Time is precious. A very common quote that most of us can agree is true. No matter how much we try, we are only allotted 24 hours in a day. And while some can work wonders and make things happen, some of us struggle and never have enough time.

The thing is, time just is. It’s constant and is always the same. The only thing that changes is our thought about it. The best example I can use is giving birth to my daughter. While those 36 hours of labor felt like an eternity, a different set of 36 hours, let’s say the total number of hours worked in a week, are viewed totally different.

While recently learning how to better manage my time, I discovered that it is my thoughts that need managing. I used to be reactive to things happening around me, rather than planning how I wanted to spend my time. Living my life in reaction kept me from creating the life I wanted. I was always kept busy by “putting out fires” that would happen “to me.” Now I know, that this was the result of not planning for things ahead of time.

Another lesson I’ve learned over time is that focusing on one thing at a time will help produce better outcomes. In my work environments, I’d been taught that multitasking is a great skill. But as time has passed, I’ve learned that multitasking actually takes away from dedicating your full attention to something. So I have technically had to “unlearn” to multitask for the important stuff. Of course, as a mom I know we can be quite good at this. And it is ok, but for the things we truly wish to be present for, I think we can learn to prioritize accordingly.

Thinking there “isn’t enough time” for something will also hinder the quality of the task you are doing. If I gave myself an hour to complete something, and the entire time my brain is playing “there’s not enough time for this” in the background, chances are the end result is not going to be one I am proud of. The quality of your work will take effect. My approach now is to dedicate myself to the task at hand and concentrate on that. Knowing that I have the exact time I need, is the shift that has ironically changed the quality of the time I dedicate to something.

Now, just like with everything so teach and reference on my blog, I am by no means an expert. I have moments where I feel like I don’t know what I’m doing. But fundamentally I know how to train my brain to stay focused and disciplined (it’s taken years by the way!) With anything we are new at, there will be learning curves. And I am here for it!