Saturday, November 14, 2009

Paying Myself First

Wow. My last post was back in May. It's been a while since I've made time for this blog thing, but it's been a good sabbatical.  I'm reemerging on the interweb for the third time and hopefully here to stay.  I want to stay committed and vigilant, as we all know how difficult it is to be an active blogger.  My plan of posting twice a week turned into posting once a week, which then turned into not posting.  Plan failure.  But I have a new and improved plan!

One day I had a 6 AM gym session with a friend.  It changed my life.  My schedule used to look like this:
  • 9:00 AM   Wake up
  • 9:05 AM   Go to Work
  • 7:00 PM    Read blogs, Side Project Work
  • 10:00 PM  Hit the Gym
By the time I started working on my personal improvement tasks I would be tired and unfocused. I was amazed at how one morning gym session would make the rest of my day was incredible.  I felt great.  I didn't need to have 6 cups of coffee or some sugar to get through the day.  My metabolism was in overdrive.  I couldn't believe how awesome it was to start your day off with a workout.

So I changed my schedule:
  • 5:45 AM  Hit the Gym
  • 7:45 AM  Read blogs, Learn some cool stuff
  • 7:00 PM   Watch video blogs, listen to podcasts, take a break
  • 10:30 PM Sleep
Then one morning I found a blog that talked about Paying Yourself First.  What an excellent idea.  I've always struggled with spending too much at the beginning of the month or when I get my paycheck.  This is a great idea.  Pay myself first.

Light Bulb.

My updated scheduled:
  • 5:45 AM  Hit the Gym
  • 7:45 AM  Write a blog
  • 7:00 PM   Read blogs, Learn some cool stuff, Work on side projects, Watch video blogs, Listen to podcasts, Take a Break
  • 10:30 PM Sleep
So my new goal is to do some writing before I head to work.  I don't have to write a complete blog or always try to finish existing blog.  My goal is to jot down my ideas.  If I can write down what I'm thinking about I should be able to get a blog out every week.

I honestly rather do my side project hacking in the morning when I'm the freshest, but I don't have enough time between my gym session and when I need to leave for the job.  Once the tasking at work calms down a bit, I should be able to resume my Rails hacking.

A while ago I read an article by Sid Savara, Paying Myself First With My Time.  I didn't buy into it then.  How could I wake up early and start my day like that?  Crazy Talk.

_Best Idea Ever_.


    7 comments:

    dng said...

    It's amazing when you experience that moment of discovering a way to focus more on personal goals and passions. Once you figure it out it will start to go smoothly.

    I am also trying to write a blog post once a week. Figuring out what to blog about has been tough. I like your idea of writing what I'm thinking about. I'm hoping if I put something out once a week it will eventually become a habit.

    Sid Savara said...

    I know man, waking up early? Total crazy talk ;)

    I was wondering where you'd gone. I figured it was all the baseball.

    austen.ito said...

    @dng Great! I enjoy reading your blogs.

    @Sid The ATC office misses you

    Gauhar Kachchhi said...

    Hey buddy, great post... Loved it...

    Cheers!

    Sid Savara said...

    @Austen We should meet up for lunch sometime, I'll try come out over there. I'll give Ninja Sushi the 5 stars it deserves.

    aaron said...

    haha. hate to be the old person here. but this schedule will change. hopefully soon. until then, live it up. :)

    austen.ito said...

    @Gauhar: Thanks!

    @Sid: Shoots. Send a msg when you come.

    @Aaron: oh? what would make this awesome schedule change? haha.