Time

I really struggle with time. Lost time, not enough time, wasting time, finding time, time management, you name it.

It all comes down to the fact that I love pottering; I love nothing more than enjoying breakfast and scrolling through my favourite websites (read: wasting time; other: procrastinating about work), eating lunch at my desk (time efficient!) while checking Facebook or Twitter (not so efficient). I'll stand on the pool deck for 15min staring at the water, dreading the first dive in rather than just getting on with it. I'll sit on the couch and zone out to trashy TV for 2 hours rather than getting things ready for work and training the next day. I'll spend solid hours on the internet browsing...... for nothing. Just pottering.

Bottom line is I suck at time management. I'm a leave things to the last minute kinda girl (packing suitcases is my particular specialty for last minute activities). I don't write lists. I turn up to the grocery store and stare down an aisle, mentally reconciling my fridge contents with the shelves before tossing items in.

I'm put to shame by people who menu plan, buy in bulk, cook meals on weekends, fake tan on Thursday nights (ready for the weekend girls!), have a standing 5 week appointment at the hairdresser, pay bills on time, use Coles Online and outsource laundry. I know some women who don't buy any clothes unless they pass the impossible-to-crease test (who has time to iron anyway??)

There's a lot of pressure and emphasis put on being time efficient; being organised, getting things 'sorted out'. But I can't help but think that some of that efficiency and organisation comes at a cost - to relaxing, enjoying how life rolls out, being content to just be and not be worried about whether you have 3 meals prepared, 5 loads of washing put away and clothes laid out for the morning.

Life's not perfect. We can battle and struggle against that, striving to have a perfect life, or at least a perfectly prepared lifestyle. But it isn't sustainable and as soon as one day closes, another dawns with more mess, more excitement and more challenge. I want to focus more on doing things I enjoy, and not worry about whether I'm wasting time or should I be doing something different. One day that choice will be taken away from me so for now, I'll relish my pottering.

#thewholebookaustralia