In the knowing..

More than money— our time the immeasurable value that a time well spent can have in our lives is something I sometimes forget to digest. Not in the short term sense like being frustrated with myself for arriving late somewhere or still not having found the ON switch to be the kind of person who arrives more than 15 minutes early everywhere; but the managing of an important asset in our lives that can really change the trajectory of our accomplishments or dreams.

Shift from money to spend to money to manage * time to spend to time to manage

I can no longer doom scroll on social media or let it be a norm and feel good about myself. I am so entirely consumed with the possibilities of life & my enjoyment of this life to be distracted and let time spill away for nothing. I would much rather be present and have my phone tucked away in my pocket for hours on end and feel alive and in tune with everything in my life than be tuned into the endless void of distractions that social media throws at us and not be truly present where I’m at. The day dreads and my energy drains right along side it when I am not managing my time, but rather spending it. This mindset shift has really made me a better, more productive and intentional human being.

Getting to that place where I disregard whether I am feeling motivated or ready and just take the plunge at everything because the journey itself brings me so much joy and makes it all worth it. You seriously learn so much about yourself and what you’re capable of when you start to say Yes to anything that challenges you and gets you closer to your inner desires. Setbacks or failures in general already suck; but I would much rather face the ups and downs from something that I know will set me up to be happy in the long term than one that is just fulfilling needs for today. I wish more people would realize the blessings in disguise a situation can be in their life if they kept this in mind.

For those of us that have many wishes or hopes to come to life, ones that are unique to what makes you YOU— I applaud us for 1. Knowing ourselves well enough to be sure of what it is we want out of life ~ which is a strong force already on our side. And 2. Being in a space to give ourselves permission to dream large and believe it is attainable

This quote by Maya Angelou

Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it

I love who I am and would hope that many people love who they are ~ and not looking for someone or something to validate their value. Standing alone in my presence I have a time and I know it’s because of how much work I put into growing, and being kind to myself and others, and just showing up in the world as my authentic, emotional self.

Based on the quote, I am 1/3 along my destination that I won’t quite say aloud what that destination looks like or is because I’m content with the journey I’m taking to get there. I am finding ways regularly to get closer to 2/3 where I LOVE what I do. I am a first generation Ethiopian American working on building a life I can truly call my own. That in itself is a blessing and a privilege I wish for others around me. The intentionality I have in my life, the joy that honoring my hobbies and passions brings me, the constant spurs of highs I feel for reaching new goals mixed with the sometimes inevitable mistakes & growing pains are meaningful and makes me feel closer and closer to a purposeful life. I wouldn’t have it any other way.. ❤

Ways I manage my time:

• Leisure time capped at a certain amount of time or after putting in considerable effort towards important goals of mine ~used as an incentive or reward in a way

—socials capped at 1 hour ~max 2 hrs

• Curating my social media – following pages or people whose content I actually appreciate and grow from / and people who make it feel like a social media app and not what these apps have turned into

• Prioritizing checking in with myself 3x a day or as needed, meditating on my hopes for the world and for myself

• Picking up new hobbies, reading, listening to podcasts, exercising, cooking / baking, dancing, learning a language

These examples are just to name a few of the ways I am being an active participant in my growth and healing of my soul and mind. I do believe that you can lose that awe for life to believe you can conquer the world the way you did as a kid if you’re an adult lost in who you are, what you love, and how you can achieve incredible things in your life and constantly losing the most valuable thing we have: our time.

I am thankful to you for reading my words and don’t take it lightly. May your life prove to you how good it can get and may your actions you take daily make it feel possible.

Yours truly,

Ruta