What’s something you want to do that you’re not doing? Why aren’t you doing it?
For many people, the first response to the question of “why aren’t you doing it?” is “I don’t have the time.” People tell me that they can’t find a time where they can be undisturbed for a solid few hours.
I’m calling bullshit.
If you want to find a block of time when you can work without being interrupted by phone calls, people walking into your office, or the lure of social media, try the window between 1–4 am.
If you’re like most people, you’ll say that time doesn’t work for you. You’re sleeping then. You’re not really awake and primed to work in those hours.
You could be.
Back in the 1800s, it was common to sleep in shifts. People would go to sleep early, then wake in the middle of the night to do work or other activities, then return to bed.
I’m not necessarily suggesting that you adopt this practice.
(Although, if you find yourself awake in the middle of the night, it might help you to recall this fact as a way to normalize being up. That alone can help you get back to sleep.)
My point is that when you say you “can’t find the time” you are lying to yourself.
“Finding time” is the easy part.
More likely what you really mean is that you can’t find the time when your energy is aligned with the task you want to do.
That is certainly more difficult.
It requires self-study and awareness to learn your biorhythms and chronobiology and understand the factors that facilitate the best conditions for the work you want to do. There’s a process to this. It can take a while. But you’ll never even start that process if you insist you “can’t find the time.”
Getting specific about the challenge is the first step to finding a solution.
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