How to Live a Full Life: Integrating Productivity + Creativity + Self-Reflection | Tim Ferriss

One reader asked Tim Ferris how he incorporates the different facets into his life:

• being creative,
• getting stuff done, and
• finding time for self-reflection and contemplation,

considering that we all only have 24 hours in a day, and each endeavour can take your full attention.

Tim answers that you will never find balance. You have to create balance. You have to schedule it in your calendar in advance to cover these bases in your daily, weekly, or monthly life.

You have to put what you want to do on the calendar. If you don't, it's not real and you are not going to find balance. You have to fight every lesser tendency by putting it into the calendar.

This is the only way to integrate various parts into your life. If they are not in your calendar, it's not going to work. You will neglect important areas and pay the consequences in the long run. 

The cost of daily switching between activities is extremely high and may not work very well.

• Instead, block out a day where you batch the productive things such as recording videos or phone calls with your team. Then try and cover the artistic and self-reflection on other days.
• On a quarterly basis, you can also block off a week for creative endeavours. 
• Prebook a time off where you get to unplug.

Whichever way you do it, stay consistent.