How to Live with Purpose
On the weekend I had three gigs, catered a breakfast meeting for 35 people (beautiful volunteers that I lead), had a playdate, did grocery shopping, and spent time with my family. It might sound busy, but it felt easy. I put it down to knowing your purpose, prioritising and setting goals. My life purpose is to set up the generations by raising a family that is healthy mentally, emotionally, physically, spiritually and financially, and to make a difference through my music.
My priorities in order and a few goals:
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Hubby- stay happily married forever, model a healthy relationship to kids.
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Kids- to teach them how to run a household independently by the time they are teenagers, raise them to be responsible adults, financially literate kids.
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Music/business- raise $20K for a Child Rescue Centre in Cambodia, earn money from gigs to cover costs and provide for my family, etc.
Time spent on weekend:
1. Hubby- spent time together.
2. Kids- had a playdate with a friend, we played Guess Who, read stories, grocery shopping, library.
3. Music/business- three gigs, breakfast for volunteers, writing blogs!
I only spent time on the weekend doing things that served my purpose, and helped me to reach my goals. So know what your purpose is, what order your priorities are in, and set some goals within those. Then spend your time doing things that will help you to achieve your goals.This means saying NO to all of those things that don’t serve my purpose, even seemingly good things. Your time is like your money- it is yours to spend as you wish. You don’t have to justify to others how you spend your money, and it should be the same with your time. People feel bad saying no because they like to please others. I don’t want my tombstone to say, “Lived a life that pleased others.” NO! I want it to say, “Raised a wonderful family and made a positive influence in the world through music.” Just like the Boundaries book says, you need to be free to say no, so that you can be free to say yes!
We run our home with systems. They’re not written down, but we run on autopilot. We save time at home with our family by having the same meals every week, having our kids in a routine, and by teaching our kids to be independent. I save time doing music by doing my hair/make up the same (takes 5 minutes all up), wearing the same 10 outfits (takes 1 minute to get dressed), using the same equipment and having a checklist. So when it comes time for me to do a gig, I know: what we’re eating, what clothes/make up I’m wearing, what equipment I need, etc. It’s like McDonald’s with all their systems but at home!
My kids organise their school uniforms the day before and get their shoes and bags ready. When the 7am alarm goes it’s time to start getting ready. My kids make their own lunches. Even my five year old can chop her own fruit. If I haven’t had time to make bread the night before, my 10 year old daughter makes it in the morning. They sort out breakfast. They brush teeth, style hair, moisturise and put sun cream on themselves. When the 7:30am goes they have 10 minutes to go before they should be completely ready. The 7:40am alarm lets them know they should be ready. The 7:45am alarm lets them know to get in the car. The 7:50am alarm tells me to drive them to the bus stop. The school bus comes at 7:55am. During this time, I can get ready for my day, and I’m floating around if anyone needs assistance. We all chip in to get my two year old ready. It is so important to teach kids independence!
I only get one life so I want to make sure I spend it doing what I want to be doing! No time for pleasing others or worrying about what people think. It’s your life, so live it the way you want to! Are you living with purpose?