Perhaps it is simply that I have been so busy for the majority of my life that I am incapable of refraining from this state of being.
Recall, please, that I decided to go part-time at my place of employment so that I could further concentrate on school.
By going part-time, I expected to have more free time in which to apply myself to my current studies.
It went well for the first week and then I found myself pacing around. I'm used to multi-tasking and handling multiple projects at once. This additional 15 hours a week was beginning to drive me insane.
After rearranging the living room and cleaning every possible surface in the house, I reached the conclusion that I would have to increase the amount of things to do for myself or risk developing even more psychiatric disorders than I already possess.
I increased my future class load by an additional class. That should do it, right?
Classes don't start for the summer semester until the middle of next month. Since I'm still in the spring semester and it only consists of 8 credit hours of class work I'm left with some free time on my hands still.
What to do?
I have now started working on four...wait...five different stories (all with varying submission times) to attempt to publish more. Unfortunately, the submission deadlines are awfully close and I'm deluged now in work (self induced work, no less).
The only problem is that I've always dreamed of publishing (I have twice now, but I want to do this for a living - Damn you, KHAN!) and can't bring myself to drop the load I've started.
I live now with one peace of mind - that nagging sense of "What should I do now with this time?" is definitely, most assuredly, dead.
I guess you could multitask and watch shapes slowly evolve while floating on a farm pond for an entire lazy summer day.
-R
Oh you like to be busy?
Write!
*cracks the whip*
and keep me clued in.
I hope this list might prove useful to you.
It’s handy to have a list like this in order to quickly find a way to put that little spare time to work instantly, without any thought. Use the following list as a way to spark ideas for what you can do in a short amount of time.
* Reading file. Clip magazine articles or print out good articles or reports for reading later, and keep them in a folder marked “Reading File”. Take this wherever you go, and any time you have a little chunk of time, you can knock off items in your Reading File. Keep a reading file on your computer (or in your bookmarks), for quick reading while at your desk (or on the road if you’ve got a laptop).
* Clear out inbox. Got a meeting in 5 minutes? Use it to get your physical or email inbox to empty. If you’ve got a lot in your inbox, you’ll have to work quickly, and you may not get everything done, but reducing your pile can be a big help. And having an empty inbox is a wonderful feeling.
* Phone calls. Keep a list of phone calls you need to make, with phone numbers, and carry it everywhere. Whether you’re at your desk or on the road, you can knock a few calls off your list in a short amount of time.
* Make money. This is my favorite productive use of free time. I have a list of articles I need to write, and when I get some spare minutes, I’ll knock off half an article real quick. If you get 5-10 chunks of free time a day, you can make a decent side income. Figure out how you can free-lance your skills, and have work lined up that you can knock out quickly — break it up into little chunks, so those chunks can be done in short bursts.
* File. No one likes to do this. If you’re on top of your game, you’re filing stuff immediately, so it doesn’t pile up. But if you’ve just come off a really busy spurt, you may have a bunch of documents or files laying around. Or maybe you have a big stack of stuff to file. Cut into that stack with every little bit of spare time you get, and soon you’ll be in filing Nirvana.
* Network. Only have 2 minutes? Shoot off a quick email to a colleague. Even just a “touching bases” or follow-up email can do wonders for your working relationship. Or shoot off a quick question, and put it on your follow-up list for later.
* Clear out feeds. If my email inbox is empty, and I have some spare time, I like to go to my Google Reader and clear out my feed inbox.
* Goal time. Take 10 minutes to think about your goals, personal and professional. If you don’t have a list of goals, start on one. If you’ve got a list of goals, review them. Write down a list of action steps you can take over the next couple of weeks to make these goals a reality. What action step can you do today? The more you focus on these goals, and review them, the more likely they will come true.
* Update finances. Many people fall behind with their finances, either in paying bills (they don’t have time), or entering transactions in their financial software, or clearing their checkbook, or reviewing their budget. Take a few minutes to update these things. It just takes 10-15 minutes every now and then.
* Brainstorm ideas. Another favorite of mine if I just have 5 minutes — I’ll break out my pocket notebook, and start a brainstorming list for a project or article. Whatever you’ve got coming up in your work or personal life, it can benefit from a brainstorm. And that doesn’t take long.
* Clear off desk. Similar to the filing tip above, but this applies to whatever junk you’ve got cluttering up your desk. Or on the floor around your desk. Trash stuff, file stuff, put it in its place. A clear desk makes for a more productive you. And it’s oddly satisfying.
* Exercise. Never have time to exercise? 10 minutes is enough to get off some pushups and crunches. Do that 2-3 times a day, and you’ve got a fit new you.
* Take a walk. This is another form of exercise that doesn’t take long, and you can do it anywhere — but even more important, it’s a good way to stretch your legs from sitting at your desk too long, and it gets your creative juices flowing. If you’re ever stuck for ideas, taking a walk is a good way to get unstuck.
* Follow up. Keep a follow-up list for everything you’re waiting on. Return calls, emails, memos — anything that someone owes you, put on the list. When you’ve got a spare 10 minutes, do some follow-up calls or emails.
* Meditate. You don’t need a yoga mat to do this. Just do it at your desk. Focus on your breathing. A quick 5-10 minutes of meditation (or even a nap) can be tremendously refreshing.
* Research. This is a daunting task for me. So I do it in little spurts. If I’ve only got a few minutes, I’ll do some quick research and take some notes. Do this a few times, and I’m done!
* Outline. Similar to brainstorming, but more formal. I like to do an outline of a complicated article, report or project, and it helps speed things along when I get to the actual writing. And it only takes a few minutes.
* Get prepped. Outlining is one way to prep for longer work, but there’s a lot of other ways you can prep for the next task on your list. You may not have time to actually start on the task right now, but when you come back from your meeting or lunch, you’ll be all prepped and ready to go.
* Be early. Got some spare time before a meeting? Show up for the meeting early. Sure, you might feel like a chump sitting there alone, but actually people respect those who show up early. It’s better than being late (unless you’re trying to play a power trip or something, but that’s not appreciated in many circles).
* Log. If you keep a log of anything, a few spare minutes is the perfect time to update the log. Actually, the perfect time to update the log is right after you do the activity (exercise, eat, crank a widget), but if you didn’t have time to do it before, your 5-minute break is as good a time as any.
----a vicious snake would come by and bite the tube, making it go whizzing across the lake at 80MPH and when it crashed against the shore, you'd be thrown into a tree whereupon a rare but deadly species of lizard would stick his forked tongue into your eye, which would cause you to fall backwards out of the tree and into a pile of horse poo. As you limped to the lonely country road nearby, bleeding with an eye bulging out, a truck full of guys named "Pig", "Dumpy", and "Clete" would offer you a ride "down to the doctor", but you'd decline, only to find yourself stealing a donkey with a bum leg and a bad case of gas to get somewhere for medical treatment.
And then six weeks later, you'd get the bill and have to go back to work full time.