Don’t find time, just take it…

As a restless ‘can’t switch off’ & ‘I’ve always gotta do something’ type, I reckon I hear the following more than most.

  • Where do you find the time?
  • You think too much?
  • You’ve got too much time on your hands.

I’ve never said any of that crap to anyone (If I have, I’m sorry). There’s a negativity to it. As if the person who’s saying is almost jealous or thinks that I should be doing something different. I mean, I don’t know what that is, but it’s hardly got a ‘shower you in happiness’ feel.

I might not say it, but in response, these are some counter thoughts.

  • You watch too much TV.
  • You don’t think about how to make the most of your time.
  • You don’t find time, you take it.
  • Are we making good conversation?

I’m guessing my body language from that last thought shines through and conversation tends to wrap up. Also, if you’re a parent, you’re excluded from those above thoughts

I don’t know why I’m so compelled to share this stuff (apart from being sick of hearing the top bullet points), but I feel that big changes happen from small steps. Small steps, over and over. Taking a photo a day this year has been a challenge. (See them on Instagram or Facebook). But it hasn’t really been that hard.

It’s not always about finding time to do something, but more squeezing time in it in where it fits. And there’s wasted moments everywhere. For example, I use public transport. People look at that as a real drag. Having PT’d for a few years now, with occasional access to a car, I think driving a car to work is a real waste of time. Sure, it might be 30 minutes faster than an 70 minute trip, but it’s totally dead & unproductive time. I can’t really do much while driving that I see as productive (exception: podcasts). The PT life really lets me do stuff. And the 5 minute bits here and there add up.

I’ve read that there’s a few things you can do – really simple things – that increase your brain capacity. One of them is mix up your daily routine (have a look at Lifehacker’s Why (and How) You Should Change Up Your Routine, Even if it’s Working). Catching PT let’s me do this on foot, and jump of a stop early, or late, and find something new. Combine this with beautiful Melbourne and my love for photography, and I’m pretty happy. A slight detour hear and there may add 15 or 20 minutes, but it’s these moments of finding time that are pretty efficient.

So when it comes to my daily routine, if I’ve got 5 minutes, I’ll try do something with it. Make the most of any delay. The main photo from this post really sums it up. Getting off my train at Elizabeth & Flinders Street, the easiest way to get on the train is to enter via the underpass. But that would be the same thing I’ve done a thousand times. Instead, I’ve walk to the other entrance, captured some beautiful morning sun through the buildings on Flinders and see something to brighten up my morning. On getting to the train station, I had a couple minutes, my laptop and I picture I’ve just snapped.

So this here is really the story of that picture-of-a-picture above. And if you’re curious, the black and white picture isn’t that great. Blurred, over exposed, you know. But that doesn’t really matter.

2 Responses

  1. Phillip // //

    Great post. Really enjoyed reading it.

    Reply
    • Steven // //

      Thanks Phillip, sometimes it’s the simple things. Cheers, Steve

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *