Hours can be squandered being unable to make a decision – not just life’s big decisions but all the little decisions you need to make each day. The quicker we get at decision making the more it frees us up to use that brain power for more interesting activities.

You have a full and interesting life. It is all constantly going round in your mind. Even when you have a moment to relax you can’t because there is an ongoing buzz of ‘I must remember to do this, that and the other’ in your brain. So how can you quiet this chatter and bring a little more calm to your life?

Let’s assume that you planned your day the evening before. How is it that it is still possible to get to the end of the day and not have achieved what you set out to do? Have you allowed yourself to get pulled off track by a distraction ‘just this once’ – only to find yourself falling down a rabbit hole of ‘just this once’ activities?

It is easy to get to the end of the day and wonder where it has gone. Keeping a time log for a week (or longer if you like) will help you understand where your time really goes. In the same way that tracking your bank statement helps you spend your money more thoughtfully so too can a time log help you spend your time in a more considered way.

It can be tempting to put off the weekly review but it does give you the chance to look ahead and think about what you would like to do. You can then plan to make it happen. With a little planning maybe in the coming year it won’t just be Valentine’s day that you make it out for a meal with your partner.