If you Can’t Write–Give things AWAY!

Hello November…What happened to January?

Honestly…Where does the time go??

It has been almost 2 weeks since my last post. How could that be????

As a God Chasing, Word Thirsty, Lifelong Learner…AKA…wife, mother, grandmother, speaker, writer-wanna-be, ministry leader, employer, chief cook and bottle washing woman….I have NO IDEA where time goes. 🙂

You would never know by visiting my blog that I am constantly writing new posts..IN MY HEAD.

I love writing, or at least the THOUGHT of writing, which I understand is a pretty common phenomenon of life. From what I hear from my Literary Agent, the patient Rachelle Gardner, lots of folks think they have THE NEXT BEST Novel or new idea!!! (she would HATE all of those exclamation points BTW). The truth is I write a whole LOT! I write reports, speeches, magazine articles, Bible Studies, workshops,newsletter articles…..I just don’t seem to be able to fit blogging in on a regular basis. I REALLY need to do more cutting and pasting huh? This is the deal, I know that some of my favorite blog writers are just as busy, if not busier, than me.

How do they do it?? They prioritize. They organize. They follow a plan.

Of of my favorite blogs, as you must know by now, is Michael Hyatt. I am a leadership junkie so I soak up his great stuff. I have been hoping to put aside some time to create a Michael Hyatt’s “Life Plan”.

I planned my planning time here on this post back in August on a post called “Has Anyone Seen my Superwoman Cape?” but have erased the date about 4 times now. I am still planning to write a Life Plan. One thing I do know about myself, I do not give up easily!!

Tell me please….

What all are YOU trying to fit into your life RIGHT NOW that you just can’t seem to make fit?

What is the best change you have ever made that has helped your LIFE Plan work better?

What is the thing you wish you had more time for that just doesn’t often make the cut?

Good News….Even when I don’t have time to write, I do have Time for a Giveaway

One of the things I love best other than writing is GIFTING!!!

I am going to give away not one but two of this Great New Book by one of my favorite Blog/Writer friends who seems to manage to do it all, Lysa Terkeurst, to the 2 people who comment the most times here on Living Free during the month of November. Just cause your so darned FAITHFUL and sweet!!

Give me some time management tips will ya??

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10 Comments

  1. Whew! Girl, if you get this one mastered, let me know because I have blinked and the year is GONE!

    I think the best time management tip that works best for me is to simply ask God to order my days. He never fails to do that when I surrender the day to Him in that way.

    Then I make my list of things to do — a manageable list, not a “pie in the sky” kind of list — something that is actually doable in a day! I ask for God’s input on this one, too. If you have a personal mission statement, ask yourself if your to do list lines up with what God has called you to be and do for Him on His Kingdom calendar.

    And then I ask The Best Question Ever (inspired by Andy Stanley) altered to just fit what I’m needing to do in any given day:

    “In light of my past experience, current circumstances and future hopes and dreams, what is the wise thing to do today?”

    That’s it. And it works….when I actually sit down with God first thing in the morning and approach my day surrendering it to Him.

    Blessings,
    Dori

  2. Wow, Dori, I love that. Where did you get that Andy Stanley quote? Is it a book?
    Thank you for being my first comment!! You are so sweet and I agree with your feedback. I know that one of my biggest issues is that I am a BIG DREAMER and I want to do it all 🙂 I have a tough time weeding out the GOOD from the BEST sometimes. Thanks for the words of wisdom.
    xoxo
    p

  3. Pat,

    I’ve missed you. But then, I have not been a very regular blogger of late. Just seems that I don’t have time with trying to get my Bible study on the market. I know you understand that! Here are my answers:

    What all are YOU trying to fit into your life RIGHT NOW that you just can’t seem to make fit? Whew, well blogging would be one. The trip to Israel that I leave on TOMORROW could not have come at a worse time. House cleaning. Finding an extra day of work as a pharmacist. Blah, blah, blah.

    What is the best change you have ever made that has helped your LIFE Plan work better? Learning to set priorities. About a year ago, I was trying to do sooooo many good things, but not doing any of them with excellence. The Lord instructed me to make a list of all that I was doing. Then He asked me what my top 3 were. I named them. He said, “Ok, the rest has to go.” The things I was doing were all good things, but as Beth Moore has well said, “We cannot do a thousand things to the glory of God.” I had to decide what I was going to do with excellence. That leads to the next best change I’ve made…..learning to say NO. I’m not perfect at it, but I’m learning.

    What is the thing you wish you had more time for that just doesn’t often make the cut? READING!! I love to read for pleasure and just do not get to do as much of it as I would like.

    Blessings to you.

    Leah

  4. Hmm..thoughtful questions….

    1. What all are YOU trying to fit into your life RIGHT NOW that you just can’t seem to make fit? Cooking meals for my family! We eat out too much! If we do eat at home it is lunchables for the girls or corn dogs or sandwiches or my husband cooks. I am terrible! I hate to cook and after a long day at work, I just would rather get something on the way home or eat something out of the freezer……

    2. What is the best change you have ever made that has helped your LIFE Plan work better? This is a combination answer with the same focal point. The best change would be reading my Bible more consistently and praying to Him for direction. Then realizing that it isn’t about MY life plan but only about what God has planned for me that is important. My life plan wasn’t working out so well for me.

    3. What is the thing you wish you had more time for that just doesn’t often make the cut? SCRAPBOOKING!!! I love love love to scrapbook! I used to scrapbook all of the time but since the birth of my 2nd baby, I just don’t have, or rather, MAKE the time.

    Sorry, Pat…time management…I GOT NOTHING!! 🙂

  5. Hi Mom!

    For not writing on your blog, I thought that was a pretty good post! Just thought I’d say hi! (you already know what I’m up to, so no need to make THAT list here in your comments!)

    Love,
    Tim

  6. Rikki–You are too young to have your life all “Time Managed”. Just keep pressing in girl. Go has BIG plans for you!!

    My Tim….
    You are just a sweetheart, that’s all 🙂
    Mom

  7. Hi Pat,
    I just have to chime in on this! I think our society put too much pressure on individuals to make us want to do everything! There’s a lot of good things that I could do, but I am only one person and there are only so many hours in the day. I just can’t do it all. When i do take on too much, I get stressed and eventually burn out. So I have learned to focus on the things that God leads me to do and let the rest go.

    1. What all are YOU trying to fit into your life RIGHT NOW that you just can’t seem to make fit? Regular exercise! I have some health issues that prevent me from doing any aerobic exercise, so I walk when I can. I live in the country where there are no sidewalks and have to get in my car to drive to a safe location for walking at one of the county parks. It’s difficult to talk myself into making the trip even though it doesn’t take long.

    2. What is the best change you have ever made that has helped your LIFE Plan work better? Besides daily devotions, getting a full night’s sleep every night. Everything in life is so much easier when I get my sleep!!

    3. What is the thing you wish you had more time for that just doesn’t often make the cut? Spending more time with family and friends. With all our different schedules full of responsibilities and things we must do, it’s not easy to find the same free time to get together as often as we’d like. My daughter and grandchildren live in another state, so visits don’t happen very often because of the distance.

    For time management, I use both a weekly plan sheet to block out my schedule. Then I make a mental to do list, and looking at the weekly schedule, I find the best time of the week for each activity. And sometimes I have to look at 2 or 3 weeks, because I don’t do the same things every week. I do a variety of once or twice monthly events, and need to prepare ahead, so I make sure that happens. 20-30 minutes of planning each week helps me not loose time during the week. I hope that makes sense!

    Love you lady!
    Rita

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