Happy Changes for Happy Time

Not familiar with Happy Changes? Keep reading to get the scoop, otherwise skip down to start playing.

One of the secrets of making changes that stick, is starting so small that you don’t wake up the Chicken Little part of your brain. You’re setting yourself up for success, because even the tiniest of successes are encouraging (and multiply).

Yes I know, there’s also the hard part of starting small.

You want to make a change now dammit!

And that tiny step is still So. Far. Away. from what it is you really want.

I’m asking you to trust me on this.

At a minimum, you’ll get at least that tiny step closer (which you aren’t doing now) and, the much more likely scenario, it’s just the first step to getting what you really want.

And that’s the idea behind Happy Changes. A list of tiny changes you can experiment with over the next week. And beyond.

Choose one of these things, one that feels completely and utterly doable to you, even if you aren’t sure it will make a difference, and play with it this week. Let me know how it goes here, in the comments, on twitter (using the hashtag #happychanges) or Facebook.

Happy Time

In the last Happy Changes post, I played with bringing more play into my day. Doing that helped me notice something about time. When I’m looking for ways to bring fun and play into situations, time feels more elastic. Urgency, that cramped feeling of not-enough-time, fades away.

There was plenty of time for everything.

A spaciousness that was so enjoyable. And you know how much I love spaciousness.

With such a wonderful side benefit from playing, I want to play a bit more consciously with time. Here are some possibilities.

Join me:

1. Notice what you say or think about time (especially the unintentional comments).
2. If you don’t already know, pay attention to where you naturally fall along the Time Fanatic (always on time and wants others to be too) to Time Flexible (being on time is relative and not-so-important) Continuum, and whether it supports you or stresses you.
3. Stop saying “I don’t have time…” and instead respond with the truth, either a yes and when, or a loving no.
4. Tune into where you feel time in your body. What does it feel like when you are pushed for time, when you feel bored-with too much time, when you’re in the flow and time is irrelevant. Practice feeling that last one, as often as you can.
5. If you find yourself talking about being busy, grab a pen and a notebook and do some freewriting on what busy-ness means to you. Why it’s important, if it’s necessary to feel it, what it does for you.
6. Take three minutes in the morning to imagine a day with plenty of time.
7. Pretend you are the creator of time, that it’s not finite, that there is always plenty of time. Notice how that feels.
8. Share other ideas you have for happy time!

As always, choose some small way to play every day for a week or two. Remember, no expectations, other than to be curious and have fun with it!

I’d love to hear how it goes, either here in the comments, on twitter (using the hashtag #happychanges) or on the Perception Studios Facebook page.

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Check out all the past Happy Changes.

Photo credit: That my giant GPS watch on my skinny wrist.