Avoid Wasting Half Your Day Before it Even Begins

"No, I don't want a computer. Why would I want one of those things? I'm not interested in staring at a stupid machine. It would probably ruin my eyes, anyway. I have too many more important things to do with my time."

Those are just a few of the arguments I used when a relative suggested that I get a computer. I had managed to get along for well over half a century without one, and I could get along without one for the next half century, thank you.

Then a friend of my daughter brought his computer over to show it off. It took a long time to set it up, and it wasn't the swiftest thing in the world. He had no idea at the time of how to connect to the internet, so the demonstration was mainly of its word processing and game playing capabilities. The computer was an old Tandy from Radio Shack.

The young man was so proud of his new marvel and couldn't wait to explain all of its features. To be honest, I wasn't as impressed with it as my husband was, but I did have to admit that word processing on it was a lot faster than on my old typewriter. I wasn't sure I would want to send a business letter out printed on a dot-matrix printer, though.

That very week, my husband started a campaign designed to convince me that we needed-not would enjoy-but needed a computer, so I reluctantly studied Consumer Guide and a bunch of other reviews until I finally began to think that maybe we did need a computer, after all.

We started looking at them in the stores and finally ended up buying an Apple IIe that came with a Daisy Wheel printer for about $1200.

I expected to spend very little time on the computer. After all, I had more important things to do with my time. But I got a huge surprise when my husband got it all set up, he was the one who didn't want to use it. In fact, all these years later, the only time he has ever even sat down in front of it is when I find a cute video or something I think he will like and plead with him to watch it. I have to show him all over again each time how to work the mouse (I think he is putting me on). Sometimes he gets bored and goes back to reading his latest mystery before even watching the whole thing. Neither of us has ever been interested in playing games although I did sign up at Pogo so I could play Poppit once in a while with my Grandson.

The computer opened a new world for me-or maybe I should say, the whole world. How I wish I had been on the internet back in my school days. I would have made mincemeat out of homework assignments. Anyway, I was soon hooked on the computer. I could keep in touch with friends online; I could get acquainted with people clear around the world; I could learn almost anything I wanted to learn-except maybe calculus; I could plan a party, get craft ideas, create greeting cards, etc. You name it, and I could probably use my computer to do it.

"But this is good, isn't it?" you might be saying. Yes, it is good, but it does have its downside. It can be a gigantic timewaster!

There are days (more days that I would like to admit) when I grab an apple for breakfast and head to the computer. Never mind that I need to do the washing, vacuum the house, go shopping, bake something for the church bazaar, etc. "I'll just take a minute or two to check my e-mail," I tell myself. I'm sure you are familiar with what happens next.

Two hours later, I have not only checked my e-mail, but have written a few of my own, checked five different blogs and made comments on a number of entries in each, looked at my Paypal balance to see if there is enough in it to buy something I want online, and followed up at least half a dozen invitations to find out how I can earn $10,000 a month working just 20 minutes a day from home.

Since I know the same thing is going to happen every single time I boot up my computer, you would think that I would do my other chores before I even touched that magical machine each day wouldn't you, but I don't. I'm addicted. And, if you are honest about it, you are probably addicted, too.

Here is the solution. It isn't painless, but it works, so, if you are frittering away so many hours on the computer each day that none of the other things that should be getting done in your life are actually getting done, give this a try.

First of all, make a list of everything you really need to do each morning before turning to your online pursuits. If you think Prayer or Bible Study should take top priority in your life, put that at the top of your list. If you have a number of routine things that should be done every single day, list them, too. I call my list, First Things First, meaning that these are the things I am determined to do before I allow myself to do anything else each day. You may wish to call yours a, Must-Do List, or something similar.

Every computer I have owned, and there have been several, has had a folder in it called the Start-Up folder. If yours isn't active, do a search and locate it. Then drag your, Must-Do List, into the folder and close it.

The next morning, when you rush to the computer to check your e-mail, guess what? Your, Must-Do List, will pop up before you have a chance to get online. That will be a stern reminder that there are a few things that need to be done before you get to do the other things you like to do. You may be tempted to click the close button on your start-up folder, but I guarantee that it will start haunting you once you get online so you might as well do the things on the list and get it over with.

Maybe this won't work for you, but it has for me. At first, it was a little annoying, but I was determined to break the habit I had developed of wasting so much time online. It is so nice now, when I do get online, to realize that my regular chores are done, and that I have actually earned the break I am taking. Try it-I think you'll like it.