“Wherever you are be all there.” –Jim Elliot 
I think I first heard this quote in college. I’ve been working on it ever since. It has become increasingly important in managing life, especially since there are now more people in my life (mainly hubby and baby) and more difficult tasks to tackle (I won’t list all of my classes, but you get the picture).
I have to make rules that are only broken during finals or when there are tests every other day for a week and a half…
4. When I’m with people, I’m with people. I don’t take notecards with me to dinner with friends. To the doctor’s office? Yes. They aren’t there to spend time with me. On a date? No. To my best friends wedding? No. Get the drift?
3. When I’m at school, I try to be as productive as possible. Now, there are times that my brain is so overloaded, I have to take a break from studying. But, for the most part, I try to maximize the time that I have between the hours of 8 and 5. So if my brain is on overload, I can print stuff or go fill up my water…things that I will have to do anyway. You might get labeled a gunner or as “intense”—but it’s the only way you can do it.
2. I don’t seriously try to study while with my daughter. I realize that this is kind of the same thing as number 4…but it’s so easy to take advantage of your family—especially if they can’t say “I miss you”. This may not apply exactly with older kids who can sit in the same room and do their own homework. But for now, if I am in the same room, I am a jungle gym—and I don’t want that to change. (I mean, come on. Look at this face!)
I want my daughter to know that she is more important than my books, even if she gets less time with me than they do. So if I have my stuff out in the same room, I know I’m setting myself up for playtime. Not studying.
1. I have dinner with my family. Whether we are meeting other people or gathered around the coffee table in more of a rush, that is a protected hour or two of face time with those that matter most.
Watch this. (No, I’m not getting paid to show this…unfortunately.)
If you’re in between—kind of out on your own without a family, I would encourage you to find a community to be a part of, and have set aside time with them…
These are just some examples, and are fairly blandly practical. “But I don’t have time!” …no worries. We’ll get to that.