Most people, at any one moment, have one thing that they think, if it were ‘fixed’, their life would be clear to then start living.
For those even further down the rabbit-hole, there is a solution that, if they could access, would do the job for them.
If only…
A weight-loss pill…
A new phone…
A bigger house…
A piece of software…
More likes on their Twitter feed…
An online training course…
A chance to meet someone they admire…
To be ‘picked’…
The trouble is, no matter who the person, what their situation or their perceived ‘solution’, there will always be resistance.
It won’t be clear. It never is.
The path is not meant to be clear. It’s just meant to be walked.
[Of course, unlawful imprisonment, domestic abuse situations, school-bullying, or anything else along these lines should not be tolerated.]With that said, there are two points to consider:
- There is no magic pill. All any of us have is the choice to act, imperfectly. To make mistakes. To encounter resistance. To learn. And repeat.
- If there are feelings of overwhelm, we can start with one thing. And it’s usually the one we don’t really want to deal with.
In light of this, I’m planting a stake in the ground.
While I’m on a general mission to integrate the interests & passions I have devoted much time to in the past, and to now seek more balance on a day-to-day level, there is one thing that will give me more freedom of time to help me with this.
Less screen-time.
Laptop and phone.
With a little perspective, I know I’m not the worst.
And for the most part, I am usually looking to feed my mind while reading or surfing the net, rather than just mind-numbing “Best of Fails” videos.
However, the time per day that I spend in front of a screen is excessive.
Keeping in mind I am writing on this blog every day, I’m not trying nor do I want to go cold turkey and cut out screen-time completely.
Here are my preliminary aims which will be open to review as I go:
- To not check personal email or Facebook first thing in the morning before work.
- To not browse on the phone while waiting somewhere.
- To read a book (or just mindful breathing) in place of times I have been on the phone, as described in the first two points.
- To allow myself one hour of free screen-time in the evening for digesting new information and feeding my mind.
- To give myself extra time on top of this free screen-time for writing and posting on this blog.
- Now this is the big one for me… to rely less on listening to interviews/podcasts to help put me to sleep.
The last point will be the biggest challenge because I have never had a regular sleep pattern.
For the past few years, if I haven’t been able to listen to an audio of people chatting, I have spent hours lying in bed, waiting to go to sleep.
Actually, it’s been like that since I was a late-teenager.
It may be time for the dreaded early-riser lifestyle.
To start with, though, less screen-time is my one thing I wish to tackle, imperfectly.
