Finding alone time didn't used to be a problem ... until I moved to Des Moines.
Now I live close to friends, have joined organizations, and can always find somewhere to go or something to do. I'm on the go a lot more than I've ever been before in my adult life. I am not necessarily mad about that. My friends are awesome, I'm fully engaged in the organizations I've joined, and there are some really fun places to go here in town.
But I need to start putting on the breaks a little more. I don't want to get burned out. Or go broke.
In December, as part of the Choose Your Own Adventure goal link-up simplify initiative, I set aside a few days for downtime. I knew that would be important during the bustle of the holiday season. It worked out really well for me. And I've decided to carry it over through the year.
January is already filling up pretty quickly, as you can see from my the new white board calendar I got for my fridge:
I know there appear to be some codes here. The blue "L" is for days I work at the library. The pink "W" is for workouts (so I get in my 16 each month). You'll also notice I have rooms listed on Saturdays. That's my new deep cleaning schedule. Yeah, I'm getting organized. For me, putting things on a schedule makes me more likely to follow through.
Now, see those dates circled in pink? Those are what I'm calling Introvert Recovery Days. I figure two days a month is doable for doing nothing. They are blocked off for me time.
Exactly, Oprah.
Do you consider yourself an introvert or extrovert?
How do you find/make time to recharge?
I'm glad the simplify challenge pushed you to make a permanent change. I'm (according to tests at least) an extrovert, but I love alone time too. Lazy days hanging out with my dog and watching netflix are awesome. I hope you get your recharge time this month!
ReplyDeleteYessssssss! When we have back to back full weekends, it makes me stressed. I love Saturdays when I don't have to leave the house or see anyone. My weekdays and Sundays are so full of people that I need the day in the middle to recharge by myself!
ReplyDeleteI really like that. I definitely need Me Time, too. Of course, I tend to take too much of it, which is a whole other issue...
ReplyDelete100% introvert. Moreso as I've gotten older. And, for me, I stand up and talk all day long. Half the time I feel like I'm trying to put on some kind of (slightly boring) show. It's exhausting for an introvert so I never want to do anything in the evenings. Scheduling recovery days like that is just a good decision!
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of planning days to do nothing, because I do that too, but not as much as I should or want to. The older I get, the more introverted I become as far as needing to recharge alone goes. If you don't schedule things, they don't happen, so I think I'm going to do this as well! I hope you can make these days happen :)
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