Design Your Time

Determined to Reach Her Goal

Sandra is a 23-year-old woman who lives in El Salvador. By working as a waitress and through a scholarship she has received from a non-profit organization called Unbound, it has become possible for Sandra to attend college and pursue a degree in literature.(1)

This excerpt, from a recent blog article in which she was profiled, describes the depth of her commitment:(2)

Waking up at 3:30 a.m., leaving home by 4:30 a.m., and walking for 30 minutes through coffee plantations and dirt roads to the closest bus stop are just the first steps on her daily journey to education. After almost two hours on three buses, and spending $1.50 just to go one way, she arrives at school by 6:45 a.m.

Sandra is working toward a degree in literature. She has no Internet at home and no proper place to study. So, on top of the grueling travel, after leaving school she spends a few more hours at an Internet cafe in town.

The rural location of her home, a lack of transportation nearby and the unavailability of basic technological tools make her education much more difficult. Despite the difficulties, Sandra remains determined to reach her goal.

“I can’t have what the other students have, nice clothes and shoes,” Sandra said. “But that is OK. I am focused on getting my education.”

Sandra, a sponsored youth and Unbound scholar in El Salvador

It Always Comes Down to Time

Sandra’s primary focus is obtaining an education. After reading her story, I asked myself: How early am I willing to wake up to work on my #1 focus? While I confess it’s not 3:30 a.m., Sandra’s willingness to find a way through obstacles inspired me to challenge myself. It also planted an idea about how I might utilize the early morning hours and I am continuing to experiment with this.

It always comes down to time. You’ve made the decision to engage with a long-term goal. Now, allocate the time. Arrange your time in a way that suits you, reflects your current priorities, and supports you on the way to your goals.

Design It

As you know, I frequently recommend using the change of seasons as a cue to examine your weekly routine. Scan the upcoming months for what you have going on, and then select the optimal times of the day and week to work on your primary areas of focus. Alter your routine, rearrange certain activities, and reserve the time. This year I’ve redesigned my schedule in a significant way. It’s been working very well so far and I continue to fine-tune; there are always adjustments and daily choices to make.

The greatest impact of designing your time and making room for your #1 focus is that you begin to picture reaching your goal. It’s motivating to see yourself showing up to the task and making progress. It feels like a gift to allocate the time and in fact, it is.

As the year rolls on, many things are unpredictable and outside your control. It’s also true that you can direct more than you think. Whether with small pockets or larger segments, arranging your time so that it reflects your highest priorities is both gratifying and empowering.

This Week’s Call To Action:

Challenge yourself to give your daily and weekly routines a fresh look.

One way to do this is to first designate a placeholder for your #1 focus and then fill in the rest. Picture moving it around in the week or day. Where does it fit best? How can you arrange your time so that working on your goal will feel good, will flow, and will be more likely to happen?

• What’s your #1 Focus this season?
• What can you rearrange to support this goal?

If you’ve got a long-term goal, you’re going to encounter some hurdles. The task is to find your way over them and, as Sandra is doing, claim victory every day.

What is your level of commitment?
The proof is in your daily routine.

Notes:
(1) As an Unbound sponsor for 15 years, I’ve seen the organization continue to evolve as it carries out its mission: “to walk with the poor and marginalized of the world”. You can read more about the outstanding work they do here.

(2) Flores, Henry. “A home in the hills, a school in the city.” Web blog post. Unbound Blog. [Published February 3, 2018; Accessed March 24, 2018 at: https://blog.unbound.org/2018/02/a-home-in-the-hills-a-school-in-the-city/.]