This post came about after I noticed I really haven’t been too active here lately and it made me realize I need to take more time for myself and for my beloved reef tank. Plenty of psychologists, therapists and life coaches know that it is extremely important to take quality time for yourself linking it to happiness, less stress and increased productivity. I’ve noticed I’ve spread myself pretty thin in a lot of areas and that’s not always a good feeling. I know my home life and tank has suffered a little bit and I’m hoping to get that all in check.

There are plenty of things to lay blame on: crazy work schedules, helping my friend move his reef shop to a new location, being too tired at night, my new writing commitment at Reef Builders, and a bunch of other things.I think we’ve all been here at one time or another where we lose the balance of things and everything gets a little attention but definitely not enough to make any area happy and content. What I always relied on in the hobby going back to my youth and my first aquarium was the opportunity and love I had to just chill in front of the tank and relax, get lost in the underwater world the aquarium offered.

When life gets too hectic, I find myself less and less taking the time to sit back and enjoy the system I spent so much blood, sweat and tears putting together. I love to tinker around but sometimes just a glass cleaning becomes the most daunting of tasks and I begin to notice little adjustments I’d hoped to have made six months ago are still on the to do list. In fact there is NO to do list!

I’m using this post to try and motivate myself and provide some accountability to myself and my tank upkeep. There are some really good things happening for me in my life, I just need to learn to not only take time for myself but take quality, productive time for myself. I’m getting the great opportunity to test out a new skimmer by Grey Seas Aquatics that will most likely mean I will HAVE to get under the tank and take care of a few things around my sump so I might as well take a hard look at things that need to get done down there and get it rocking and rolling.

You might think of all the time we think we spend on the hobby. We post on a few forums and are constantly “checking in” to see what’s new. We read wonderful blogs (like this one!), feed our fish, clean the glass, etc., but are we just spending time or taking quality time to really enjoy our tanks and make sure they are operating the best they can be to make your aqua-pets happy (don’t forget we have living things we are taking care of–don’t they deserve the best too?).

So here are some things I’m going to try and implement in my life to see if it will make a difference. I could probably go on and on with more great things to do but I want to start small. If you have any ideas or tips that work for you, chime in on the comments!

• Track your time: I really hate tracking my time for work and personal life but maybe keeping a simple log of your day will help ID areas where you can consolidate or eliminate things. It will also probably give you a better understanding of your daily routine and what days or times are best to take you time. We all love hitting the boards looking for new ideas, corals and fish, and to check up on our fellow reefers trials and tribulations but maybe taking some of that time and applying it to your tank and yourself would help.
• Identify and track your maintenance: Plenty of really smart people have helped this hobby out and there is no shortage of maintenance schedule “cheat sheets” out there to help you out. Take one of these and then think about your tank and your needs and try to stick with it. Spread out the load so you’re not taking every second Saturday of the month to tackle it all. This will also make it feel less like “work.” Use calendar alerts on your phone or email client to remind you to do things like make up new saltwater, set a schedule to order new light bulbs, etc.
• Take 15 minutes for just you and your tank: Pull up your chair, drop in some food and just sit and watch your tank for 15 minutes each day. You might have to sit on your hands to resist the urge to “tinker” but do it. Don’t stress about not liking your rockwork, this is time to enjoy what is going RIGHT! Not only is this a great way to enjoy your hard work but it is also thereputic and a great way to de-stress. Make the time and make it just about your tank and enjoying the beauty even in your worst hair algae outbreak. Ask your family to give you that quiet time with no distractions and don’t let your mind wander to work or anything else…..enjoy and savor it!
• Take time for family and friends: I know I have phone calls to distant family and friends to catch up on as well as making better use of family time at home. We tend to have lots of things to do around the hobby and is a great fellowship but take the time for your non-reefers too. Something I’m really horrible at is making that quality time at home or getting out of the house and doing something fun. I know the better I do that, the more willing they are to let me spend time around the hobby and actually brings them closer to the hobby.