When was the last time you thought to yourself, “I have plenty of time to get everything done”?

In a world where there always seems to be more to do than time to do it, we have encountered a time famine. Time famine is a term that first emerged in the scientific literature around 1899 and refers to the universal feeling of having too much to do but not enough time to deal with those demands.

Eighty percent of working adults feel time poor. If you are one of them, you most likely experience more stress, are less productive and happy, and more likely to engage in unhealthy behaviors, eat more high calorie food, exercise less, feel more anxious and depressed, and are at a greater risk for chronic disease, migraines, gut problems, hormonal, mood, and sleep issues.

I can give you lots of tactical ways to address this perpetual feeling of a lack of time:

– Plan and prioritize
– Identify your high pay-off activities
– Audit how and where you currently spend your time to evaluate if it’s serving you
– Eat your frog

While those time management tools are helpful, they don’t address the root issue: Our perception of time. Changing our perception of time, changes our reality. If you have ever wondered why time drags by when you exercise but flies by when you hit the snooze button, you have experienced this.

You have 86,400 seconds in a day, and the way you spend those seconds is going to determine how you feel about time. How can you get some of that time back?

Here are three ways to feel more time abundant:

1. Outsource

Regardless of income level, research suggests spending money to buy time is associated with greater life satisfaction, and the negative effects of feeling stressed for time were reduced for the people who outsourced simple services like house cleaning, grocery shopping, or errand running.

Here are a few apps that will help you to outsource just about anything.

2. Experience awe

A 2012 study in the journal of Psychological Science found that looking for moments in the day where you experience awe can help you feel more time-affluent. Awe refers to the emotional response you have when you encounter an object, event, or person that is extraordinary. Research has found that genuine experiences of awe can help to alter your perception of time and boost your life satisfaction.

We take so many moments for granted that could inspire awe. Have you ever watched a hummingbird fly? According to science, they shouldn’t be able to. They can fly forward, backward, and even upside down. Hummingbirds are also the only vertebrae capable of hovering for a period of time during flight. You can observe a hummingbird and go back to staring at your phone, or you can sit in awe of this tiny modern miracle. The irony is that we rush past potential awe-inspiring moments because we feel too busy to appreciate them.

3. Stop moving

Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh said, “Don’t just do something, sit there.” We have lost the art of being still. Being in a constant state of business robs us of joy which changes our perception of time. Meditating for 3 minutes can feel like an eternity…and that’s the point. Sitting quietly, staring at nature or focusing on your breath signals safety to your brain. Learning to do this when you are feeling stressed and overwhelmed will change your perception of time and allow you to reframe the way you think about your day (and your life).

What we focus on grows. If you are focused on a lack of time, you will find all of the evidence you need to feel time poor. When you approach life from a place of scarcity, you will inevitably feel a sense of lack. Instead, what can you do to increase your sense of time abundance?

Stay brave and resilient,

Anne