Jobseeker Columnist (November 2009)

Take some “Me” time.

“You have time with colleagues in the office, and time with your family at home. So, when was the last time you had a “me” time?”

Ahhhh…. Time off sounds like a holiday doesn’t it? It sounds like time on the beach, lazing on the white sand with a cool drink and an umbrella on top. It sounds like breeze blowing to your face. It feels great to be on holiday and because people can’t reach you (or you refuse to answer their calls and emails), and it seems that all your problems are behind you.

I love holidays, in fact, I just came back from Bali. Sun, sea, sand, padi fields. Tranquil, yet exciting at the same time. By the time I came back, I was refreshed and raring to go, can’t wait to get back to business.

However, what if I tell you that it is possible to feel great and recharged every day? That you don’t have to wait for a long holiday to feel refreshed? Remember that feeling you have while on holiday? How about having that feeling everyday? Here’s how.

Take some time off every single day.

When we are too busy just going through the motions in life, we forget the one thing that is most precious. We forget “me”. You’re too busy trying to make your deadlines on time, trying to please your boss, trying to make your spouse happy, trying to keep your kids entertained, trying to put food on the table that by the time the end of the day comes, you are too tired for “me”. Let’s face it; in the scale of importance “me” is the most important thing in your life. So why is it that we spend more time pleasing others and meeting other people’s deadlines? Is it no wonder that you are stressed out, burned out, and maybe even fed up of life, perhaps asking yourself if there is more to life than this?

You might say, but I have a lot of “me” time, in fact I’m bored and I wish I had less “me” time. In which case I will define “me” time. “Me” time is not time in front of the television. “Me” time is not time on the Internet. “Me” time is not wasting hours of our time on mindless chatter with a Teh Tarik on one hand and a cigarette in another. “Me” time is time spent on growing you. On spending time that makes you a better person. “Me” time is spent on planning your life and giving it purpose. Here’s some examples of “me” time: -
•           Exercise
•           Planning your day or your week
•           Quiet time
•           Personal growth e.g. reading

Exercise may only be a few hours per week. Planning your day or week will not take more than an hour a week. Personal quiet time and reading may be only 15 minutes per day. Which, according to my calculation, is only 4% of your total weekly time.

I remember getting burned out all the time. I was such a workaholic. In fact I have a close friend who pointed out that I will burn out every 3 months, regularly too. I will work insanely hard for 2 months, and then burn out for a month. I was therefore only running on 2/3rd capacity. As of a few years ago I started deliberately spending more “me” time because I was sick and tired of getting sick and tired every 3 months. Now I deliberately take myself off work to spend “me” time and I am hardly ever sick, I’m usually raring to go every day and I have creative ideas all the time. Essentially I am running at full capacity most of the time. I am happier and therefore others around me are happier too.

In fact, Google is such a fan of “me” time that they have allocated every Friday as a “me” day where all their employees may choose to work on a project of their choosing. It is so effective that most of their current technological breakthroughs have come from their 20% “me” time policy. Talk about making more money and being more productive.

Cheers,

Edmond Yap