No, this post has nothing to do with investigative journalism or eye care. It’s a follow up on my attempts to stagger my life. I am strategically attacking one of the biggest blocks I use as a crutch: time.
Time. Dagnabbit, there’s never enough of it, I tell myself. “Weeeelll, I didn’t get any writing done today, but I ran out of time. I didn’t work out either. But it’s not my fault. No time!” Then I throw my hands up in the air, taking no accountability. For a long while this has been an effective strategy to placate the little voice in my head telling me that I desire more from life. “Shut up, little voice! There’s no time to desire more. I have a full time job. I have friends. Cats. A husband. That’s why I didn’t keep the promises I made to myself. It has nothing to do with me, blame the friggin’ clock!”
Lately, though, the little voice is getting louder and isn’t so easily placated. “Oh, so you didn’t have time today, huh? Then explain to me why you just spent twenty minutes on facebook.”
Hmm. You’ve got me there, little voice.
When I was working through The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron, it began to dawn on me that I don’t need vast stretches of time to accomplish something. I can be creative and find ways to make use of little chunks of time here and there. Something is always better than nothing.
With that thought, the 20/20/20 plan was born.
Here’s how it works. I take the top three things that I want to integrate more into my life and make it a goal to spend twenty minutes a day on each of them. I chose writing, exercise and meditation. I’ve been sticking to this plan in spurts for the past few months and I have to be honest: it’s not easy. The lazy, blocked voice still argues and bargains. But the voice of my inner artist is getting stronger with patience, and most of all practice.
I’m finally admitting that if I wait until things are perfect and I have endless expanses of time to spend on enriching my life, I’m dooming myself to stay trapped in a vicious cycle of excuses and blocks. This plan adds up to spending one hour a day doing the things that are most important to me. One measly hour. Surely we can all carve out one hour a day to honor our souls? You might be surprised by how much weight this practice can take off your heart.
I came across a quote from Alan Cohen in the current issue of Spirituality and Health magazine that brought this all home for me: “Integrity is the condition in which the life you are living in the outer world matches who you are in the inner world.” I don’t know who you are, Alan, but I think you hit the nail on the head. It’s no longer enough for me to drag my feet and make excuses about why I’m not living my life in a way that makes my heart sing. I desire to live with integrity. I’m ready take action, even if it’s just twenty minutes at at time.
Wow, the top two things that somehow I never manage to get to in a day either: writing and working out! And yet, I looked at all the pictures football player Larry Fitzgerald posted to his Twitter feed today. Go figure. Love the 20/20/20 plan. I’m going to try that. Thanks!
It’s pretty amazing how hard it can be to get the things we love the most into our days! Thanks for the comment
I love this 20/20/20 idea. It makes so much sense. Although I don’t have difficulty finding time for exercise, there are many other things I never seem to find time to do: (1) Writing (2) Voice Work – as an actress I know it’s important, but I always seem to have an excuse, and (3) Meditation. I’m also in the process of doing the Artist’s way, and I’m absolutely loving it. I’ve been doing the morning pages for almost a month now, and I don’t think I’ll ever stop. I’m actually talking about my own journey through the book on my blog (the-positivity-project.com). Anyway, just wanted to tell you that I really enjoy your blog and your writing style. Very fun to read. I will be back. Thank you.
Thank you Christine! It’s great to hear from you, it makes me all excited to find like-minded people. And I agree on the morning pages. They are definitely a life-changer. I’ve been slacking on mine lately- you’re helping me want to re-dedicate myself to them.
Take your time. Writing a book, meditating, and exercising are marathons and sprints.
It’s a good plan. It reminds me of how ants work (somewhere in the bible, it says to work like ants so you must be doing something right). You won’t notice it, but over time, you’ll see that you’ve achieved your goals. These are good first steps. Just have faith that they will happen. 