I can't number the many times I felt aghast looking at the total hours consumed on my phone through Apple's Screen Time feature, especially when entertainment and social networking take the biggest bulk of my time. Oh gosh, Youtube videos are my biggest offender!
Over and over like a fish is ensnared by a worm so was I lured to give hours of my time in exchange for watching those clickbait titles. These videos usually last ten, fifteen, thirty minutes, but add them all up, and there goes two, three, five hours of life. What's your worm?
After losing my job, I thought I had more of that precious resource. I have more time to look after my son and focus on sharpening my skill as a wordsmith. But it proved a challenge to get rid of the time leech which kept sucking away what's valuable to me.
Curiosity always gets the best of me. My mind covets answers to the pressing questions introduced or solve baffling enigmas experts couldn't decipher or simply get entertained watching beautiful people lived luxurious lives.
Your worm may not be Youtube videos, it could be social media or drama series' or loads that appear urgent but unimportant.
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Truly, we lived in a distracted society. We are pushed here and there. Pushed in every direction. Pushed to do this or that. Pushed to watched a stranger online. Pushed to subscribe to Youtube channels. Pushed to read articles just like this. Ha! Pushed to like Facebook pages, again like mine. Or like Facebook photos so friends could win prizes. These are not bad things. They have their place.
The point is, we are not servants of our own impulse or other people's plans. Pull back. Don't let the push carry you to places where you don't want to go. How can you give meaning to your time? Imagine spending those lost hours pursuing your dreams?
If you spend two hours on Youtube, why not give thirty minutes on your goals? Three hours on social media? One hour sharpening your edge or your skillset. If you're a software programmer, you can take lessons online like Udemy or Coursera. I know a friend who does this, she's awesome! How about this woman who finished 20 Ivy League and Global University courses online?
You don't have to totally choke up your guilty pleasures but at least you don't stop working for things that give meaning to life, no matter how small the endeavor you give them per day. Because again, if you sum up all your efforts, giving time for your dreams, plodding day after day, they too compound. Until one day, you wake up realizing you've already reached your desired destination.
Wouldn't it feel amazing to know your world is a little better because you've paid the price in exchange for achieving your dreams?
