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People, we are currently on Day Three of Daylight Saving Time (yes, take that ‘s’ out of there!) I have been confused by what time it really is, I have read numerous friend’s posts on the funny things they have done and I have asked myself the question many of us do around this time “Why are we doing this?”

For my friends in Hawaii, Arizona and other non-clock-turners let me catch you up…

Daylight Saving Time’s main purpose is to make the most of the daylight hours. While this isn’t fun to lose an hour of sleep when we spring forward, it does make a lot of people happy because now we can do more in the daylight at a later time. If you want more numbers and details like how it conserves energy, survey results and how this correlates with car crashes, read up here.

I asked my husband “Why are we doing this?” and he answered “It all started for people like you.”

 

UH, WHAT?

 

Allow me to translate his humor. Drew was referring to the fact that I come from a family of farmers. While this was kind of funny (What do you mean YOU PEOPLE?!) this isn’t the sole reason for DLS and many agricultural professions actually opposed DLS because they preferred more daylight in the morning. Still, it got me thinking…

So many people are fatigued and tired. It’s argued that DLS actually hurts work productivity. It has people asking “Why are we doing this?” come Sunday (and Monday …and Tuesday) morning. It can impact your productivity and, as with any change, provides an opportunity to adjust. Here are three ways I answer ‘Why are we doing this?’ and ‘What am I doing this for?’ every day.

1. Get Up. Just do it. You know this change is coming up so if you’re able to go to bed earlier and sleep in that weekend, do it. Take the time to adjust.
   • If you haven’t already placed your alarm clock far away where you have to walk to turn it off, do it.
   • Every night I make sure my alarm is set, turn on ‘Do Not Disturb’ and charge my phone on the bathroom counter. It’s not fun when that early morning alarm goes off but once I’m out of bed, I might as well get dressed in those clothes I laid out.
   • Just keep moving no matter how unmotivated you are. You will be more upset come 3 p.m. and you have tons to do than you would be if you’ve been getting it done since 6 a.m.
2. There’s always a bright side. This should be your mindset every moment of every day but take this literally. It is all about your mindset.
   • Sunsets are pretty but I prefer sunrises. It is so much nicer to wake up to sun than it is to a dark, cold morning.
   • Each morning I walk my dog before working out and even when it’s cold, it wakes me up. If you were coming home from work in the dark, now you’re coming home in the sunshine.
   • I heard the kids next door playing basketball outside yesterday and if you’re familiar with the PNW, that’s a miracle in itself. Go do something fun with your time.
3. Prioritize. I am a Type A personality which means I make lists about lists I should make. I hold firm to getting things done ahead or on time, I must be rigidly organized and I have this underlying competitiveness about weird things (EX: When a commercial comes on TV I see how much I can get done before the show comes back on. Like putting away dishes, folding laundry, etc….just try it.) Yes, this has caused some problems with the impatience it brings on but it has also been a consistent strength for my work ethic and achievements. This can be as simple or as detailed as you’d like. Maybe you’ve got it figured out or maybe you don’t even know where to start.

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Here are some ways I hold myself accountable and stay on track every day:

• I use a planner and pen because it makes sense for me. You might prefer your phone. I write out everything I have for that day and carry over anything that didn’t get done yesterday. When a box is full, I look at the rest of the week and put remaining tasks in an emptier box. Here is what I have for Tuesday, March 13.
  • Go through dog closet and cleaning closet for donations (truck comes by tomorrow so this is important today but not the end of the world.)
  • Walk, 15 min HIIT and upper body workout
  • Shower
  • Blog post (I will be posting every Tuesday!)
  • Finish portfolio & get prices lined up
  • Discovery call with potential client
  • Do nails after supper
• Now I prioritize those tasks by writing a number and circling it to the left. I will go in that order for the rest of the day, inserting time if I can and when I am done I scribble it out of existence. Ahhhhh.
• I stay flexible for life to happen. For example, the call with a potential client didn’t come up until 9 a.m. I scheduled time with her at 11 a.m. and factored this in to a top priority. So now my list looks like this:
  1. Walk
  2. Blog post
  3. Discovery call with potential client
  4. Finish portfolio & get prices lined up
  5. 15 min HIIT and upper body workout
  6. Shower
  7. Go through dog closet and cleaning closet for donations.
  8. Cook supper (in my mind’s timeline, I don’t write it)
  9. Do nails
• When they day is done I put a large X through it. If there is anything left undone I will move it to the next day.

Do I realize this won’t be for everyone? OF COURSE. There are people with office jobs, people with kids and their schedules, people who get stressed by an ordered timeline and prefer to just deal with whatever comes up…I get it.

This is something that works for me and if you’re feeling a change coming on like I often do, I hope you will at least give one of these a try. It takes 21 days to form a habit. If you saw at least one new idea I challenge you to commit yourself to trying that out for 7 days. No excuses. After that you can toss it, you can adjust it or you can expand on it. When in doubt, ask yourself “Why am I doing this?” The answer will either drive you or it will check your priorities.

Please tell me which of these new tips you’re going to try out and share any ideas on how you stay productive. I love reading your comments.

Cheers!
Marin

 

Interested in working together? I’m celebrating my one-year-launch with Free Discovery Consultations + 50% your Branding+Positioning Strategy now through March 31st. Let’s talk!