Working full time can be mentally and physically exhausting. You hardly have time for family and friends and hobbies keep going down the pecking order. Work and life seem to sit firmly on two opposing side. Worse yet, you don’t see any change coming.
When work starts to clash with your social life and your passion, it is time to change some things in your life. Here are five tested-and-tried tips to balance work, hobbies, and side-hustles without hurting your productivity.
Tip #1. Improve on Your Time Management
One of the biggest mistakes people with hobbies and side projects make is failing to manage their time properly. Of course, you’re supposed to be at work for a set minimum amount of time, and you cannot anything about it. But, what are you doing with the rest of your day?
Unless your job is really special or it doubles as a hobby, you should never spend more than eight hours per day on it. Assuming work and sleep eat up 16 hours of your day, you have 8 hours that you can use however you want. Of course the bulk of the remainder is spent on preparing food, commuting, eating, having fun with friends, chilling, watching TV, and getting ready for work, but there is no way you can’t set aside one or two hours for your project.
Just make sure you don’t trade your time with family for it. Target those unproductive habits like watching TV, surfing the internet, and playing games. Decide how many hours you want to spend on Xbox, Facebook, and Snabbare, and see how much time you have left for what really matters.
Tip #2. Keep Yourself Motivated
Lack of motivation is another hurdle dream seekers face on a daily basis. You manage to create time for your side project, but things don’t play out as you had planned, and now you are bored and want to go back to binge-watching Netflix.
The usual culprits behind mid-project demoralization include the complacency of having another job and the feeling that you are probably not good enough. Sometimes you are asking yourself why you are working even more during your free time and wondering if all the effort is worth it. These are not uncommon thoughts, but you should never give them space to bump you off. Nothing is fun all the time. Even your hobbies will bore you to death sometimes, and giving up would most likely prove to be a regrettable decision. Whenever you’re hit with the urge to abandon hope, remind yourself of how far you have come and how many steps back you will have to take. Think of the number of times you have had to shake yourself out of similar thoughts and how it always turned out to be a good idea. Remember why you chose to pursue the dream in the first place. Imagine the feeling of finally achieving it.
Anything that you reckon will help you remain focused is good for your journey. Use it to your advantage.
Tip #3. Avoid Invasive Jobs
It is never a good idea to leave your job to pursue a dream, but if the job is “invasive”, then maybe you need to change it. Many jobs require you to focus on several tasks and responsibilities at the same time, leaving you mentally occupied even after your shift. If you have that kind of job, you may never be able to execute any major side plan. The best job is one that gives you flexibility and doesn’t call for your attention outside working hours. Before getting on with your plans, assess the flexibility of your job and the effort your side-project demands. There are not many jobs out there that will give you peace of mind and good pay in the same package, but to pursue your dream you may have to learn to take the bad with the good.
Conclusion
In words of one syllable, success in pursuing your dream without compromising your job is almost entirely down to how well you manage your time and how willing you are to fight off setbacks along the way. You mental effort to stay on track is almost as important as your physical effort. Put your plans down on paper and adhere to the blueprint. Allocate 2-3 hours of your day to your project and be consistent about it. Remove fear and stress and stay motivated by reminding yourself why you took on the project in the first place. Most importantly, don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Ease yourself into the project and let things flow naturally.
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