Defining your sacred time

Defining your sacred time is one of the most important things you can do as part of your own self-care.

And by sacred, I’m referring to the dictionary definitions: unassailable (unquestionable) and highly valued and important.

Some categories of sacred time that you’ll want to schedule:

• Your morning ritual - for me, this is for one hour each morning before I start work. You don’t have to take one hour -- it can be 15 minutes. For me, I savor this time to pray, meditate, read, write and just “be.”
• Family time - When will you hang out with family? What is your non-negotiable hours for family? I choose to have this each evening and all day Sunday.
• Partner time - When do you have a date night or date day with your significant other? My husband and I have a date each week, without fail.

Other categories of time could be:

• Work time
• Service time
• Friend time
• Etc

You get the picture. I’ve found that when I have non-negotiable time for each activity, then I spend more time being present for the scheduled time. For example, when I’m at work, I’m not fussing over family - and when I’m with family, I’m not thinking about work. I also feel so much more organized and less scatterbrained.

When it comes to this sacred time, you have to REALLY mean that it’s sacred. That means no justifications, negotiations or questioning that time. If it’s negotiable, then it’s not sacred and it completely defies the purpose.

And as far as defending this sacred time, if anyone asks, you have an appointment (you can have an appointment with yourself in case you were wondering) - or you have family time. People understand and they’ll respect you all the more for it. For more on this, check out the "Rule of 8" and what "Taking 8" really means.

So, when are your sacred times? Write them down in your calendar - and keep them sacred.