A GUIDE TO SEIZING THE DAY
Right now I'm rather fortunate in the sense that I have a lot of free time on my hands. With the way my uni timetable has fallen, it means I have many an hour with which to do as I please, something that I know isn't going to last forever. Now don't get me wrong, I love having the time to do whatever I chose to, whether that be a mad drawing session, watching films, seeing my friends, reading books, baking... it's great. However with having so much time off, it means I have a lot of mornings where I wake up with no sense of purpose and absolutely nothing planned for my day, and to tell you the truth, it sometimes scares the absolute crap out of me. A few weeks ago, I was waking up every single morning with a horrible feeling of dread sinking in my stomach, as I thought of the endless empty hours which I had to fill somehow. I love having free time, but this was too much time, and I hadn't been busy enough previously to then fully appreciate all this time I had to myself.
You see, I'm the kind of person who likes having a sense of purpose. I like having a reason to get up in the morning, a reason to live. I like having things to do to keep me occupied, to the extent that it is near enough impossible for me to sit completely still, and do absolutely nothing. If you do see me sat there, chances are I'm staring into space (which means I'm doing some seriously deep thinking), or I'm fiddling about with my fingers, fidgeting on my chair, tapping my feet. I can't sit still, I need to be doing something, I need to feel like I'm living my life fully, and that's why with all my time off, I've decided I need to be pro-active, or as the title of this post suggests, I need to seize the day!
So in order to seize the day, this is what I've been doing, as well as some ideas about what I'm going to do. I thought I'd share it with you because if you're in a similar position to me and my friends, all sat there flopped on our beds, pondering life and wondering what on earth we're going to do with ourselves, this just might help you, or give you some inspiration to help you on your way. Life is short, our days unfortunately numbered, so we need to take what we have right here right now and make the most of it...
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1
Today or tonight, find a piece of paper and a pen, and title it 'My To Do List'. This is
important as although it feels like you've got absolutely nothing at all to do, the reality is there
are a million and one things you actually could be doing, and you need to find what those things are
and jot them down so you can visually see and remind yourself that you do have a purpose.
2
The next part is the kind of fun part. Firstly, rack your brain for every little thing that you could
possibly need to do, and it can literally be anything. For example, yesterday's list for me included
go to the bank, pay my house deposit, message my Spanish exchange partner, buy train tickets, do uni reading, plan this blog post, apply for a couple of jobs and watch Great British Bake Off. Next, put these things down on the list of things to do tomorrow, making sure at least one can in some way involve you leaving your room and going outside.
3
Now is the actual fun part. Get another piece of paper and title it 'Things I Want To Do', then from the list below, choose a minimum of three things, or if you can think of any others, jot them down:
GO SHOPPING/ WINDOW SHOPPING AND MAKE A LIST OF THINGS YOU LIKE
BUY A NOTEBOOK & DO A DAILY ENTRY, WHETHER THAT BE
A DRAWING, JOURNAL, PHOTOGRAPH
FIND A RECIPE AND COOK/ BAKE SOMETHING NEW, & GET YOUR FRIENDS
OR FAMILY INVOLVED, AND THEN TAKE A PICTURE OF THE END RESULT (IT MAY COME IN USEFUL LATER...)
PUT ON YOUR TRAINERS, WHACK IN YOUR EARPHONES AND GO FOR
A RUN AROUND WHERE YOU LIVE, OR EVEN JUST A WALK IN YOUR FAVOURITE
PARK
JOIN THE GYM OR GO TO YOUR LOCAL DANCE/ YOGA/ PILATES/
AEROBICS/ SWIMMING/ ETC. SESSION
DO SOMETHING FUN SPENDING TIME WITH THE PEOPLE YOU LOVE
GET YOUR CAMERA & TRAVEL SOMEWHERE NEW, OR GO INTO TOWN,
OR YOUR LOCAL NEIGHBOURHOOD, AND TAKE PHOTOS OF ANYTHING
INTERESTING THAT YOU SEE
CALL YOUR FRIEND/S AND ARRANGE TO DO SOMETHING SIMPLE BUT FUN
MAKE A LIST OF THE FILMS & TV SHOWS YOU WANT TO SEE AND GO SEE THEM
THINK ABOUT SOMETHING YOU'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO TRY, AND
FIND A LOCAL CLASS/ GROUP/ SOCIETY THAT DO IT AND JOIN, OR IF NOT,
LOOK AT MEET-UP AND SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING IN YOUR LOCAL AREA
START A BLOG, A WEBSITE, YOUTUBE CHANNEL, INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT,
AND TELL PEOPLE ABOUT YOUR LIFE, THE THINGS YOU LOVE, SHOWCASE A SKILL OR A PASSION OF YOURS, GIVE ADVICE...
