Sometimes, we get so busy trying to make a living that we forget to enjoy life. Not too long ago, my husband lamented that he didn’t have time for a break. So I asked him what he had to do that was keeping him from enjoying life.
He didn’t really have much to say, other than pointing out that he works all the time. Then I asked him if he really needed to work so much. He paused, and then admitted that he didn’t. He just felt guilty if he wasn’t working on something related to work.
After a few minutes more of talking, he realized that he did have time to enjoy himself — if he would just allow himself.
Do You Let Yourself Enjoy Life?
We’ve all heard the stories of the career-driven workers, putting in 70 hours a week to bring home a big paycheck. But are they actually happy? A lot of them aren’t, and many of them don’t have time to enjoy life with their families. They feel like “the job” always has to come first.
One of the reasons that my husband likes being a college professor (other than teaching and mentoring students) is that there are large swaths of time off, and he has a fairly flexible schedule. All of that means little if he isn’t going to take advantage of it to enjoy life. Once my husband gave himself permission to enjoy life a little bit more, he found that he had a much better quality of life.
If you aren’t taking the time to enjoy life, take a step back and ask yourself why you aren’t having a good time. Is it because you really don’t have time? Or is it because you haven’t made time. Often, just as we mindlessly spend money on things we don’t really care to have, we mindlessly spend our time engaged in activities we don’t enjoy. Suddenly, the time is gone, and we are left wondering where it all went.
Take the time to consciously enjoy life. I try to do spend at least a little time each day doing something I enjoy. Sometimes, it’s something as simple as reading a book for half an hour, or taking my son to get ice cream after school. Other times, it’s about carving out a couple of hours to visit the spa, or a couple of days to go camping with my family.
My husband discovered that he really can take the time to go to a concert, or go out to eat. He does have the time to relax in front of the TV, watching his favorite football team without trying to grade papers at the same time. Once he made taking some time to enjoy life a priority, suddenly it was something he could do.
It’s possible for you to do the same thing. Think about whether or not you can take five minutes to enjoy yourself. Then, the next day, ask if you can take 10 minutes. Before you know it, you’ll be able to carve out time to enjoy life, rather than just sort of move through it.
I took 5 minutes to read and enjoy your post 🙂