Finding balance after a busy week
My guide to reconnecting with yourself
I think we can all agree that everyone has from time to time or once a couple of weeks a period of time so stressful, you dont have time for yourself, for relaxing, doing what you love, like reading, doing self care, sometimes not even sleeping or washing your hair. Whether you have exams, drowning in work or just have too many things to get done in little time this article is for you.
I find myself drowning in exams and having too many things to get done, feeling like I am behind with everything and not knowing where to start and with what. Not having time for anything else that I love doing, of course, in times like this it’s obvious that we have to pick a priority and focus on that till we have time for everything else, but I started to wonder, do we really need to give up everything we love doing for what we are forced to do in order to keep making a living? And if the answer is yes, what is the purpose of doing all this work if at the end of the day we cannot do what we love for at least an hour? Therefore I am gonna share with you my little “guide” after a hard and stressful week
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First things first ORGANIZATION, whether you like it or not, if you want to make time for yourself and not just working endlessly you have to organize your life. You can start small, by making an overall to do list for the whole week, you arrange your goals and tasks by priority. Here is an exemple of a minimalist weekly to do list that I made if you prefer digital to do lists, i use both. After you get used to organizing your week overall, you can start doing it everyday. Every night you can make a short to do list ordering by priority and the order in which you want to accomplish everything, or every morning before starting your day.
Next up we have MIXING SOCIALIZING WITH WORK. This one’s a bit controversial, but I found it really useful, if you surround yourself with the right people and people that share the same motivation and intrests as you. BUT you have to keep this organized as well, if you can and enjoy doing work or studying in a cafe, meet with a couple of friends and do it together. Each one of you works separately on what they have to do, if they’ve working on the same thing or studying the same thing you can also help each other. Decide on when to take breaks, where instead of being by yourself at home, you can have a little chat with friends, therefore fulfilling a bit more the need to socialize when you dont have time for going out. This is also very customizable, if going to a cafe is to distracting invite your friends over. This is also very motivating, it really helps being surrounded by people doing work aswell buttt it can be distracting too.
GET ENOUGH SLEEP! I know this seems imposible when having a really busy week or weeks but believe it really matters. You are gonna be more efficient after a good nights sleep rather than after a poor sleep. For exemple, when I write an article it usually takes about two to three hours depending on how long it is and the research I have to make, but it goes by fast and if I get a good sleep, meaning I am fully rested I make less mistakes and I have more ideas. On the other side, when I am really tired it takes a couple of days to finish, I make more mistakes, I can’t concentrate properly and I get tired easily. It’s just that easy, sleep more cause you are gonna get your work done faster the next day, so practically, get back that time.
THE END OF THE WEEK RITUALS. It really matters on what note you decide to end an exhausting week. Without having to go to work or university/school etc. you get a couple of more hours for yourself, so use them properly. Wake up at a decent time, organize your day and implement the things you enjoy at least once throughout your day, and STICK TO THE TO DO LIST. Do your morning routine, listen to your favorite artist, make a yummy breakfast that you didn’t get the chance to eat throughout the weeks busy mornings, it’s always the little things that matter and make a difference everyday, so practice at least three of the little things that you didn’t get the chance to do this past week. Practice selfcare, take yourself on a coffee date, read a couple of pages, reconnect to yourself for at least an hour.
Last but not least PRIORITIZE REAL LIFE RATHER THAN THROUGH A SCREEN. When going through these periods of time, there is not enough time for finishing everything we have to do and balance personal life with social life, so when you have a little time on your hands spend it in the real world that is outside. At the end of the day what we see through a screen is just the world outside the window, so why settle for internet connections, internet experiences, when we have them right in front of us. One of the reasons why you feel like not having enough time is because maybe, your letting yourself get too consumed of what we are feed through the internet, so filter that information, reduce your screen time and increase your ‘real life time’
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If you got here, you probably liked this piece and made you read it all the way, if that is the case I am glad! At the end of the day, each one of us has a different way of coping with stress, but these are some of the ways I cope successfully, so I hope you enjoyed it, or at least inspired you. Take care and you are never alone.
-Love, e.t