Week Two of Living with Intention

Last week, we started working on “Blocks of Time”. If you haven’t read that post, it may be helpful to check it out before moving onto this one.

So far, we’ve covered:
• deliberately thinking about what we do each week,
• being conscious of choosing how to live,
• the process we’ll follow to “get that ball rolling”, and
• what the twelve (typical) “Blocks of Time” are.

This week, I’d like you to continue to think about what you do each day in order to move into “living with intention”. As examples, I’m going to share how I use my time. The words in red italics indicate how those categories relate to my life which, in spite of my strong desire and best intentions, isn’t always healthily balanced!

When we take the time to analyze our life-styles and life-patterns—how we use those 168 hours each week—we have the opportunity for growth on many levels: physical, emotional, intellectual and, very often, spiritual.

Back to the Twelve “Blocks of Time”

You may not spend any time in one of the blocks below. In that case, eliminate that one and add another that’s important in your life. (Please let me know what it is so that I can add it to our collective list of “Blocks of Time”.) If there’s more than one that doesn’t apply to you, then add others as necessary, but keep it at twelve blocks. As examples, #6: “Knowledge” or #12 “Income Producing” may not be activities that are part of your life. In those cases, add another category, or split one of the existing categories into two.

1. Spirituality, Prayer, Meditation, Silence
   faith community involvement, time with your Higher Power, spiritual retreats
   Sunday service, morning time with God, prayer, my “Thank You, God” most mornings 
2. Sleep
   actual sleep, not lying in bed working, or reading, or watching TV
   No electronics in the bedroom at all, but most nights I’d be thrilled if I slept seven consecutive hours, especially if those hours weren’t filled with crazy dreams!
3. Family and Closest Friends
   biological and non-biological “family”, pets that live with you, parenting, grandparenting, time with dear friends, meaningful conversations, laughter, shared experiences
   Sunday family dinner, Tuesday afternoons and sleepovers with my grandchildren, phone conversations and lunches with my daughters, time with “inner circle friends”
4. Giving Back and Reaching Out
   volunteerism, charities, helping others, sending cards or notes, making phone calls
   work with Habitat For Humanity or my faith community, “being there” for people who need support, sending notes or making phone calls of support
5. Physical Care
   eating, showering/bathing, grooming—haircuts, makeup, manicures, shaving, etc.
   just the typical stuff; nothing “high maintenance”
6. Knowledge—Reading and Writing
   reading for pleasure, work, or growth; journaling, daydreaming on paper
   being part of a book club, reading books of a spiritual, design or coaching nature, writing design stories for publications, posts for Peace Full Home, or working on the book 
7. Home Care
   laundry, dishes, cooking, cleaning, repairs, paying bills, grocery shopping
   typical stuff that most homeowners do (we don’t have a cleaning service, and we don’t dine out too often), plus a fair amount of work on the property and, of course, rearranging things
8. Health Maintenance and Improvement
   exercise, researching healthy eating, supplements, doctors’ appointments
   I do have an annual physical and mammogram and try to make good choices, but there’s definitely room for improvement in this block. 
9. Relaxation
   a stress-free weekend away, anything (healthy) that helps you “unwind”
   sitting with a cup of tea, listening to Jazz (or the birds), watching “This Is Us” or “Grace and Frankie”
10. Nature
    walking, hiking, exploring, just being in our amazing world
    once it’s below 50°, I’m pretty much an “indoor person”, so a lot more hours when it’s warm (I average it over the year)
11. Activities and Hobbies
    singing in a choir, being on a bowling league, building model airplanes
    going out with groups of friends (different from #3), gardening in the summer, travel, organizing (more of a fun hobby for me than a “home care” chore) 
12. Income Producing
    the time you spend—including commuting, and when you’re “off but still connected”—earning a living
    anything that has to do with Kay McLane Design, working on the book “Intentional Living”

Turning Theory into Practice—The Worksheet

Below is a worksheet you can use to record the number of hours, or minutes, you spend in each “block”. You can create something similar, print it with the PDF below, or simply use a piece of paper (or “notes” on your device) to keep track of what you do with your 168 hours each day. You may have a lot of consistency from day-to-day, or each day many have nothing in common with the previous one. There’s, obviously, no “right” or “wrong” answer.

PDF for Intentional Living, Blocks of Time

What’s Coming Up Next

Next week, we’ll finish this series. I’ll show you how I use my time. If you make the time to do this exercise too, please let me know how your blocks of time are spent. We’ll also create a “graphic” by filling in 168 different blocks, with twelve different colors, for each category. That way there’s something visible (maybe even art worthy!) that reinforces how your time is spent.

Together we can make change happen in our personal lives…..which affects the lives of those closest to us…..which affects the lives of those closest to them. And, one step at a time, we have the ability to change our lives and our world. After all, isn’t that what intentional living is all about?

Thank you for walking down this path with me,
Kay

Blog: peacefullhome.com
Twitter: @kaymclane
Instagram: @peace_full_home
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©peace full home®/intentional living