Do you have a lot of interests and hobbies? Do you struggle to manage them? Well, good news is, you're not alone!
Self-imposed goals and deadlines are wonderful things. They help us partake in activities we’re interested in by making sure we dedicate enough time to them and improve our desired skills. But sometimes, when you take on too many things, it can get a bit messy. At the end of the day though, this is why self-implemented deadlines and schedules are vital to functioning.
I’m someone with a lot of interests. Most of them center around books, writing, music and languages. Naturally, I keep taking on new hobbies in each of these fields. And, naturally, sometimes, it becomes a little overwhelming.
Creating a Schedule
This isn’t to say I regret taking on all these projects. I’m thrilled with the work I’m putting into crafting my novel. Writing blog posts is expanding my writing skills and teaching me to work with deadlines (so let’s ignore the fact I’ve been MIA for nearly two weeks, okay?). Spanish and Latin stretch my brain, but I’ve found my recent daily interval studying of Spanish has unlocked an understanding of the language school failed to help me achieve. Piano is not only a creative outlook that doesn’t involve language in any way; it also brings a new level of depth and knowledge to my WIP, a literary fiction novel about a 90s alt band. But enjoying these things doesn’t mean doing them is easy.
In fact, I’ll venture to say that balancing everything is incredibly difficult. It’s impossible for some things not to alter (or suffer) when you consider other real life factors like chores, bills, taking care of pups, and having fun with friends. I might have everything perfectly planned out but believe me, it almost never goes according to plan.
My Ideal Schedule
In an ideal world, I’d have a schedule similar to this:
6am - Wake up
7am - Walk my pup Ginny
7:45am - Get ready for work
8:30am - Leave for work
9am - 5pm - Work
5:30pm - Practice piano
6pm - Walk Ginny again
6:30pm - Make dinner
7pm - Feed dogs; Eat & relax w/ TV
8pm - Practicar español
8:30pm - Study Latin
9pm - Edit client work
9:30pm - Write
10pm - Read
10:30pm - Go to bed
I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted thinking about sticking to that schedule every single day. Intimidated by it even. The smaller, half-hour intervals assure everything is getting done throughout the day, so that’s a positive! Plus, it checks off the 30-minute interval of active studying a language, which researchers agree is best in helping achieve fluency. But, it leaves out the other hour of passive-exposure they suggest. Not to mention that the ideal time of learning piano each day to significantly improve is 45 minutes to an hour. And where am I meant to clean or have fun? Oh, then there’s the fact I’m absolutely not a morning person.
My Current Schedule
A more realistic schedule for me recently is:
8am - Wake up & get ready for work
8:40am - Leave for work
9am - 5pm - Work
5:30pm - Piano or crashing on the couch
6pm - Walk Dogs
7pm - Help out with dinner and practicar español con mi mamá
8pm - Feed dogs; Eat & relax w/ TV
10pm - Either read, write, or study Latin
11pm - Go to bed
In this version, I’m not accomplishing nearly half of what I ideally would like to. But, my day is also a little more nuanced than this list. For example, I dedicate my lunch breaks at work to editing client work and uploading blogs. There are also nights I need to go shopping after work or shower, which throws everything off. While this schedule is a little more plausible for the way I function and where I currently am in life, it’s still a little underwhelming and often leaves me more stressed than not because I feel like I’m not making enough progress in everything I want.
Well then, what’s the solution? Like I said, self-imposed deadlines are great because they keep us on schedule, but they also run the risk of suffocating us. I think a combination of the two schedules is, in reality, the best solution:
My Realistic Schedule
Here it is. The combination of my ideal and current schedule. I present to you, my realistic daily schedule!
7am - Wake up
7:30am - Walk Ginny
8am - Get ready for work
8:30am - Leave for work
9am - 5pm - Work
5:30pm - Practice Piano OR Study Latin
6:30pm - Walk Ginny again
7:30pm - Feed dogs; Help with dinner & practicar español con mi mamá
8pm - Eat & relax w/ TV
9pm - Write
10pm - Read
10:30pm - Go to bed
Once again, a schedule is always going to fluctuate because each day brings about different priorities. But, in general, I’d say this schedule is one that provides leeway while also helping me stick to self-implemented goals. I desperately want to reach a proficient level of fluency in Spanish (I’d put myself in-between a B1 & B2 as I’ve only recently begun regular practice again, so somewhere in the intermediate level), so it’s a given that I need to spend a minimum of 30 minutes a day actively practicing. What isn’t reflected in this schedule though is the passive learning I partake in, which includes listening to Spanish podcasts & audiobooks in the car or on my dog walks.
On the other hand, I allow myself to be more flexible with piano and Latin. They’re both skills I want to improve (obviously, or I wouldn’t be doing them!), but this is where prioritzing comes into play. For me, writing my novel and becoming fluent in Spanish are top priorities. This means that every single day, I need to dedicate a good chunk of time to them. On the other hand, I’m learning piano for fun, so it isn’t as high on my list. Latin, while essential in my lifelong goal of achieving polyglot status, isn’t the same as Spanish because it’s a dead language. It is much more prudent for me to achieve fluency in Spanish than Latin, and therefore, is reflected in the time allotted for each activity.
I also have a firm self-picked deadline of completing the first draft of my novel by December 31st. While I missed the goal of completing my outline by Oct. 1st, I’m not too worried, partly because I’m practicing being lenient with myself, but also because I know myself. November is Nanowrimo, a challenge where you attempt to write 50k words of a novel. I’ve completed it twice in the past, both times when I was a student in college, and got halfway through a third attempt while studying abroad in London. The visual representation of unlocking badges and moving the bar graph each day helps me stay on track. Not to mention that when participating in Nanowrimo, I’m more focused on hitting the word count than crafting the perfectly worded sentences, something necessary when completing the first draft.
It’s important to remember not everything I do in a day is on this list. I spend time playing with my dogs, organizing files, banking, and so much more. It’s simply not possible for me to fit everything into a day. But, having a schedule to use as a guide really does improve creating habits, which in turn assures the meeting of self-imposed deadlines. Create an ideal schedule, write down the one you currently follow, and then come up with one in-between that’s realistic. Trust me, you’ll feel much better for it!
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