How to free up more time for your puppy (Photo: woman wearing a watch and holding a puppy.)
Time. None of us have enough of it. Medical experts tell us we need to free up more time for self care. We scrounge around each day searching for enough time to fit in work, kids, groceries, weeding the garden, and chasing dust bunnies with the vacuum. We’re exhausted.
And then we add a puppy.
Phew! We’re up at 2 AM for a pee break. We have trouble falling back to sleep. When we finally nod off, it’s 5 AM and the puppy needs to poop. And she’s hungry. And wants to play. And refuses to settle back down in her crate so that we can go back to bed.
It’s exhausting.
This exhausting. (Photo: an exhausted woman lies in bed.)
There is no coffee mug large enough to escape the amount of tired that having a puppy brings.
That’s a step in the right direction. (Photo of a very large coffee mug that reads: It’s coffee o’clock.)
This week, I’m going to give you an insanely valuable gift: the gift of time. I learned this tip from the Godfather of Time himself, Craig Ballantyne. If you want to survive puppyhood, follow this ONE tip and you’ll get more sleep, feel better, and have more time to enjoy the little things (which of course, translates to more time with your puppy!)
This tip is so EASY, that anyone can do it.
I’m going to gift you some time. (Photo: hands holding up a large alarm clock.)
This week, I'm giving you permission to go to bed ten minutes early. Set an alarm clock for this if you need to (no, I’m not joking.) When that alarm clock goes off, your phone gets turned off and your puppy goes outside for a potty break.
Tomorrow, you’re going to wake up ten minutes earlier than you normally would. If you like hitting snooze, put your phone far enough away that you can’t turn it off in your sleep.
When you wake up, you’re going to throw on a baseball cap and walk your puppy before you eat your breakfast. You’re going to see a sunrise. You’re going to listen to the birds. Maybe, just maybe — you’ll even leave your phone at home. This time is for you and your puppy. This morning walk is going to set you up for an incredible relationship with your new best friend.
Begin each day with a walk in nature with your dog. (Photo: person walking a dog on the beach at sunrise.)
You may be thinking — ten minutes isn’t enough time.
But it’s a start. All you need to begin making changes is a nudge. A single step. So, start with ten minutes and then slowly increase it to twenty. And then thirty. Most people go to bed far too late anyway. Humans require eight hours of sleep, but everyone loves to argue about needing less. It’s science. Stop arguing with science.
Before you know it, you’ll enjoy better moods, get more done in a day than ever before, and have way more patience for your new puppy (trust me: you’re gonna need it.)
Enjoy this newfound time. Post in the comments about your progress.
Have an incredible weekend, Dog Leaders!
Alyssa
Photos by: Anthony Tran (woman wearing a watch and holding a puppy,) Katherine Fleitas (coffee mug that reads: It’s coffee o’clock,) Yuris Alhumaydy (an exhausted woman lies in bed,) Malvestida Magazine (hands holding up an alarm clock,) and Rufus O’Dea (person walking a dog on the beach at sunrise.)