

These unrealistic expectations keep us frozen or stuck in inaction. Okay. We focus too much time on the minor details, trying to do everything perfectly, and then we run out of time. These expectations to do everything perfectly can also go hand in hand with the fear of failure, of not doing it properly, or the big one, being a bad mum. These feelings and thoughts can stop us doing and even getting started. We're stuck. And if we don't take responsibility, if we don't do the task job. Then we didn't do it badly, did we? We didn't fail.

We didn't mess up. We can tell ourselves that if we'd had enough time, we would have been able to do it all and do it right. There is another reason that is creeping in here as well, and that is a lack of motivation. Some tasks or jobs don't align with our values and interests. We tell ourselves that we want the perfectly organized home, but maybe because we think that's what makes a good mum. But our values tell us that it's more important to spend time playing with our children, reading them stories. And so we do that instead with our time, And then we feel bad about the mess we didn't have time to deal with. I can't not talk about 1 other huge time waster, and that I'm sure you're aware of.

I don't really need to explain it. It's our phones. They are huge distractions and we waste a lot of time with them. Check your phone usage and ask yourself, What could you do for yourself with even some of that time? 

So we can overcome some of these time wasters by being crystal clear on our goals and setting ourselves jobs and tasks that align with what we really matter to us. You can set yourself easy, small, and achievable little goals start with, and then those easy wins will motivate you to continue to make more. And another way is to ask for help. You can be honest and admit that time management and planning aren't your best skills at the moment. You know, you can learn them, but at the moment maybe they're not your strengths.

And you can seek out support to help you. And having someone to share these challenges with also keeps you accountable. I hope that this might have got you thinking and looking at where you're wasting time in a day. And if I can help you save some of that time so you can use it for something for you, then I'm super happy. That's all for this week's episode. I hope that you have a lovely weekend, and I'll be back again next week. Take care. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The Being Mum Podcast.