MAKE A LIST OF BOOKS YOU WANT TO READ AND HEAD TO YOUR LOCAL
LIBRARY TO FIND THEM
TAKE SAID BOOKS TO A CUTE LITTLE COFFEE SHOP AND SPEND THE MORNING
READING, LISTENING TO MUSIC AND RELAXING
LOOK AT VOLUNTEERING OPPORTUNITIES IN YOUR LOCAL AREA AND FIND
ONE THAT SUITS YOU
LOOK FOR A JOB AND SEE WHAT VACANCIES ARE GOING IN YOUR LOCAL AREA
THROW A DINNER PARTY OR ACTUAL PARTY FOR YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS, FLATMATES,
DEDICATE AN HOUR TO DOING SOMETHING YOU LOVE AND THAT MAKES YOU HAPPY
MAKE A PHOTO WALL, AND TAKE A PICTURE OF SOMETHING DIFFERENT EVERY DAY AND STICK IT ON THE WALL
LEARN AN INSTRUMENT, OR IF YOU ALREADY PLAY ONE, LEARN SOME NEW SONGS, PRACTICE, AND THEN JOIN A MUSIC GROUP, FORM A BAND, WRITE A SONG
PLAN A DAY TRIP TO SOMEWHERE YOU LOVE OR HAVE NEVER BEEN TO BEFORE, AND GO BY YOURSELF OR WITH SOMEONE YOU LIKE
MAKE A SHORT FILM AND SHARE IT ON YOUTUBE
FIND EXPERIENCE (EG. WORK PLACEMENT, VOLUNTEERING, SHADOWING)
AND DO LITTLE THINGS THAT COULD HELP YOUR FUTURE CAREER
WRITE A SHORT STORY OR A BIG ONE, OR EVEN WRITE POETRY, A PLAY,
A SONG, A DIARY
LEARN A NEW SKILL, EG. MAKING JEWELLERY, HOMER SIMPSON IMPRESSION,
PAINTING, MAKING CORNISH PASTIES OR THE PERFECT LATTE, MAKING MUSIC
START A BUSINESS BASED ON A SKILL OR EXPERIENCE YOU HAVE
GO TO THE LOCAL PUB QUIZ
MAKE A LIST OF MUSIC YOU LIKE, AND LISTEN TO THE SONGS ON SPOTIFY,
SEE IF THE ARTIST IS TOURING, WRITE ABOUT IT ON A BLOG
LOOK AT LOCAL MUSIC VENUES, CINEMAS, BARS, PUBS, ART VENUES, MUSEUMS ETC. AND SEE WHAT'S ON, WHETHER IT BE AN EXHIBIT, A NEW BAND, A GET TOGETHER OR GROUP OF SOME KIND, AND GO ALONG
4
Put both your lists on your nearest table and set your alarm clock for 9 o'clock in the morning.
Get up as soon as it goes off, or if you're feeling generous, allow yourself to lie-in and wake up naturally, but make sure you're up by eleven at the latest!
5
Make yourself breakfast, have a nice hot shower, have a chat with someone, surf the web
for little bit, and then get dressed and prepped for the day ahead.
6
Look at your lists and remind yourself of what you need/ want to do, and decide roughly on your
plan for the day and how you're going to go about doing those things.
7
Seize the day and live your life, and repeat the next time you have free time, making the day
as fun packed and filled, or relaxed and chilled, as you want it to be.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
You see, I'm the kind of person who likes having a sense of purpose. I like having a reason to get up in the morning, a reason to live. I like having things to do to keep me occupied, to the extent that it is near enough impossible for me to sit completely still, and do absolutely nothing. If you do see me sat there, chances are I'm staring into space (which means I'm doing some seriously deep thinking), or I'm fiddling about with my fingers, fidgeting on my chair, tapping my feet. I can't sit still, I need to be doing something, I need to feel like I'm living my life fully, and that's why with all my time off, I've decided I need to be pro-active, or as the title of this post suggests, I need to seize the day!
So in order to seize the day, this is what I've been doing, as well as some ideas about what I'm going to do. I thought I'd share it with you because if you're in a similar position to me and my friends, all sat there flopped on our beds, pondering life and wondering what on earth we're going to do with ourselves, this just might help you, or give you some inspiration to help you on your way. Life is short, our days unfortunately numbered, so we need to take what we have right here right now and make the most of it...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1
Today or tonight, find a piece of paper and a pen, and title it 'My To Do List'. This is
important as although it feels like you've got absolutely nothing at all to do, the reality is there
are a million and one things you actually could be doing, and you need to find what those things are
and jot them down so you can visually see and remind yourself that you do have a purpose.
2
The next part is the kind of fun part. Firstly, rack your brain for every little thing that you could
possibly need to do, and it can literally be anything. For example, yesterday's list for me included
go to the bank, pay my house deposit, message my Spanish exchange partner, buy train tickets, do uni reading, plan this blog post, apply for a couple of jobs and watch Great British Bake Off. Next, put these things down on the list of things to do tomorrow, making sure at least one can in some way involve you leaving your room and going outside.
3
Now is the actual fun part. Get another piece of paper and title it 'Things I Want To Do', then from the list below, choose a minimum of three things, or if you can think of any others, jot them down:
GO SHOPPING/ WINDOW SHOPPING AND MAKE A LIST OF THINGS YOU LIKE
BUY A NOTEBOOK & DO A DAILY ENTRY, WHETHER THAT BE
A DRAWING, JOURNAL, PHOTOGRAPH
FIND A RECIPE AND COOK/ BAKE SOMETHING NEW, & GET YOUR FRIENDS
OR FAMILY INVOLVED, AND THEN TAKE A PICTURE OF THE END RESULT (IT MAY COME IN USEFUL LATER...)
