Budgeting time, capacity, and energy
I became increasingly interested in finances about a year ago, especially budgeting. I have budgeted before, but my concept of budgeting was challenged dramatically when I heard a few related talks on finances from church leaders. The concept is to reorder which category we consider first when we budget. The order is:
Give generously first: dedicate a % of your income to giving (tithing is another term that Christians use) As to where to give, give to those whom you benefited from as well as people & organizations that invest resources to grow (for God’s glory).
Save a percentage of your income for emergencies.
Taxes - fulfilling our duties as citizens
Debt - paying for the decisions we have made in the past
Living expenses - a life style that meets your budget.
I am learning to take a hard and real look into our finances. Examining every income stream as well as every spending. I tracked it for a while, figured out what we are currently doing, and then I am making a small adjustment at a time to align with what we wanted at the end. As Christ followers, my wife and I strive to be “cheerful givers,” and to us, that means we are dedicating a portion of our income to giving before we spend it on anything else. Our hope is that portion grows over time.
The revelation came in one of my coaching sessions that I could apply similar principles to my time. I have a finite amount of time. Everyone has the same amount of time; just like money, I can choose where I spend it. Along with that, I have also realized that my mental and physical capacity is limited. I needed sleep to regain my energy and processes to automate some things I am currently doing to do more. Then there is energy, and by that, I mean social energy. I am an introvert, meaning I gain energy when alone. When I am in a social setting, I am spending my energy. I am more positive, enthusiastic, and cheerful when I have more energy. I am more pessimistic, grumpy, and angry when I have less energy.
If God commanded his followers to love one another, I needed to spend my time increasing my capacity and energy not just to love others but to love them well.
So I did some research on myself, and here are some of my findings:
I have 24 hours per day.
I am the sharpest between 8 am-12 pm, and My focus slowly drops from 12 pm to 6 pm.
My mood, which impacts my energy, is generally better about an hour after I eat, and my energy sustains for about 3 hours before I need to do something to bring it back up.
If I do a workout between 4 pm to 6 pm for about 30-45 minutes, my capacity and energy level increase and sustain until about 9 pm.
So based on that data, I have created a rough draft of my time budget.
I am prioritizing activities that will increase my energy and capacity from 8 am - to 12 pm. These activities include journaling, Bible studying, reading, prayer, working on puzzle-like projects, and detailed planning.
Then I engage in activities that are more taxing in the early afternoon, like group meetings, 1 on 1 meetings, read and answering emails and messages,
I try to leave my office between 4 pm-5 pm, so I can get home and work out before dinner. I can engage in activities that are calmer such as going on a walk with my wife, going on a date with my wife, reading, journaling, writing, or working on household projects.
The first baby step in implementing this plan is to block off available mornings moving forward for the tasks I described above. Then I blocked any available 4-6 pm for traveling & work out.
I am keeping a journal and planning to try this first step for 2 months. I will reflect on it and tweak it if needed. I am curious about what will happen.
After a week of trying, I could spend 9 hours total on activities that increased my energy and capacity. I feel slightly better already. So I am excited to see where this journey takes me.
