I told you guys I would be back for some insights into my week of time logging (stats here). And I have some things to say! So, today’s Five for Friday post will be all about those insights.
1) I have a very full life
There is a lot going on in my life! I have a ton of hobbies (blogging, podcasting, writing fiction, reading, coloring, etc.) to keep me busy. I’m never bored, I’m creatively inspired on a daily basis, and my biggest problem is trying to fit all of my hobbies into one day. And what a gift that is! This is a life I’ve very intentionally built because when you’re single and childless, you don’t have other things to take up space. There is a lot of white space in my life, and I have filled it up beautifully.
2) I have a lot of free time
Last week, I averaged 9.4 hours of free time, Monday-Thursday. That’s a lot of time to myself! But it’s fragmented, too. There’s a little bit in the morning, but I also have to fit in my morning routine, making breakfast, etc. There’s some time throughout the workday when I take breaks, but I tend to use it for chores or tending to the cats. The bulk of my free time happens in the evening, but that’s also when my energy is the lowest. All I want to do is zone out and watch TV or scroll through my phone. What I should do is end the workday with a nice walk outside, which would probably help boost my energy, but instead, I usually flop on the couch and waste time on my phone.
It feels like I have all this free time to spend time investing in my hobbies, but my mental capacity is so low by that point that it’s hard to summon the energy to do anything that requires creative or social output. I don’t necessarily want to spend more time in front of a computer after spending all day in front of one, so blogging falls off the priority list.
3) Life upkeep takes up more time than I realized
I spent almost 12 hours just on life upkeep—chores, life admin, errands, driving, etc. That’s an average of two hours every day! No wonder I feel too exhausted at the end of the day to do much more than talk to my mom on the phone or watch TV/color. There is so much life upkeep that happens, especially as a single person who has to do it all on her own. I need to remember that when I feel bad about not spending more time commenting on blogs or working on my novel or marketing my podcast.
4) I can’t do every hobby every day
I need to pick and choose which hobbies I engage in on a daily basis. I cannot have a day where I spend an hour reading, an hour reading and commenting on blogs, an hour working on a blog post, and an hour doing things like working on my novel or watching TV while coloring. In my ideal world, I could spend time on each of these hobbies every day, but I honestly don’t have the energy to do so. Reading and commenting on blogs is a leisure activity, yes, but there’s output involved in terms of leaving thoughtful comments and engaging with the blogging community. Writing blog posts is also a leisure activity, but it’s a creative endeavor that sometimes requires a lot of output from me, especially because I care so deeply about writing well and getting my point across clearly.
The one hobby I want to do every day, no matter what, is reading. This is a much easier hobby for me to fit into my day because it’s something that doesn’t require a ton of mental energy. I can flop down on the couch at the end of the workday and read to my heart’s content. From there, it’s all about picking and choosing which hobbies receive my limited energy reserves that day. I try to publish a blog post every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, so I prioritize writing those posts on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. That means I’ll probably comment on fewer blogs or watch less TV on those days.
What this exercise has taught me is the difference between input and output hobbies. Input hobbies like reading, watching TV, or coloring don’t require anything from me. They are about consuming or absorbing what’s in front of me. Output hobbies like blogging, commenting on blogs, and working on the podcast require me to be more active, usually in a creative way. It takes a lot more energy to work on output hobbies, as one might expect! What I’m going to do with this information has yet to be figured out, but just understanding the concept of input/output hobbies has been helpful.
5) Less optimizing, more grace
At the end of the day, what this time logging practice taught me is that a lot is going on in my life. No wonder I feel like I don’t have enough time to do everything I want to do! Sometimes I think because I don’t have a busy household to manage, kids to chauffeur around, or a hectic career with lots of work travel commitments, I should have the time. After all, those of you with kids and work travel and busy households seem to be a lot more on top of blogging and chores than I am.
And yet.
I know we all have our different priorities. I know I have limited energy reserves. I know I’m also dealing with a chronic autoimmune condition that isn’t fully under control yet. I know I’m an introvert who needs a ton of alone time and has never been the kind of person who thrives on having a busy schedule. Sometimes, I want to take a nap in the middle of a Saturday afternoon rather than working on podcast marketing. Sometimes, I want to finish that adorable romance on a Thursday evening rather than commenting on blog posts. And sometimes, I want to sit in front of the TV and color for an hour because I need to zone out.
And that is absolutely fine because I’m not interested in optimizing my life so it’s the most productive it can be. Would I like to make some changes? Absolutely. But now I can see that I have a lot of things that are competing for my time, and it’s okay that I can’t get it all done. I’m doing the best I can—and I’d imagine the same can be said for you!
What’s a hobby you wish you could devote more time to?
I feel similar to you. I don’t have kids, but I feel like when I get home I walk the dog, workout, make and eat dinner, and there’s just no time for much else in the evenings. I want to practice sewing more and get good at making my own clothing, which seems like a life skill that might become more and more important, but it’s so much work to get out my machine/ironing board, pattern/fabric, and actually do it. Although if I did even fifteen minutes a day, I’d definitely make some progress. But time and energy are limiting factors.
Yeah, and all of those activities you mentioned are very OUTPUT, so it’s no wonder when you’re done with them, you have no energy for anything else. I totally get it! What I’ve learned is that we all have a lot going on, no matter what our household situations look like.
This was so validating to read! I get so wary of time-logging because I’m always afraid it will make me feel bad about how I spend my time. You made such a freeing point, though, about how energy levels can impact what can (or even should) be done at certain times. Even with certain free hours, if my brain is shot from work or a stressful task, I don’t want to force myself to be creative just because that is what I have blocked in there. Thanks for sharing (and tracking) your very, very full life!
