Everyone at team SiddySays is borderline crazy! We manage our day jobs and moonlight as bloggers in addition to the usual madness each day brings. Foha is a publicist, Anoosh and Usman are still at college and I am a marketing executive, long story short we pack too much in our days to stay sane by the day end. Here are a few things we learnt that keep us going and looking forward to taking on each day.
PLAN AHEAD:
Not necessarily years ahead (though I am personally a super supporter of that too) but you should at least know what you want your day to be like, right at the start of it. Even though we’re all pretty tech savvy, Foha and I are very much the ‘notebook’ people. With days planned to the dot, we both start with making a list of what all needs to be done within the day and at what time. Nothing is more satisfying than crossing out items on your to do list.
SAY NO:
So we all suck at this one, but we’re working on it!! It’s important to say no and prioritize things. Given that there are just so many hours in a day, every time you say yes to one thing, you are in fact saying no to another. Is what you’re agreeing to worth what it’s coming at the expense of and more importantly who is it coming at the expense of. Some people just say yes to everything only to slap their forehead later saying why in the world did I do that. We know it because we do it. Learn to say no.
DO THE YUCK STUFF FIRST:
Inevitably, on your to-do list, there will be things you’re looking forward to and things you cringe at the thought of. Start with the latter. (Kind of like this post – I’d rather be doing my Personal Style Day 2 FPWAW14 but that will happen after) You’re bound to have more energy at the start of the day (whenever your day starts) so take things that need more resolve or commitment before and the one that come to you easily later as you’ll probably be motivated to do them even with lower energy.
GIVE YOURSELF A BREAK:
My instant panic reaction to a busy day is jumping into it. Not only do you need to plan your day ahead, you also need to give yourself periodic breaks through out the day to unwind, reassess progress, re-plan if needed and more. If nothing else, once you’ve completed a task, take a break before getting into the next to keep things in perspective.
CUT THE CRAP:
We all have people and things in our life that drain us out. A friend once said, ‘You only live once’ and it’s a mantra I live by now. It really helps separate the necessary from the unnecessary, and while no one has really perfected this on our end too, with each negative that you nurture in your life do ask yourself, this is the only life I have, do I want to waste it on this person, or doing this thing?
SEPARATE THE TIME:
In this day of insane connectivity (and all our work being on the internet) we are almost always multitasking. Any individual has at least three avenues to manage: The world around, the internet and the phone. Assign a separate time for each one. Don’t return calls while browsing the net as you meet someone. Keep a time for returning phone calls, another for answering emails and try giving one on one time to people you meet. (and in case you’re wondering this is as much a note to self as it is to you)
RECAP YOUR DAY:
Don’t just dump work and head for the bed. When you wrap your work day, do look at your list again how much was done, how much remains… It serves as an appropriate closure to the existing day and already sets the right mood for the next day.
