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Having a creative hobby whether it is scrap booking, knitting, sewing or painting is not only fun, but can offer you many additional benefits. A creative outlet is a great stress reliever, a self-esteem booster and a way socialize and make friends. Making the time to pursue your creative interest, however, can be a challenge in and of itself. It's hard to justify working on a new quilt when you have a mountain of dirty laundry, a deadline at working coming up and cupcakes to make for your child's school party. But, if you don't make time for your creative hobby, you will quite simply never get around to it and will never reap the benefits. Here are seven great ways to make time for your creative hobby:
1. Schedule a block of time in your week for your hobby. Write the time block in your calendar or enter it into your PDA and commit to keeping that appointment.
2. Designate a place in your home which is devoted to your projects. If can be quite a deterrent knowing you have to get out all of your supplies and then clean them up every time you want to work on your project. If space in your home is limited, perhaps you could set up a small area in the basement, a closet or a small corner of your house for your projects.
3. Make a hobby date with a friend. If you set an appointment to work on your hobbies together, it will be harder for you to "blow-off" your creative time for that bathroom that's begging to be cleaned--not to mention, this is a great time to catch up with a friend.
4. Create a project plan.
If you have a big project to do like putting together a scrapbook that details the first year of your child's life, develop a project plan for yourself, just like you would for any other big project. Break the whole project into a series of small steps. Focus on one step at a time.
5. Create a craft area for your child. If you have a hard time working on your projects because your child always wants to "help", give him/her an area in which to work (near you) and their own supplies to use. Encourage them to explore their own creativity and create their own beautiful projects.
6. Have a creativity party. Invite a group of friends over for a party in which you can all work on your projects for a block of time. Give the party a theme (e.g. a Mexican Fiesta) and ask everyone to bring a dish to pass which goes along with the theme. Not only will you make time for your project and time to visit with your friends, you may also be inspired by your friends' creativity.
7. Barter time with a friend or neighbor. Do you have a friend who also has a creative hobby? Perhaps she could watch your kids for two hours while you work on your hobby and vice versa.
Sometimes making time for creativity takes a little creative planning. The benefits you will reap from this time are certainly well worth it! Make time for creativity today!
This article is by Kristine Lewis from http://www.anorganized-life.com. An Organized Life provides tools, information and coaching to help people live and work better today by getting organized. Subscribe to our FREE weekly newsletter; it is chock-full of organization and time management tips you can apply to your life.
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