Finding Time for What You Love

I grew up in a time before smart phones. Sure, for the most part, the internet was still around, but it still baffles me to think that there was a time when we were all naked. We didn't have mobile devices attached to our hips that could fix boredom with a snap of a finger. There was a time when people took books and magazines with them to the bathroom instead of their phones. And I lived through this time.

When smartphones first came out, I was quite reluctant to join the club. I was scared to how much it might affect my productivity. But a few years later, I caved and have never looked back. These days, I'll be the first to admit that I am just as addicted as the next person, and as it turns out, I had every right to be nervous.

This isn't meant to be a negative commentary on how groundbreaking technology is eating away at our brains. I'm not throwing away my smart phone or tablet any time soon, and I wouldn't ask you to either. Modern day phones are a marvel and the conveniences they have brought to the world have changed many lives for the better. However, I have noticed one thing about my phone that I am trying to change.

It is an enormous time waster.

We are all busy. We have our jobs, our family, our friends, and often many other responsibilities that consume our lives. It can be hard to carve out time for things that truly make us happy. Personally, I am a stay at home mother to an active toddler who is also trying to work on my writing on a professional level. To sum up this experience in a few words; it's hard. Really hard. Balancing my home responsibilities while trying to maintain happy and healthy relationships with my daughter and husband often feels like too much. Sometimes carving out time for my career seems like a dauntless task.

Then I catch myself on social media, scrolling endlessly while I take a breather. I catch myself playing a game, or "window shopping" on Etsy or Amazon. Does this stuff make me happy? Sure, on a surface level it totally does. But, at the end of the day, it's just empty calories. Cotton candy. It's not good for me, even though it tastes sugary. When my indulgent minute is over, I usually feel unsatisfied and the time I spent eating my treat is gone. I can never get that minute back.

I find that I feel the most satisfied when I spend my rare time alone to do something that would have made me happy in the pre-smart phone era. If I spend that time writing, or reading a book, or even taking a bath, I feel great.

So, what I am getting at here, is we all have more time than we think we do. Next time you find yourself lost in Instagram stories, or trying in vain to reach the next level of your pay to win phone game, put the phone down. Go for a run, paint a picture, meet up with a friend. You may find out that you have more time to do the things you love than you ever realized.