I’m so glad this post was helpful, Lindsay! More than anything, time logging helps me understand just how much time is being spent on all sorts of tasks throughout my day. And that it’s okay if that means a few times a week, I just sit in front of my TV and color instead of working on my hobbies!
I’m trying to think what hobby I’d like to devote more time to. I think I’d just like to do the things I’m currently doing but feel less time pressure. I almost always feel like I need to rush or stop doing things earlier than I want to. It’s hard to get into a state of flow with so many interruptions (right now, especially the kids!). So I think in retirement, for example, I’d want to do the same things I do now (write, read, scenic walks), but do things more slowly!
Yes, I think I am just someone who naturally has to move at a slower pace so I AM doing a lot of things, but I’m not being as “productive” as I could be. Like today, when I came home from a Memorial Day party, and decided to sit on the couch and read, which turned into an hour-long nap. I should have used that time to get myself ready for the week ahead… and yet!
You have built a wonderful, intentional life, my friend! I am really happy for you. I love how you have added in so many lovely hobbies, but also allow yourself to just watch TV at the end of the day. We all need to unwind. I have a real problem with the idea of being PRODUCTIVE EVERY SECOND OF THE DAY. I read The Relaxed Woman and it really spoke to me, this idea of giving ourselves rest and relaxation in all different ways.
Although I do have kids, I feel like we have some similarities as my kids are adults now, and don’t really need me for anything at all. So this is my time to focus on things I love – reading, writing, gardening, walks, exercise, etc. So my answer to your question is – nothing! I already feel I have a lovely balance of time doing things I love (it helps that I don’t work! Lol! My work-life balance is just life-life balance!)
Yes, yes, yes. I am just NOT someone who needs to be productive or finds any sort of value in being/looking “busy.” That’s definitely part of my personality, and I really love that there has been a push to be LESS productive and just relaxed/enjoy life as it comes. Not every moment of every day needs to be filled!
I can’t do every hobby every day <— oh boy, did you say a mouthful. This is one very tough lesson for me to learn. I can also relate to your distinction between input and output hobbies! That makes so much sense. We really all need to strike a balance with the limited time that we have.
I am still trying to learn and not feel bad if I can’t do every hobby every day! It would be so nice to have that extra space, and I probably COULD make it happen if I wanted to give up some of my more relaxing hobbies like watching TV. But I don’t really want to! And I’m learning to be okay with that.
I just finished inputting my time logging from a couple of weeks ago into a spreadsheet, ready for a blog post, so this is timely. I feel like I am in a similar position to you because my kids are grown or moved out, although I have more discretionary time because I work limited hours. I think you are exactly right in pinpointing that the limiting factor for doing all the things we’d like to do is energy and not time. I certainly feel that way.
I would like to devote more time to the garden, but that is an energy-intensive hobby, so that’s probably why it sometimes falls onto the back burner, although I did some gardening during my time logging week and realised that I do get a good return on just 30 minutes of time input.
It has been super useful for me to understand the difference between input and output hobbies, mostly just so I feel less terrible about needing a few hours of decompression time after my workday! Maybe it means I don’t get as *much* done as I would like, but that’s okay.
I actually can’t think of a hobby I would want to dedicate more time to. I am pretty happy with how I spend my time. I read quite a bit which is my top hobby (and so many people told me I would not have time to read after having kids!! WRONG!!). I am going to OTF a lot these days too so I feel good about how much I spend exercising. I wish I had more time to see friends but it’s tough in this stage of life.
Even though my chronic disease is well managed, I still feel like I need more rest than the average person. I try to give myself lots of grace and recognize that the playing field isn’t even. Our bodies are dealing with so much!
That’s amazing that you feel like you dedicate the right amount of time to your hobbies! I want to get to that space because I would venture to guess it’s more about what you’re prioritizing and not because you have oodles of free time. But you prioritize the things that fill up your cup the most, and that keeps you sane!
I’ve always been a sleepy girl so now I just like that I can use my chronic disease as an “excuse,” lol.
It is interesting how people spend their days- I think that’s why we like blogging so much. And it’s fascinating how everyone is so different. If I have a day off I want to read, nap, write a blog post, and watch a football game. Then there are people who are like “I went to my son’t soccer game, weeded the garden, baked a cake and hosted a barbecue.” WHAT.
As my kids have gotten older, I’ve filled my life with hobbies, like you. Sometimes I’ll think “I would have plenty of time for everything if I just didn’t have to go to work!” As it is, there’s always something I wish I had more time for- right now I would say it’s reading.
Yes, yes, yes! I think that’s the key. With the amount of hobbies I have, there’s always going to be SOMETHING I wish I had more time for. That’s just the way it goes, so recognizing that it’s OKAY that some hobbies only get a few hours a week of my time, if that. The important ones need to be priority, and the rest can be added in as time/energy permits.
Loved this! I’m insecure about my time use so I don’t think I’ll be doing the time audio any time soon…or maybe that is exactly why I NEED to do one.
I also really loved Life Admin episode- so good!! Made me feel validated.
If I could get RID of something, it would be feeling like I need to do some work every day. I’ve done it for so, so long, and there are days I just want to sit and read. And then my work-guilt kicks in, I sigh, and I log in. Getting rid of that feeling of obligation would be so freeing, mentally and physically. (There are so many things I need to blog about, but high on the list is a post on reasons why I can’t do this job anymore…sigh.) I just love that you have built your life with intention. You have an amazing balance of social and solitary activities, and I hope it continues to fill your cup long into the future.