Scheduling Is a Sham

Upon first glance, it may appear to the inexperienced eye that a day has 24 hours. It also may seem like those hours can all be used to plan your day, assuming you account for sleep, mealtimes, etc.

However, in reality, one finds that such a plan is IMPOSSIBLE to follow because, well, life happens. You would have to live in a bubble or constantly shut out everyone and every distraction to follow such a plan. This is as realistic as many diet plans. A diet rarely works, but a new habit of healthier eating and exercise can totally change your life.

Solution? How does someone plan their day? You really cannot only plan work (or homework) without adding downtime. When you are in a crunch is often when you are too fried and need that R & R to awaken creativity and clear your mind.

You can:

Multi-task (listen to books on tape while folding laundry, use a headset while on the phone so you can tidy the house, watch your favorite TV show while walking on the treadmill, etc.)

Delegate (don't do more than your share of the work if you can help it, relax your need for unimportant tasks to be done perfectly, remember that kids need to learn household tasks or they will have trouble as adults--and it's much better to do it now than wait until they've grown into lazy teens)

Ask unusual sources for help (get creative instead of burning out the usual ones, find out from other people in your situation what has worked for them, we don't tend to have a lot of original problems)

Brainstorm how to streamline your life during moments you wait or work on autopilot (bathroom, waiting in line, etc.)

Plan Thinking Time (sitting alone and just zoning out helps you realize things you forgot, new ways of doing things, and releases creativity.)

Say "No" or "Later" (Sometimes saying "no" feels impossible, but saying when your schedule will free up so that you can do more of the activities you actually WANT To do helps those asking realize you are interested for a later date. If they continue to pressure you, realize how irritating they would have been to work with and be glad you said "no."

Note: Saying when you will likely have time in the future does not mean you are fully obligated, unless you flat-out promise because you don't want to lose your spot in something you love.