Plain Advice

An interesting thing has happened in the past few months. I stopped watching TV. I have never been the type of person to spend excessive amounts of time in front of the tube, but I definitely had my favorite shows that I was loyal to every week (namely, Prison Break and 24…now that is what I call good TV!). And at night, as I fell asleep, there were certain “wind down” shows that helped me sink into a peaceful slumber (think “Everybody Loves Raymond, King of Queens… you get the picture).

But those days are gone.

My departure from television was never something I intended to do. I never even gave my TV habits a second thought. I found watching it to be relaxing. Because I didn’t watch excessively, I never felt bad about taking the time to view my favorite shows.

Six weeks ago, I went from working 20 hours a week at my job to 40. On the surface, that could do a lot of the explaining about my lack of TV in the past two months. The fact that the new shows are on reruns all summer could also have something to do with it. But neither of those are the real reason I have stopped watching.

About 8 weeks ago, I started this website. Along with this site, a part of me came out from hiding that I had forgotten was there. I reconnected with many things that I feel fervent about. In addition to reconnecting with these passions, I discovered that the internet is a practical medium for disseminating the ideas and principles I feel so strongly about. And, lucky me… I discovered that I actually enjoy writing! And I am pretty good at it too.

People have asked how I find time to write on this blog when I have so many other things to do in day. My answer to them is that you find time to do things you want to do. You become willing to sacrifice those things that don’t bring you the same level of satisfaction. For me that has been television.

I don’t know how long my separation from TV will last. If it’s forever, that’s really OK with me. I have a feeling that I am going to keep blogging for a very long time because of what I gain from doing so. Which is, by the way, a little money, but a huge amount of personal satisfaction. If big money ever does come along as a result of blogging, it will just be a nice bonus because I love doing it so much. Imagine, making lots of money doing something you would do for free anyway! Well, maybe someday…

So what’s my point? Well, first let me say what it’s not. I am not trying to convince you to stop watching television. I am also not out to recruit you to start blogging. What I am trying to get across to you is to find something to do in life that you feel passionate about. It’s really wonderful to have something to think about and build and work on that you love to do. The other things that are sucking away your time with little to show for it will naturally decrease in priority. And you will be much happier!

Today I was driving along, and I realized how much I love my life right now! Of course, it is not perfect. I have weight to lose. I have bills to pay. I have a messy house today and sometimes I feel like I am getting it all wrong as a parent. But I love my husband. I love my kids. I love my job (what am I, crazy?). And I love writing about how to solve problems, how to live better, and how to find solutions to all things negative in life.

Are you happy? Are you doing things in your life that feel positive and rewarding? Is the way you spend your time worthwhile? If you answered no to any of these questions, challenge yourself to find ways to alter things so you can answer yes to them. If you did answer yes, great! Keep living life to the fullest!

Thanks for stopping by… hope to see you back soon!

And please, share your experiences with the ideas in this article by leaving a comment!

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This entry was posted on Sunday, July 22nd, 2007 at 8:17 pm and is filed under Personal Development. 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.