24 hours never seems like long enough to accomplish all the things in one day. But the thing is, if we are fixing our time between too many non essentials that will never change.
I’ve followed Morgan from Morganize With Me (how precious is her blog name?!) on Instagram for a bit – I was actually introduced to her account through another real life friend turned organizing pro – so when the opportunity came up to review Take Back Your Time: Identify Your Priorities, Decrease Stress, and Increase Productivity prior to it’s release, I was excited for what she had to say after seeing a bit of her heart in the realm of social media. In this book, Morgan walks though prioritizing your values in order to allocate your time. Unlike other books of a similar nature, Take Back Your Time not only addresses your calendar and obligations- but mental and emotional clutter in addition to physical clutter.
Morgan shows you how to organize and manage your time using her simple three-color time zone system of green, yellow, and red–moxie time, multitasking time, and me time. She shows you how to:
– identify your most productive times each day
– regulate between essentials and nonessentials
– schedule your three time zones
– match your time zones with your capacities
– welcome the season of life you’re in
– set achievable goals that align with your values
If you’ve struggled to find balance and direction in your overloaded life, let Morgan’s system help you discover the freedom of less hustle and more harmony. As a professional organizer, she speaks to be organized loving soul. I mean, as the girl who has a bin for everything (and then labels it all), I am all about decluttering and organizing all the “stuff” in our lives (and yes – that collective “our” includes my work family too. They know they love my color coding craziness.) BUT…
“Here’s the issue. Clutter is not just physical; there are also mental and emotional clutter, and these can be just as difficult to manage as physical clutter….Less clutter equals more time – more time for the things you want to realize in your life.”
Each chapter contains a task designed to be completed during the coming week. Morgan wants readers to discover the hours they work best, and then to divide their tasks into Green, Yellow, and Red Time Zones. She also offers ideas as to how to remove the distractions that stop you from focusing on your top priorities (items in the Green Time Zone). She offers simple reminders that Green means Go; learning to juggle our time and proceeding with caution in the Yellow; and taking time for our self-care and knowing when to stop in the Red zone.
‘Setting things down, saying no, or even changing your mind are all part of a good time manager. Embrace your season, your productivity, and your design.’ …. “With different seasons of life come different opportunities and obligations. Recognizing your current season of life is essential to knowing how to intentionally orchestrate your time.”
One phrase that has stuck with me is “choose well”. I feel like all too often we forget that how we spend our time is just that – a choice. We ALL have 24 hours – and we choose where to allocate that time. One of the exercises she suggests is taking inventory of your time and habits to see where it’s really being spent. Let me tell you, this is eye opening.
One of the things I value is reading, and yet, I find myself “with no time” to do so – yet when I sat down to look at the data (hello BCBA self) it showed that too much of my free time was being spent doing meaningless scrolling through social media instead of picking up one of the books off my to read list. There’s several apps that can help you see where your time is spent (and your phone even has these analytics built right in to break down app time!). You spend your time on what you prioritize. Let that soak in.
“Time management’s nickname is choices. And how you choose to spend your time is a reflection of your priorities.”
If you’ve been here a minute you know I continually am striving for simplicity. For margin. For making time for the stuff that matters in life. Well, if we’re honest with ourselves, it takes work to do that. It takes daily choices to prioritize. Simple is worth the effort to clear the clutter.
“Although it may not be easy, it is simple to live simply. Living simply requires you to put bookends around your commitments. It necessitates flexibility with the ebb and flow that life brings while also remaining steadfast and purposeful.”
So, in an effort not to spoil the entire book, I’ll leave you with this. If you’re a mom, and especially a working mom, looking to refocus your time and allocate quality and quantity- this book is a must for you!
You can find more information on Morgan Tyree’s new book Take Back Your Time: Identify Your Priorities, Decrease Stress, and Increase Productivity here or get your copy at Target now!
