P is for Prioritizing

Everybody has a lot on their plate. There is paying the bills, supporting your family, fulfilling civic duties, and everything else that crops up. It's life. It is a problem for almost everybody. Time is a rare and precious commodity.

Last May, when I began this blog, I had wrote about some of the things I decided to sacrifice in order to concentrate on writing. They included online gaming (still resisting), several television programs (still doing well), and even some athletic training (I don't completely neglect this, thank goodness).

Amazingly, this has not freed up a ton of time. In the end, I have found that it isn't about finding time, it is about making time. For instance, I find I am spending a lot of time critiquing, something I wasn't doing a year ago.

If you don't make time, you will find your schedule filling up faster than you can imagine. Other priorities will appear if you don't make the time. Schedule it into your day. Let your family know that a certain time is for your writing, just like it is your job. The nice thing about dropping some of the commitments like I listed above is that it gives you more options to make that time you need. So foregoing some of those items has still been a benefit.

This goes for any goals you may have. Time is often the largest obstacle in most goals. For instance, I have a friend who got into cycling after his knees wouldn't let him run anymore. He puts in a LOT of hours burning rubber all over Southern Utah, and often entering races beyond that. He is in his 50's but he has the fitness of a 30 year old. One of his secrets is that he makes time. When he puts something on his calendar he follows through with it, whether it be a meeting, a dentist appointment, or riding his bike. He, as he says, "gets it done." He rarely -- if ever -- misses a bike ride, and the results speak for themselves.

If you have a goal, prioritize your time. Until you do, your goal will only remain an unfulfilled wish.