PUT ON YOUR TRAINERS, WHACK IN YOUR EARPHONES AND GO FOR
A RUN AROUND WHERE YOU LIVE, OR EVEN JUST A WALK IN YOUR FAVOURITE
PARK
JOIN THE GYM OR GO TO YOUR LOCAL DANCE/ YOGA/ PILATES/
AEROBICS/ SWIMMING/ ETC. SESSION
DO SOMETHING FUN SPENDING TIME WITH THE PEOPLE YOU LOVE
GET YOUR CAMERA & TRAVEL SOMEWHERE NEW, OR GO INTO TOWN,
OR YOUR LOCAL NEIGHBOURHOOD, AND TAKE PHOTOS OF ANYTHING
INTERESTING THAT YOU SEE
CALL YOUR FRIEND/S AND ARRANGE TO DO SOMETHING SIMPLE BUT FUN
MAKE A LIST OF THE FILMS & TV SHOWS YOU WANT TO SEE AND GO SEE THEM
THINK ABOUT SOMETHING YOU'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO TRY, AND
FIND A LOCAL CLASS/ GROUP/ SOCIETY THAT DO IT AND JOIN, OR IF NOT,
LOOK AT MEET-UP AND SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING IN YOUR LOCAL AREA
START A BLOG, A WEBSITE, YOUTUBE CHANNEL, INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT,
AND TELL PEOPLE ABOUT YOUR LIFE, THE THINGS YOU LOVE, SHOWCASE A SKILL OR A PASSION OF YOURS, GIVE ADVICE...
MAKE A LIST OF BOOKS YOU WANT TO READ AND HEAD TO YOUR LOCAL
LIBRARY TO FIND THEM
TAKE SAID BOOKS TO A CUTE LITTLE COFFEE SHOP AND SPEND THE MORNING
READING, LISTENING TO MUSIC AND RELAXING
LOOK AT VOLUNTEERING OPPORTUNITIES IN YOUR LOCAL AREA AND FIND
ONE THAT SUITS YOU
LOOK FOR A JOB AND SEE WHAT VACANCIES ARE GOING IN YOUR LOCAL AREA
THROW A DINNER PARTY OR ACTUAL PARTY FOR YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS, FLATMATES,
DEDICATE AN HOUR TO DOING SOMETHING YOU LOVE AND THAT MAKES YOU HAPPY
MAKE A PHOTO WALL, AND TAKE A PICTURE OF SOMETHING DIFFERENT EVERY DAY AND STICK IT ON THE WALL
LEARN AN INSTRUMENT, OR IF YOU ALREADY PLAY ONE, LEARN SOME NEW SONGS, PRACTICE, AND THEN JOIN A MUSIC GROUP, FORM A BAND, WRITE A SONG
PLAN A DAY TRIP TO SOMEWHERE YOU LOVE OR HAVE NEVER BEEN TO BEFORE, AND GO BY YOURSELF OR WITH SOMEONE YOU LIKE
MAKE A SHORT FILM AND SHARE IT ON YOUTUBE
FIND EXPERIENCE (EG. WORK PLACEMENT, VOLUNTEERING, SHADOWING)
AND DO LITTLE THINGS THAT COULD HELP YOUR FUTURE CAREER
WRITE A SHORT STORY OR A BIG ONE, OR EVEN WRITE POETRY, A PLAY,
A SONG, A DIARY
LEARN A NEW SKILL, EG. MAKING JEWELLERY, HOMER SIMPSON IMPRESSION,
PAINTING, MAKING CORNISH PASTIES OR THE PERFECT LATTE, MAKING MUSIC
START A BUSINESS BASED ON A SKILL OR EXPERIENCE YOU HAVE
GO TO THE LOCAL PUB QUIZ
MAKE A LIST OF MUSIC YOU LIKE, AND LISTEN TO THE SONGS ON SPOTIFY,
SEE IF THE ARTIST IS TOURING, WRITE ABOUT IT ON A BLOG
LOOK AT LOCAL MUSIC VENUES, CINEMAS, BARS, PUBS, ART VENUES, MUSEUMS ETC. AND SEE WHAT'S ON, WHETHER IT BE AN EXHIBIT, A NEW BAND, A GET TOGETHER OR GROUP OF SOME KIND, AND GO ALONG
4
Put both your lists on your nearest table and set your alarm clock for 9 o'clock in the morning.
Get up as soon as it goes off, or if you're feeling generous, allow yourself to lie-in and wake up naturally, but make sure you're up by eleven at the latest!
5
Make yourself breakfast, have a nice hot shower, have a chat with someone, surf the web
for little bit, and then get dressed and prepped for the day ahead.
6
Look at your lists and remind yourself of what you need/ want to do, and decide roughly on your
plan for the day and how you're going to go about doing those things.
7
Seize the day and live your life, and repeat the next time you have free time, making the day
as fun packed and filled, or relaxed and chilled, as you want it to be.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
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