As a child, school provided a well defined schedule. Arrive at 7:30 AM. English class at 8 AM. History class at 9 AM. Math class at 10 AM, and so forth.
The schedule provided structure but everything was mandated. You were told when and where to be and what you were studying. Sometimes the subject of the class was uninteresting. But you had to be there. It was an obligation. For subjects I did enjoy, there were times I would lose engagement because the pacing was too slow. The hour would feel like a slog.
Due to this, I associated schedules with captivity and subjugation. When it came to my own time, I rebelled. My “free time” can’t truly be free if it’s restricted by a schedule, right?
The fallacy of “free time”
My “free time” was unbounded by a schedule. I could do anything I wanted! Channel surf on TV. Read random internet articles for hours on end. Endless scrolling on social media. Play an XBox game until 2 AM.
Eventually, I realized those activities are like junk food. They feel good in the moment, but they are empty calories. I had ambitions to spend my time on more important things. Read a book. Exercise. Do something creative. Go on an adventure. I told myself, “No problem! You’ve got plenty of time for that stuff.” But I never ended up doing any of it. I continued to struggle and those ambitions just lead to guilt that I was wasting my time.
The one habit that changed my life
The solution is really quite simple: Use a calendar.
Schedule time for what’s important.
Putting an activity on the calendar establishes intention. It makes sure it happens. “I’ll excercise in my free time” is very different from “I’m going to jog from 5:30 PM - 6 PM.”
Furthermore, my problem wasn’t a lack of time, it was counter-intuitively a lack of restriction. I was reminded of this insight in Austin Kleon’s book Keep Going: 10 Ways to Stay Creative in Good Times and Bad
A little imprisonment – if it’s your own making – can set you free. Rather than restricting your freedom, a routine gives you freedom by protecting you from the ups and downs of life and helping you take advantage of your limited time, energy, and talent.
If I only have one hour to write a blog article, it forces me to focus on just one topic and concentrate on finishing it.
Which calendar should I use?
The best calendar is one that is convenient and simple. For me, that means it needs to be accessible from my iPhone and a web browser. Google Calendar fits the bill and it’s free!