Wasting time?


Who is a time waster?

Lets be honest with each other? I am and I am sure you are to. 

I am very good at checking my mail, popping onto Facebook to say hi (I am a friendly gal), visiting Pinterest (someone might have posted something new), reading the next chapter of my book, day-dreaming, talking to Ruby (the cat!), wandering around the garden all because I don't really want to clean the bathroom.  

I know every trick in the book to avoid doing something I don't want to do and I doubt I am NOT alone with this one. 

Wasting time doesn't always mean I am not doing something - it just means I am doing something  else instead of what I should be doing! I am finding other more interesting things to do to avoid doing the ones that aren't very exciting i.e. cleaning the bathroom!!

Sewing instead of making dinner. 

Reading instead of vacuum-cleaning.

 Surfing the net instead of  dusting.

Watching TV instead of cleaning the fridge. 

Gossiping to friends instead of doing my work.


Avoiding doing my jobs means that they don't get done, or when I do finally get around to doing them, I rush as I am short of time.  The more time I spend not doing my jobs, the more they build up, the bigger the pile of cloths washing, the dust and dirt, the dishes . . .  and the more difficult it can be to start. It can all lead to the feeling of discouragement, guilt and  being overwhelmed. My avoidances leads to jobs not being done and as a result my house and family will start to suffer and so will I.  

How to avoid wasting time:

 SET YOURSELF LIMITS

Do the "not so nice activities" first thing in the morning and reward yourself with the "nice and enjoyable activities" once you have finished the unpleasant ones!! 

It couldn't be simpler. 

Reward yourself with nice things after doing the yucky things!!! 

So why do we find it all too hard?


Because chatting with friends, watching TV or surfing the internet are addictive and it can be very difficult to stop when it requires self-disipline.  And when at home with no other adult around, it is easy to spend a little longer surfing the net or reading a book - who will know. The children are unlikely to dob on you and your husband might think you were SO busy you didn't have time to wash the dishes or vacuum. However, whilst you can convince others you have been "busy" all day, God knows the truth. 

Having self-discipline is VERY important.

Being able to have self-control and knowing when work needs to be done and when its time for relaxation is a balance many of us struggle with.

The lack of self-discuple is rampant in todays society. Most people struggle with wasting time - at home and at work. Not only is it affecting productivity, ultimately it affects the national economy. Being lazy don't create wealthy nations and it certainly doesn't create clean homes.

Did you know that adults in Britain are losing on average, nine years of their lives watching TV. Just imagine if you included the internet, coffee with friends, sleeping-in and lazing about. How many years are you wasting?



Here are a few tips to help "time-wasting" - if you have others please let me know:

  • If you struggle with wasting time - Set yourself limits - allocate time for TV, internet, blogging, Facebook, chatting with friends, reading.  Set the kitchen timer as a reminder. Be strict on yourself.
  • Unplug from the technology in your home to try and break your addiction - don't look at Facebook for a week, instead of TV in the evening why not play games with the family. 
  • You may struggle to eliminate all your wasted time at once, do it gradually as it is less painful. 
  • Admit your problem and ask your husband to help.
  • Remember, wasting time and being idle is a sin and the Bible has nothing nice to say about idle folk.
  • Whilst hobbies are fun, they should not take up your entire day so the basic housework is neglected - housework first, hobbies second!!
  • Use the evenings as a time to relax and watch TV - you deserve it after a busy constructive day. 

But REMEMBER - don't go overboard and be like Martha and work all day out of guilt and not take a rest.  God expects us to rest, but only after working.


**** IT IS ALL ABOUT BALANCE ****


And a special thanks to Ruby for being my star model in this blog post - she tends to sleep all day (and all night) and awakes for pats and food from her maid (that's me!)!!

 But cats are allow to sleep or do nothing for 23 hours in a day, we aren't!!!

*****

Comments

  1. Dear Jo, Very good post and you are so right about balance in areas of work and hobbies.Self control must be learned and practiced! Your kitty is very sweet! Yes, they do sleep all day and night LOL
    You are writing some very nice posts...
    Hugs, Roxy

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    1. Thankyou Roxy - balance is the key and most of us struggle with this from time to time!! My kitty loves to have her photo taken and being told that she is beautiful (which of course she is told often).

      Blessings and hugs xx

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  2. Balance is very important. I find that I have a hard time truly relaxing if I haven't had a productive day. I enjoy my house and yard a certain way, and I am well aware of my chosen role as a housewife. I want my family to be well taken care of. Sometimes the phone can be a bother, so my husband and I decided that a headset would be a good investment. Now while chatting with Mother-in-law and sisters and such, I get my dusting, sweeping and bathrooms cleaned. It becomes time well spent. I always giggle a bit when at the end of our conversations, they say, "Well, I guess I've wasted enough time, better get off the phone now".

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    1. It my day hasn't been productive, I don't sleep as well - when I have had busy day I sleep like a baby!! I too, use headphones when I talk to my dad (on my mobile) which means I can cook dinner, wash up or do a variety of things whilst I chat!!

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  3. This is an encouraging word. Thanks for sharing.

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  4. Balance in life is key! Great post :) Stopping by from the Inspire Me Monday hop, come say hi!

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  5. You're right - self discipline is hard. I'm working on this and slowly gaining. Thank you for reminding me of what I need to be focusing on.

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    1. I think we have it much harder than in the past with all the temptation of the internet and smart phones - we can waste time almost everywhere we go!! It is something we learn as we mature, when we reason an age where time is valuable (as we don't have an endless amount). I am still learning :)

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  6. I waste a lot of time! That's for sure.

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  7. I found you on Wearing with Wisdom. What you say is a good reminder that life is short, so don't waste it. Besides, it's a good feeling to get things "accomplished" during the day! jodie
    www.jtouchofstyle.com

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    1. Thankyou Jodie - too right, life is very short but so many waste away the time that is so precious.

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  8. Self discipline really is difficult - but having someone you can be accountable to does really help. People who are ill and can't get about and be as busy as others physically can find this really difficult as it can become easy to waste a lot of time and use the excuse that you couldn't do anything else anyway. But even that isn't always true - there's things we can do with our hands even while resting our bodies, for example... Or there's Bible study we could do, prayers we can pray, people we can help even while we rest our bodies. This comes from years of being physically unable to be as busy as I would have liked. I spent a lot of time feeling guilty and crying from feelings of failure.
    However, if we are able-bodied, it is important that we find a balance and use self-control when it comes to resting and taking time out. Definitely get the work out the way first - I have a motto for our home - "work first, then play". It's always SO much more fun to "play" after the work is done - it is freeing and results in less feelings of guilt and failure! :)

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    1. Balance is the key to most things :)) and how good the feeling is to have completed something then have time to "play".

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  9. Thank you so much for sharing this great post with us at Good Morning Mondays. Blessings

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  10. This reminds me about how work for the sake of work is not necessarily a good thing. We can be busy, keep ourselves industrious, but we need to make sure we are working on the right things. Not procrastinating through work.

    Thanks for sharing at #SmallVictoriesSundayLinkup ...I've pinned your post!

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    1. I agree, when I read of women who do housework for several hours per day I wonder what they are doing, or what I am not doing!!

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