FTPT

Personally, I hate to break promises. I cringe when I do so. I don't like the after-feeling of breaking promises. It gets very painful for me to live with me after that.  So I typically (95%) don't break promises. It is just the fear of feeling bad i don't break it. This makes me super conscious about what I promise. I carefully choose my promises so that I don't set myself up for failure and pain. This is one of the secrets why consistency is little easier for me. In my head it rings as commitment and not as consistency.

I hate it when I snooze my alarm. It feels like i am breaking a promise to myself. I hate it when I don't follow my routines. It feels like I am cheating me and I am not respecting my words enough.  You might think how awesome it will be to be this way, let me tell you, it is not. It is just sheer torture. Period.

The flip side of this seemingly good attribute is, I get so little done because at a time I can keep up less than 3 promises only. Over promising is scary. It is a recipe for pain in my case. Given this way of life, I could not play with greed so much and i wasn't so happy about it for a long time.

An epiphany hit me 6 months ago. I created a concept called FTPT (Full-time in part-time) for myself . FTPT helped me stay committed and consistent.

The idea is simple.

If i promise myself I will write one hour a day every single day, that is 7 hour commitment in a week. If i did 7 hours/ week diligently, I call myself a full-time writer 🙈

If i promise to go for 25 mins run everyday, that is 175 mins/week. If I kept up the promise I call myself a full-time runner 😅

If I told myself i will learn 2 hours every alternate days (MWFS) that is about 8 hours/week. If i kept up 8 hours learning per week, I call myself as a full-time learner.

When we call 8 hours per day for 5 days as full-time employment, why not 8 hours per week as a full-time learner? 🤷‍♀️

It is just the play of words but it does something deep inside you. The word full-time brings in that commitment and seriousness to the table. Part-time somehow takes away that seriousness. Language matters. As a semiotics student I can't stress upon this enough.

So I have atleast 3 full-times to complete every week. I dilegently track my commitments as well. This eradicates part-time from my life. This is why I don't use the term side-hustle as well. It somehow makes it secondary in the language where as it is not in our hearts.

It is not about what others want from you but about what you want from yourself.  These simple hacks can keep you sane.

So how many FTPTs you have for yourself?
How are you keeping up your commitments?

🥂 to full-time!