Lets get real here. Time. There’s never enough of it, is there? Between work, family and other obligations, our hobbies and interests can get pushed to the back burner. And it’s so easy to say, well I just don’t have time to read today, it can wait until tomorrow. Until you realize it’s been almost a week and you haven’t read anything except your report at work today. Or that could just be me.
There are many readers and bloggers who are very good at making the time to fit it in. And that’s the advice you hear most often: if you really love it, you’ll make time to do it. For organized people who have more willpower than I do, that works great. They can make the time to sit down and read a few pages or a chapter at a time while the baby is asleep, or on their lunch break. But I am not one of those people. I always seem to make excuses or push it off until I’ve wasted that half an hour I could have spent reading. And its usually on stupid things, like cruising through Twitter for 20 minutes for no reason. Not that I don’t love Twitter, I do!
Social media in general has a way of sucking me in so that I spend time engaging in what my brain tricks me into thinking is productive time. And I’ve tried to just cut out social media all together, but I miss it! I love talking to people on Twitter and online, and honestly, I have way more friends online than I do in real life.
So what do I do? I’ve debated setting a goal of pages to read, or what reviews I need to write at the beginning of the week. I get so excited about new plans or organizational ideas, but they never have staying power for me. They always work well in the beginning, but I let real life or laziness get in the way and they never last.
What it all comes down to is that I love my hobbies. I love reading and crafting and I need to remember that when I think that I don’t have the time to do them. Instead of wasting time on things I know won’t make me happy, I need to make it a part of my routine in a way that becomes habit.
Having said all that, HELP! If you have any tips or tricks (Erin, I know you’re awesome at these!) that help you fit your hobbies into your busy lives, I would love to hear them. Happy reading guys!
-Jenny
I always read for about an hour right before I go to bed. It helps me wind down — if I'm on the computer or doing something more active right up until bed time, I can't sleep. Setting aside time to read before bed allows me to do something I enjoy almost every single day, and it helps me doze off faster.
That's a great idea! Reading is really relaxing for me too. Even half an hour before bed adds up to a lot of reading time. Thanks Serena!
Oh goodness, no! My work schedule is all over the place and my son's schedule for when he is having dinner at home (and I have to cook), changes all the time. I catch as catch can. 🙂