5 Easy Ways To Leverage Your Most Valuable Resource

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Ok, so we’re still in the middle of a pandemic. At this point, it seems like it’s been going on forever and ever and ever, and it’s like - when is life going to go back to normal?

And if you’re like most people, there are a few areas of your life that have gotten off track because… well, the pandemic was not necessarily a part of anyone’s plan and it threw lots of people, habits, businesses, and goals off track.

I have personally spoken to a number of women who had plans to lose weight, but instead gained weight. I have heard people say that they had saved money, but now have had to spend it. I have heard people discuss plans for traveling, moving, starting new jobs, and starting new businesses; but those plans were put on hold. To say the least, it’s been a very frustrating time. This pandemic has caused many people to halt their plans or start over with certain goals and that can be somewhat discouraging and overwhelming.

But, there is good news!

The pandemic has also created an increase in theeeeeeeeeee most valuable resource available to us, and if you use it wisely, you can actually turn this into one of the most life changing periods of your life. This great resource is the availability of more time. Now, before you allow your brain to start burreling out all of the reasons why you don’t have more time, let me stop you. I know that some of you have kids at home and have become employees and teachers. I know some of you have taken on more responsibility and feel that you have less time. I know some of you are dealing with unforeseen and unconventional circumstances and it’s taking its toll on your patience and stress levels, so you may feel like you actually DON’T have more time. I also know that not everybody has jobs that provide the luxury of working from home during this pandemic. Hell, some of you are essential workers who may have picked up more hours on the job and have even less available time than you did before the pandemic started. My point is, I get it, we’re not all in the same boat and there is no ONE solution for everyone. But, we can all find a way to leverage at least one benefit of this lock down.

At the end of the day, everyone is impacted by this pandemic and the closing of many businesses, restaurants, bars, and travel. Most of the activities that we do for fun and entertainment have been extremely limited or completely stopped, and while this is frustrating and inconvenient, it has forced us to slow down and provided us (some of us) with a little more time at home. For those of you who may not understand why I am preaching about time providing you with an opportunity, let me tell you why it’s such a valuable resource. Time is theeeeee boss bitch of life because it is the ONLY thing in the world that no one can get more of. You can’t buy more, you can’t finesse more. Everyone has the same number of hours a day, week, month, and year. Another thing about time is it will ALWAYS pass. It doesn’t change how it operates, it doesn’t show favor, and it doesn’t stop - for ANYTHING. So, time is our number one and most valuable resource because we need time to get things done, to evolve, to hit goals, and to accomplish our dreams. Why? Because everything happens over time.

So, here are 5 easy ways to use the world’s most valuable resource to make a positive impact on your life:

1. Invest this time in yourself. Do yourself a favor and take care of YOU. You are your top priority. And how do you take care of you? Well, one of the most effective ways is to do a self care exercise or activity. Self care is something that should be a regular practice in your life, but there are so many women who say that they don’t have the time (or in some instances women have the time, but they are not making it a priority to do any self care). Self care is burn out and bitterness prevention. If you don’t maintain, nourish and pamper yourself, you’ll run out of steam. So, take this extra time in your day or week and invest into yourself by exercising self care. If you need some help, I created a list of suggested self care exercises and activities, you can download it here.

2. Get your life organized. This benefit is for those of you who try to operate off of memory. In other words, some of you handle your day to day tasks and things to do simply by trying to remember what needs to be done. Queens, trust me on this - the older you get, the harder it becomes to remember the things that you need to do. If you are operating off of memory, it is inevitable that you are going to forget important things that need to be done and this causes stress, overwhelm, and frustration. Getting organized will allow you to be more intentional about your life and create a plan for your day to day activities/tasks. It will also allow you to set goals, be more productive, and feel more confident. In order to get organized, try buying a notebook or journal so you can start writing down what you need to do on a day to day basis. For additional help, take the How To Be Productive Without Getting Overwhelmed course that I created for the Queens that's right here on the website. You can access it here.

3. More time at home, great! Work on some things in your house that need your attention. Are there any at home projects that you’ve been wanting or needing to do, but haven’t had the time? Well, this extra little time at home creates a perfect opportunity to work on something in your home. This is especially beneficial for those of you who are now working from home and spending the whole day in the house. So, if you’ve been wanting to paint, redecorate, do a DIY project, clean up or organize a space, repurpose one of your rooms, or get rid of some old items; this is a great time to get creative and active in your home.

4. Learn/do something you’ve always wanted to do. We all have those little things that we’ve wanted to learn how to do but didn’t have the spare time to learn or pick up a new hobby. Whether it is sewing, crafting, learning to create youtube videos, cooking, photography, meditate, play spades, dance, or public speaking - you may have a window of opportunity to pick up a new skill or hobby. Learning something new is very rewarding and assists in keeping your mind occupied and your brain focused on doing something productive that you love. Don’t spend your newfound available time watching too much TV, use it to learn to do something or participate in something that you enjoy.

5. Build quality relationships with your family, spouse, or friends. This is one of the most beneficial activities that I think we can all be doing during this time. Investing in the people who matter most to you when so many people are losing loved ones is by far one of the most fulfilling things that you can do. So, turn off your phone and spend some uninterrupted time listening, talking, playing board games, playing cards, doing puzzles, or whatever you all find enjoyment in, with your loved ones. Give them your attention. Hug them (in situations where it’s safe to do so). Tell them how important they are to you. Work through some of the complications in the relationship with them. Talk through compromising in matters of disagreement. Learn to love them in their love language. Express your needs and advise them of your love language. This is what investing in people you love looks like.

So, there you have it ladies. Try out some (or all) of these suggestions and use them to leverage this shut down. Because, whenever we get back to normal (or whatever or new normal will be) you can come out emotionally and mentally rested, feeling more energized, organized, and productive, and having stronger relationship foundations. We all need to find some sort of light in this dark cloud that has come over us, so let’s use the rain from this thunderstorm of a pandemic, and leverage it to produce the flowers of our future.