These days you can’t move for people returning to education, taking courses or simply walking along a path of self-improvement. Working days are getting longer, jobs are becoming more demanding and we rush around to such an extent that you have to wonder how people do it.
Evening courses, correspondence courses, weekend or weeklong seminars and one-off lectures – the choice is endless. It seems as though, as humans, we have an in-built urge to better ourselves – but does giving in to that urge have a detrimental effect on our lives?
Regardless of the method of study we choose we have to sacrifice some of our free time, whether it be an evening (or two) a week, or a few hours a day. How does that affect the way we schedule our time, and how we prioritise things? Despite all the best intentions, if you have to give up time to study, then other things will start to suffer. It might be something as trivial as missing your favourite television program, or having to tape it and then not having the time to actually watch it. It could be sacrificing your afternoon or evening of leisure, or giving up your Friday nights out. In quite a few cases, though, it seems as though people dedicate time to their studies, but end up having no time to stay in touch with friends.
It’s a horrible thing to face, you have a spare hour to yourself and you have a list of things to do that’s as long as your arm. Do you sort out your laundry and food for the day, take care of the banking and correspondence that you’ve been putting off for too long, or try and get hold of a friend and see if they’re free for a chat? Sadly the latter gets chosen far too infrequently. People try to prioritise, putting their studies quite high on the list, and when it comes to staying in touch with friends people have a tendency to be great procrastinators. ‘I’ll call so-and-so tomorrow instead’ – tomorrow turns into the day after that, which turns into the following week, and before you know it you haven’t spoken to someone for a month or more! When you do shamefacedly get in touch and apologise the response will often be ‘I’ve been meaning to ring you too, but I’ve just been so busy…’
Are we rescheduling our lives away?
We pile so much onto ourselves that a collapse seems inevitable. We work, care for our families and partners, try to better ourselves – and amidst all that we still have to worry about mundane things such as the laundry, the bills, housework and much more. Are we simply trying to do too much? We keep piling more and more onto our plates, but are loath to complain because that would imply that we’re unable to cope. What we need to realise is that there’s no shame in admitting that things are getting to be too much, that we might need a hand to keep on top of things, or that we might simply need a break. Friends are understanding, rather than rescheduling them time after time, simply tell them that you’re having trouble finding enough hours in the day, but make sure that you set a definite date to catch up. If you live with family then ask them if they can take on more of your household responsibilities until you’ve caught up with yourself – but make sure that you don’t take advantage and remain ‘busy’ just to get out of doing the laundry! Most importantly, however busy you are you should try to make time, even ten minutes, each day to remind yourself how well you’re doing, and how proud your friends and family are that you are doing what you do.
When the tide of education washes over you, ensure people know that you’re waving, not drowning.
26/02/2004 ©
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