Is finding time a challenge for you?  Do you feel like you give your time away, so that you never get to your own goals and priorities?

This is not an unusual situation.  It is not a character flaw.  No – it is a predicament that many struggle with, and one that, with practice, time tools, and skills, we can all conquer!

When you find yourself in a situation where others’ needs are usurping your time, take a step back and ask yourself whether you are honoring yourself and your time in the choices that you are making.

Stepping back is very helpful, in that it takes you out of reactive mode and allows you to see that you ARE making choices.  This puts the power back into your hands.

Then ask yourself, What does it mean to honor myself and my time?

First and foremost, it does NOT mean being selfish.  This is a trap that it’s easy to fall into – especially for women in our culture.

I see honoring yourself and your time as a personal responsibility.  If you do not, you will be constantly depleted and will seldom, if ever, have the internal resources to bring your best self to the situations you encounter in your life.

In order to honor yourself and your time, you need to learn how to establish, communicate, and follow through on time boundaries.

Boundaries give shape to your life, and enable you to move from where you are to where you would like to be.  Without boundaries, you simply can’t gain traction.  Your sense of self will dwindle as your feelings of frustration and overwhelm increase.

Are time boundaries a part of your repertoire as you move through your day? I’d love to hear how you are moving toward using time boundaries in your life.

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This entry was posted on Friday, December 4th, 2009 at 4:00 pm and is filed under Solo Entrepreneur Challenges, Time Management. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Coach Paula Eder, Ph.D., The Time Finder Expert, has 35 years of success helping individuals, small businesses, and solopreneurs align their time choices with their life goals and core values. Heart-based time management is her passion. Paula enjoys nothing more than working with people to recognize and help facilitate the small time choices that lead to large, life changes … because the way you use your time is the way you live your life!

If you're ready to stop feeling overwhelmed, sign up for Paula's FREE Finding Time Boundary Template at http://www.findingtime.net/ezine.html/. And for more time tips and techniques, visit Paula's Blog at http://thetimefinder.com.