Have you ever felt that the days that you went through seemed to keep repeating themselves, even though in fact the time was still rolling into the future? If you feel stuck in the same routine, you can learn to get out of the loop. Let's learn how to take time out of a hectic schedule, and introduce yourself to a little spontaneity in life.
Step
Part 1 of 2: Taking Time
Step 1. Stop planning every minute of your life
Spontaneity is best achieved when you don't have a planned goal or the end of an experience you're trying to go through. If you want to be more spontaneous, make things easier for you by reducing planning too much. There are no rules that govern how you should live in this world.
Want to go to the beach to have fun with friends? No need to plan it in detail down to the minute. What will you eat later? Who will drive? What will you wear? Worry about everything as it happens. Don't worry too much about having to plan every detail of an experience
Step 2. Remove unnecessary responsibilities in your life
To be more spontaneous, you need to have plenty of time on your hands to be able to do a lot of unplanned and impulsive things. You can start by looking at your daily routine and eliminating anything you don't need. People, responsibilities, and activities in your life that don't matter? Delete them all.
- Try to think of all the things you normally do, even if you can't remove them from your routine. Writing everything down can help you remember and visualize your schedule, if your schedule is very busy.
- Obviously, if you have a hobby, activity, or club that you really enjoy, quitting is a bad idea. Use common sense to decide what to throw away.
Step 3. Try to imagine what you like, and what you really are
Imagine your ideal day, a day that is completely free and you can do whatever you want to do. What are those activities? Go to the beach and swim? Play basketball with friends? Relaxing with a good book and a cold drink on the patio? Playing guitar on stage? Imagine your ideal life.
What makes you happy in this world? What are some moments in your life that you remember, that hold memories of when you were very happy, or very relaxed? Try to keep the memory in your mind and make it a priority in life
Step 4. Find out what's standing in your way
What's holding you back from living with the spontaneity you might want to live? Are you afraid to step out of your current routine? Does your job require you to sit at a computer or office all the time, and not give you the free time you want? Are you stuck in a relationship that has no way out?
Once you know what's holding you back from living the way you want to, try to make a change. Remove anything that is preventing you from being spontaneous from your life
Step 5. Separate free time and work time
If you want to manage your time effectively, you must complete the work within the time you have specifically allocated for work. Try to reorganize your routine so that you have at least one day a week that is free of many appointments or commitments. This is great because you can get up in the morning and decide what you want to do that day on impulse.
Most people should have some kind of schedule that governs their daily lives. Even if you want to be spontaneous, it's important to have some ideas about what you're going to do when you wake up, or you'll end up spending time indecisive
Step 6. Make your own decisions
Who is in control of your life? We too often let our friends decide and decide things. If you always leave it to your friends to make plans that involve you, it may be because you are "friendly," but it may also be because you are letting other people make the decisions for you. Form your own opinion and stick to yours.
- Try an experiment. Next time, voice a firm opinion when you're trying to make decisions for the group, rather than just letting yourself "go with the flow." Even if you don't really care about where you'll be meeting friends for dinner, try picking a place and stick to it. Maybe you will feel good about it.
- At the same time, getting carried away is an important part of being spontaneous. Try not to get too hung up on small decisions.
Part 2 of 2: Opening Yourself to Acting on Impulses
Step 1. Meet new people
Tired of the usual old friends? If you need a change, try to hang out with a variety of different people and meet lots of people. Don't just hang out with one social group, but switch between many different groups to build a broad social network.
- If you go to school, don't just make friends with the people in your class. Try to sit next to new people every day at lunch. Make friends with school athletes, smart people, and art people. Make friends with lots of people.
- Every time you go out, think of it as an opportunity to meet new people and make friends with people who might have the potential to change your life. When waiting in line, don't just stand still but talk to the person in front or behind you and find out what their life is like. Reach them.
Step 2. Try something you think you won't like
Mysterious things can be intimidating. If you've never tried a certain food, or you've never visited a certain place, doing it for the first time can be scary. But once you start exploring further, you'll probably be more thirsty for lots of new activities.
- Try a new food out once a week. Cook something from a cookbook whose ingredients you've never fully heard of, or head to a restaurant you've never tried before. Just try it.
- Try an activity, hobby, book, or movie that you're not sure you'll like. Explore something weird or complicated for fun. Maybe you will like it.
Step 3. Say more “yes”
Do you want to try sushi? Do you want to go to a baseball game? Would you like to take swimming lessons? Why not! Certain! Of course! If we are given an opportunity, we too often find excuses to say "no". If an opportunity looks good and fun, try to find a way to do it, even if you're not sure it can be done in between your busy schedule or plans.
You don't always have to agree to do things you don't want to do or don't like, but it's a good idea to be open-minded enough to try something
Step 4. Stay away from cell phones
Want to open yourself up to more spontaneous experiences? Take your eyes off your cell phone and look around. Often times we are stuck in a routine of reading and replying to e-mails when we go out for a walk, or too focused on listening to some podcasts when we go or come home from work. Direct your attention to the present you are in and do what you are doing. Stop doing multiple jobs at once and stay away from cell phones.
- If you feel too dependent on your mobile phone, change the setting to silent mode. You can rely on voicemail, and people can leave you messages in case of an emergency.
- Turn off all notifications except the most important ones. Does your phone need to ring if someone sends you a message on Facebook? Or if someone retweets you?
Step 5. Change your route daily
Does your life have an autopilot setting? If so, you can replace it. You may decide to walk or drive a different road to work or wherever you are going today. Although the other route will take five minutes longer than the other route, what difference does it make? Enjoy the new route or way of traveling as much as possible.
Do you usually drive? Try to take public transportation, or ride a bicycle. Explore different ways to get to your destination
Step 6. Do one new thing every day
You can decide right on the spot what tea you choose. You may decide to go see a new movie or even go to the cinema on a weekday, but make sure you don't sleep too late.
Re-do something you used to love but had stopped to develop a new hobby. Do you like reading comic books? Continue
Step 7. Make a sensible spontaneous decision
Being spontaneous doesn't mean you can do reckless or dangerous things. Being spontaneous is also not an excuse to consume alcohol, drugs, or cigarettes. Make smart, learned decisions if you want to take control of your spontaneous life.
Warning
- Some people may try to make things difficult for you.
- Don't behave in this way too often in public – you could be arrested.
- You can lose some friends.
- If you go crazy or get caught, it's not my fault if you're not careful!
