What will you do with your 65?

We’re approaching Summer solstice… the longest day of the year! And instead of excitement, I feel apprehension. I know the light will begin to slowly slip away, the days feeling shorter and shorter.

And every Spring I think, not this year! This year I am going to make every moment of daylight count, June is not going to come and go again, sending me into a frenzy of where-did-all-the-time-go, how-can-it-be-July-4th again already??

C'mon, what is time, anyway? How do we calculate it, how do you feel it, how does your body know?

I know as a parent, I did a poor job of teaching my kids the concept of time. Every answer I gave was “in a second” or “in a couple of minutes,” amiright? My poor kids, they probably grew up thinking that seconds were the longest amount of time ever, and that a minute was equal to “whenever mom is finished…”

Sometimes when I feel overwhelmed by the idea of time, I break it down. There are 24 hours in a day, and 168 hours in a week. 40 hours are spent “working” your “day job", 63 hours are spent sleeping (hopefully!!) which leaves 65 hours a week that are FREE! 65 HOURS!

Where does all that time go? What are we doing with those 65 hours?

Okay, let’s be real. Monday-Friday you have 7 hours of non-working time, if you have a typical job. At least one of those hours is before work, and after work. Then there’s the taxi service for the kids. That leaves about 3 hours, and one of those hours is making and eating dinner. Okay, 2 hours give or take left to your day. That is 2 hours of time to spend with your spouse, your family, a little relaxing, maybe a walk, maybe a book. Not a lot of “me” time.

We all know someone that seems to do it all. That neighbor or friend, the planner. She knows what the outline of her day will look like, so she manages her time. She carves out time to cook and prepare for the week. She carves out time before or after work to get her body moving, and has time to be with her family in the evening. She treats her time like her job.

What if you treated your time, your health, your nutrition, as your job? What skills do you possess, abilities do you have, to make time for the priorities in your life, just like you handle the responsibilities, the crisis, the projects due for your boss?

First, define your priorities, and why they are important.

Next, recognize the time and energy suckers, those tasks drawn out too long, that take your attention from the more important things, the social media and email notifications, the phone calls and web surfing. Shut those things off, only check them at certain times of the day and set a timer.

Create a morning and nighttime ritual, save your errands to run all at once, start saying “no” to others more and “yes” to yourself, your time, and your priorities.

Spend time thinking about what your perfect day would look like. Create a schedule or an outline to your day, and your week, that allows you to live as close to this day as possible.

Then, like a boss, do it.

So, how will you spend your 65?