Recently I have been attending a bi-weekly online workshop. Nothing fancy, just a bunch of writers who get on a call and our “leader” sets her phone timer for twenty minutes. For that amount of time we write, then we have a five minute break. We will repeat that pattern two more times. What is amazing is how much work can be done in those simple twenty minute sessions.

For many years, I have been a proponent for using timers. I have used them when I had a specific home project to do or when I have had a deadline. But to use it as a general practice in my day-to-day, I’ve have never done so. Frankly, I had forgotten all about the efficiency of timers. This last year I was so caught up in the tyranny of the urgent in this home remodel that I didn’t have a chance to do much. In using the timer during this workshop month, gave me permission to say to myself this is important. You need to ‘pay yourself’ first with the writing work that you are doing.

One thing I have noticed, especially among fellow writers whom I have met at various workshops, is the lack of getting our backside into a chair. We will do everything else possible than sitting down and writing, yet the writing is what we love and what we want to do. By building the habit, twenty minutes at a time, we are better suited to focus on what we need to do.

The simple idea of twenty minutes had me wondering what other simple activities can/should we do? Some ideas might be twenty minutes of a one-time activity that needs to be done (I am thinking of tackling my desk “junk” drawer) but others might be twenty minute activities that can turn into a habit or a learned skill (returning to piano practice). There is no end to what one can do for twenty minutes, just our limited imaginations. The common denominator is that it is an action that is simple and doesn’t require scads of time.

Part of the beauty of the twenty minute task is that by establishing something simple into our lives, it can become a habit. For years it has been toted that it takes twenty-one days to produce a habit. Lately there seems to be more information out there for introducing a habit through thirty days: at least those thirty-day challenges (perhaps it is easier to be more monthly based?) Again, it is a matter of simply choosing one thing that you might want to do and try it for thirty days.

The other beauty of the twenty minute task is that it can quickly eliminate the nagging task that we keep putting off. It might take a week of daily, twenty-minute increments, but most likely I will be able to scratch off sorting out my desk drawers from my to-do list.

While we are getting ready for the busy months of the holidays, perhaps now is the time to incorporate some of those habits/behaviors that, come the new year you wished you had done/incorporated? Then you will either have the habit already established during the busy months or have completed items that you have always wanted to finish. (In starting before the traditional new year’s, it reminds me of a family friend, who used to say she would try to lose weight before she went on vacation/holiday knowing that during the holiday she would most likely gain weight. This way, she determined that she would break even with her weight.)

What about you? Have you ever used a timer? For what? Was it to aid in accomplishing a goal? Did that happen? What could you do for twenty minutes each day- something you might want to learn or a behavior you might want to incorporate?

Some Ideas For Twenty Minutes:

Learn a language
Practice an instrument
Work on artistic endeavor
Take a walk
Do specific exercises: abs; arms; stretches
Clean out/tidy a drawer, closet, or storage shelves
Write in your journal
Read
Play with your kids/dogs/cats
Tend to your garden
Pray and meditate on the Bible

As with so much in life, little things add up to bigger ones. Twenty minutes here and there can add up to many hours of accomplishments.