Change your life in 15 minutes

From the outside, Louise appears to have the perfect life – she’s a prominent headhunter, who’s often offered new positions herself. She has two great children, a happy marriage to Mark and she runs marathons to raise money for charity. She seems in total control of her life, a modern-day Wonder Woman who can do no wrong. Yet when she talks about her life, there’s a dissatisfaction that doesn’t fit with the woman in front of me. “I’m great with the everyday routine of doing my work and looking after the family – what I call the middle ground – but I struggle with the really big things, and the little things in my life,” confesses Louise, 41. “I have so many little jobs that need doing, like a painting that needs hanging, getting my children’s names in their school clothes, paying a few bills, filing some reports at work and sending out thank-you letters to people who have sponsored me. They’re just a few things but I have a list of 67 – yes 67! – things that need doing at home and at work and I never get round to them. “On top of the small stuff, I also have big dreams. I want to write a book and train as a triathlete but I never get round to doing anything about them. As each year comes and goes, I remind myself that I haven’t done much swimming or cycling, and even less writing. I feel like I’m treading water most of the time, and every now and then I get in a little deeper than I should. Yet I’m doing really well at work and my kids are lovely, bright and happy.” Focus your mind According to experts, many of us, like Louise, could sort out our lives by applying the 15-minute rule – which can apply to everything, whether we’re writing a blockbuster novel, training for a 50-kilometre run or learning a new language or instrument. “Breaking your smaller jobs down into 15 minutes really focuses you,” says life coach Arvind Devalia. “Put your answerphone on, turn off the internet and the television and just focus for a quarter of an hour. You can get a lot done in 15 minutes. “It doesn’t seem like an eternity so you won’t dread your task stretching over days, and once you’ve spent 15 minutes on your job, you’ll feel as if you’ve achieved something. If you tackle something you’ve been avoiding, you’ll feel so much better for having done it. Knowing you have lots to do is a draining feeling and your energy will drop every time you think about it. But in just 15 minutes you can pay bills, file bank statements or make a couple of telephone calls that you’ve been putting off. “If you have a blog to write, you can spend 15 minutes planning it and doing an outline, then you can go back later and spend 15 minutes writing it, then maybe 15 minutes editing it and checking it. Breaking projects down into chunks makes them appear less daunting.” For many of us whose lives are already packed, finding 15-minute chunks throughout the day seems like a job in itself. How can we clear extra time when we’re already so busy? “Create the 15-minute slots,” suggests Arvind, author of Get The Life You Love. “We look at our emails for a quarter of an hour without taking any action; we sit in the waiting room at the dentist or doctor; we wait on hold on the phone for the electricity company; we queue in traffic in our cars; we surf websites reading gossip about celebrities and we sit in front of the television in the evening. “We may spend 15 minutes criticising a colleague to a friend, or complaining about our partner. The time we spend on toxic conversations could be used better elsewhere. They don’t add any value to our lives. “Always have something with you so you can put your 15 minutes to good use. If there’s a report you need to read, or a shopping list you need to make, that’s the time to do it. Have an inspirational book handy so you can dip in and out and get ideas.” And if you can’t live without your facebook or twitter time, don’t panic! Arvind recommends you apply the 15-minute rule to that too. After a quarter of an hour reading messages, close them down and go on to other things. He also suggests we unsubscribe from newsletters that we barely read any more, and we ask our friends and colleagues not to include us in emails to forward to 20 people! So if that’s the small stuff sorted, how do we apply the 15-minute rule to our big projects, the ones that are so huge they’re overwhelming? “Start each day by asking yourself what you can do in 15 minutes that may well transform your life,” says Arvind. “Remember, you can climb a mountain in 15-minute chunks! Just break it down into those quarter of an hour time slots. Read a magazine about mountain-climbing, do some research on the internet, plan some practice climbs. Then when you’re out there, do your training in 15-minute slots, one after the other.” Broad application Arvind recommends the 15-minute rule for any fitness campaign. Even a quarter of an hour of stretching exercises is valuable. Over time, you will see results and you’ll be running or cycling further in your 15 minutes. By doing a little at a time, you can suddenly achieve a lot, he says. “People talk about writers’ block but if they gave themselves 15 minutes to write two or three pages a day, they’d find their creative juices were flowing and they might just carry on and do another 15 minutes,” Arvind adds. The rule isn’t always about achieving goals and accomplishing things – it can also be used for relaxation. “Listening to our friends and family is another great use for 15 minutes and giving a child 15 minutes of undivided attention is a real treat,” he says. “If you really listen, you’ll find the quality of that conversation will be much deeper. “Try meditating for 15 minutes once or twice a day and see how much calmer and at peace you feel,” recommends Arvind. “Perk yourself up with a cup of tea and a chapter of your book, or use 15 minutes of your lunch break to go for a walk round the block and get some fresh air. It will be a quarter of an hour well spent.” 15 things you can do in 15 minutes 1. Blitz your inbox and remember to turn off your ‘receive mail’ setting while you do it, so that, for a short time at least, your inbox is at zero and you can enjoy that feeling! 2. Call two people you’ve been meaning to ring for ages – give them seven minutes of your undivided attention each. 3. Sort out paperwork. File reports, take documents to HR, and send out invoices. 4. Chat to your child about their day, then read them a bedtime story. 5. Research dance/tennis/golf/German/car-maintenance classes in your area and sign up for one. 6. Write out all the birthday cards you need to send over the next months. 7. Clear out your handbag or briefcase, and file receipts and business cards. 8. Put your photographs into an album or organise them on your computer. 9. Book all your appointments for the accountant, solicitor, doctor, dentist, vet, garage, hairdresser and beauty salon for the next month and write them in your diary. 10. Check the oil and water in your car and replenish where necessary. 11. Give football boots and other sports shoes a good clean. 12. Change all those lightbulbs and batteries that you’ve been meaning to do for ages. 13. Tidy out a drawer/cupboard/garden shed/toy box/make-up bag/bathroom cabinet. 14. Household jobs such as ironing the kids’ clothes – you can iron four pairs of trousers, four shirts and a skirt. 15. You can achieve even more if you batch your 15-minute jobs together, so when you walk the dog, you also drop a present off at your friend’s house, call in on a sick neighbour and pick up a local newsletter. Inside Info Arvind is the author of Get The Life You Love (www.GetTheLifeYouLove.com) and Personal Social Responsibility (www.PersonalSocial Responsibility.com) For details of his blog and forthcoming webinars, go to www.ArvindDevalia.com/blog