4 Easy Steps To Creating "Me Time"

Disclosure:  This post is sponsored by Safeco Insurance.

"Sometimes you just need to disconnect and enjoy your own company"

~Unknown

Folding laundry, cooking dinner, attending PTO meetings, scheduling doctor appointments, sending emails.  For many of us life has become a series of seemingly neverending tasks we complete for others.  Often time completing all of these tasks leaves very little or zero opportunity for us to spending disconnecting or engaging in activities for the sake personal enjoyment.  In a nutshell, me time has become as mystical and non-existent as a unicorn, but that can all change today.  I've partnered with Safeco Insurance to share 4 steps that make creating me time easy and simple.

Why Creating Me Time Is Important

Safeco Insurance recently conducted a survey in which 70% of participants agreed that they needed an extra hour in their day to dedicate towards doing something for themselves.  40% would use that extra "do more hour" for personal hobbies, while 29% would prefer to use their extra sixty minutes for complete alone time and 22% were interested in using that time to step outside of their comfort zones and try something new (a sculpture class, maybe?).  So why is me time important anyway?

Well, 55% of these survey participants admitted to having used negative behavior/actions as a way to cope with their frustration over lack of free time.  Some of these negative actions include increased anger, withdrawing from family and friends and overeating.  I can personally confess that I've experienced all three of these.  Being a mom, wife and working from home is very demanding and when I get overwhelmed because I haven't had my time to unwind and take care of myself, it shows BIG time.  (Check out the infographic below for more info.)

How To Create Me Time

Now that it's been revealed that not carving out enough time for ourselves can have some serious side effects, Safeco has decided to help combat this issue by launching their #MY60 challenge.  They created this challenge to encourage us to purposefully take steps to reclaim 60 minutes of our day over a 60-day period.  Thus we create a "do more/me time hour" in which we can let go let of our stresses by focusing on and participating in activities that make us happier across the board.

 

Safeco also teamed up with psychotherapist and author (Be Fearless: Change Your Life in 28 Days), Jonathan Alpert.  "The best way to avoid negative behaviors stemming from not having enough time to do it all is to change your thinking about what needs to be done," he notes.  "Carving out an hour in the day of 'me' time is essential to personal happiness."  Alpert has the following steps/tips to offer about how we can take back our 60 minutes of personal time:

1. Change Your Thinking 

"I'm so busy" and "I don't have time for anything" are negative comments that are sure to keep you feeling overwhelmed. Think more along the lines of make good use of the time that you do have or having perspective that you can only do so much in one day and to accomplish what's reasonable for that given day.  Empower yourself to think "can" and "will" instead of "can't" and "have to."

2. Track How You Spend Your Time
Do this for one week.  Many people are entirely unaware of what they do hour to hour and where the day goes.  The simple exercise of noting what you're doing each hour can have a huge impact.  Track your time and know where you're spending it.

3. Determine Which Tasks & Activities Are Vital & Which Are Optional
Structure other tasks around those that are vital.  Schedule your day by doing the important tasks first, using the first 15 minutes of your morning to organize your work area.  This is when you are freshest and energetic.  So often the less important tasks get in the way of other things that need to be done which can be distracting.  It's often easier to do the things that aren't as important, but fear can lead to procrastination and ends up keeping us stagnant.

BONUS TIP

4. Learn To Say 'No' & Show Up
Now that you've adjusted your attitude, found out where your time was going and have all of your important scheduled, don't contradict your actions by adding more to your plate.  I know that saying 'no' is especially hard moms and women in general.  It's in our nature to be naturally nurturing want to help out when people ask.  However, we have to remember that there can be no 'me' time without the 'me.'  Practicing saying 'no' gracefully and start showing up for yourself!

To learn more about how you can participate in the #MY60 Challenge or find more tips, visit www.safeco.com/MY60.

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About the Study

Safeco Insurance commissioned ORC International to conduct a quantitative methodology to measure attitudes towards time management and balancing leisure time with work and essential tasks. During April/May 2015,  a 10-minute online survey was conducted among a nationally representative sample of approximately 2,000 adults aged 21 to 75 within ten major media markets (approximately 200 for each: Boston, NYC, Chicago, Seattle, Dallas, Charlotte, San Francisco, Columbus, Philadelphia, Phoenix).*”Total” reported is an unweighted average of these ten markets.

About Safeco Insurance

In business since 1923 and based in Boston, Mass., Safeco Insurance sells personal automobile, homeowners and specialty products through a network of more than 10,000 independent insurance agencies throughout the United States. Safeco is a Liberty Mutual Insurance company.

Boston-based Liberty Mutual Insurance is a diversified insurer and the third largest property and casualty insurer in the U.S. based on 2013 direct premiums written as reported by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Liberty Mutual Insurance also ranks 78th on the Fortune 100 list of largest U.S. corporations, based on 2014 revenue. For more information about Safeco Insurance, go to safeco.com.

How do you make time for yourself? Leave a tip in the comments.