The phone is ringing.
Facebook is calling our name.
Our favorite TV show is on.
The cell phone is blowing up with text messages.
Does that sound at all familiar? Our lives are filled with distractions and temptation like no other time in history. We are inundated with information and the outside noise often pulls us away from the very things that deserve our utmost attention. Remember your priority list and goals?
Do you hear it? That noise; tick-tock,tick-tock. It is the sound of the clock and worst yet, it is your time slipping away.
All of the outside distractions are a constant pull on what really matters. Maybe it’s your time with God, your husband, children, a career, or your physical healthy that are suffering most.
I know the outside noise for me is certainly a ring leader in my procrastination struggles. I often am late because I choose to give my attention to something that at that exact moment is likely unnecessary and undeserving of it. The phone tends to be a big one for me. I hear the ringing and I proceed to answer despite my keen awareness that it will likely lead to a late arrival somewhere or at a minimum a severe falling behind of our schedule. With only 15 minutes to spare before running out the door; I pick up “hello“. Something so innocent; something, I clearly should have ignored. Now, we are going to be late and I am grumpy towards my children as a result of a choice I made. I rush them out the door, yell too much, and have an overwhelming sense of guilt. This is just one example of how how our choosing unwisely can directly affect our children. Can you relate? Unfortunately, It is often those that are the innocent bystanders that get the wrath of our poor judgement calls.
How can I do better? I know I can. How can you do better? There’s always room for improvement.
Here are a few ideas that I have/am taking up and hope you will join me in doing the same; let’s reclaim our days and precious time together.
4 Steps to Reclaiming Your Day
1) Turn off the ringers or do away with the house phone all together.
2) Set limits; strict limits as to when you can partake in social media. (apps like “Focus” and/or setting your phone timer for a given duration of time that you are allotting for such can help immensely.)
3) If you have a favorite TV show maybe watch that program only and then turn the TV off. There really is no benefit to watching the 2 shows before or after it. If you are really daring get rid of TV all together. (I’m pretty sure I could do away with TV but my family would not approve*)
4) Texting is great; I love it! You can’t hear my kids screaming and I can respond when I have time. However, looking at the top of someones head and the lack of real socializing that comes with texting is really quite annoying. Set limits. We are social persons made to be in the company of others not solely to communicate through machines.
At the end of the day we are left with choices and what we choose to spend our time doing on a given day directly effects how we feel and behave. How we feel or behave directly effects our productivity and priorities. It is a chain reaction. When our kids make poor choices there are consequences and as adults that still holds true.
Join me in choosing wisely the things that are deserving of our time.
*I do not recommend making any permanent changes that will affect the family directly without consulting them on such matters first (i.e. getting rid of the TV) it might not go over so well otherwise. *
