5 Time management hacks that allow me to follow my passion along with my profession

You can implement these from TODAY itself!!!

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The only way to manage gym and profession together is to lift dumbbells while you are coding.

Lol! I’m kidding, don’t worry.

Hey! I’m Madhav, and I’m a software engineer. Like any other software developer, my days are often filled with coding, thinking about new features, debugging code, attending stand-ups, and meeting tight timelines.

If you’re a working professional (especially in tech), you can probably relate to the demands of today’s world — endless notifications, urgent fixes and constant pressure to stay updated with the latest technologies.

Despite this schedule, I’ve found 5 interesting things that help me manage time to get 90–100 minutes daily for my passion — powerlifting. Follow me on Instagram if you want to stalk more of my personal life: https://www.instagram.com/theleanprogrammer

See — I feel that everyone should follow a passion outside work, and not just as a recreational activity, but at a competitive level. I won’t go too much into the benefits of following a passion at a competitive level, I’ll just say that at the end of the day,

It’s one’s passion that gives some meaning to one’s life

As a song in one of my favorite movies say (I’m a huge Sylvester Stallone fan) —

So many times
It happens too fast
You trade your passion for glory
Don’t lose your grip
On the dreams of the past
You must fight just to keep them alive

So without any more delay, let me quickly jump on to the 5 hacks that help me make time for following my passion.

Hack #1 — “The Quiet Time”

Follow your passion when the world does not demand your attention.

Do a quick experiment for a couple of days, start tomorrow — note down the time you actually spend on doing focus work vs the time you spend in meetings, stand-ups, and quick calls.

You’ll immediately realise that a lot of times it’s the notifications, interruptions, and change in context due to calls and meetings that end up eating a lot of your time, preventing you from doing focus work and leaving you mentally drained (and thinking you are being very productive, while in reality you are not!)

This change in context makes it very difficult to find continuous 90 minutes of focus time to work on your passion even in a day that has 24 hours (i.e., 1440 minutes 😯)

I think you got my point now — most of the time you are not able to follow your passion not because you don’t have enough time, but because you don’t have a continuous 90–120 minute time chunk in your 24-hour day.

Now, since I write no-nonsense blogs, I’ll directly tell you the steps you need to take to find that non-interruption time chunk.

How to implement this?

1. Based on your profession and responsibilities, find out a time in your day where you are less likely to get unexpected pings, calls or meetings.
2. If it’s early morning, set an alarm accordingly and place your phone at a distance from your bed so that you cannot easily snooze it.
   If it’s evening or late at night, still create an alarm that will act like a notification telling you to drop whatever you’re doing and start working on your passion activity.
3. Prepare whatever equipment you need for your passion activity ready in your room or work table beforehand — so that you don’t have any lame excuses that preparing the equipment is going to take time and hence you’re skipping for the day.
4. If your passion activity involves going out of the home, then find the location that’s closest to your home to minimize travel time.

How did I implement these steps?

Here are a few things that I did that you can take some inspiration from:

1. Although, now I’ve moved my training time to late at night, but when I was initially starting, I decided to go to the gym in the morning. I set my alarm for 5.45 AM in the morning instead of my usual 6.30 AM.
2. I placed my phone on my study table instead of my bed so that I can’t just move my hand and snooze the alarm. Even if I had to, I’d have to walk and go to the table, the process of which would itself wake me up.
3. Prepared my gym bag before sleeping every night.
4. Prepared overnight oats for a quick pre-workout meal for enough energy. (I also used some cocoa powder since I love chocolate so much that it would instantly wake me up!)
5. I found a gym just 8 minutes drive from my home.
6. I used to carry spare clothes and took a shower at gym instead and directly head to work after my training session.

Results that you will see if you follow this:

1. You’ll experience fewer interruptions during you passion time.
2. You’ll build discipline that carries over to other areas of life as well.
3. Enjoy the satisfaction of prioritizing your passion even in a busy day.

Hack #2 — “The Power of Time Blocking”

Treat your passion like an important meeting that cannot be rescheduled.

Don’t Prioritize Your Schedule, Schedule Your Priorities

This one’s my favorite and I’ve been following this from a few years now!!

Think of your passion time as an important meeting with yourself. Block some time in your own calendar and think of it as the most urgent meeting.

You usually don’t deny even those random meetings that don’t add any value to anyone’s time, yet you don’t give enough priority to a meeting with yourself for your own passion!?

Time blocking creates a non-negotiable appointment with yourself that deserves the same respect as your work commitments.

How to implement this?

1. Block specific time (90–120 minutes) in your calendar for your passion
2. Set this time as “busy” in your work calendar
3. Turn on notifications to remind you of your commitment
4. Decline conflicting meetings during this time when possible

How did I implement these steps?

While this wasn’t required early in the morning, but later when I switched my training time to late at night, here’s what I did:

1. Created recurring calendar events labeled “Personal development” rather than just “training time”
2. Set that meeting to show as “busy” status so that it’s clear that I’m not available at that time.
3. Configured a reminder notification for it 15 mins before.
4. I sometimes even decline some non-urgent meetings if they come at the same time.
5. Used color coding in my calendar to visually distinguish passion blocks from work blocks
6. I maintain a log to document “passion metrics” weekly to track my consistency (sessions completed/scheduled).

Results that you will see if you follow this:

1. Increased accountability to your passion
2. Reduced likelihood of work expanding to fill available time
3. Greater respect from colleagues for your boundaries
4. Consistent engagement with your passion regardless of workload

Hack #3 — “The Micro-Passion and Digital Detox Approach”

Even five minutes of engagement is better than none at all.

“Small deeds done are better than great deeds planned.” — Peter Marshall

Not every passion session needs to be a full workout or game. I’ve learned that brief, focused engagements — practicing a specific skill, watching instructional videos, or even mental rehearsal — keep the flame alive when time is exceptionally tight.

Also, Reclaim the time you unconsciously give to digital distractions.

How to implement this?

1. Identify aspects of your passion that can be practiced in short bursts.
2. Use screen time tracking apps to identify your digital time on social media apps, replace it with your micro-passion activities.
3. Use app and website blockers if you feel you can’t control your internet usage.
4. Keep minimal equipment accessible at all times
5. Create a list of 5-minute passion activities
6. Use the “dead time” in your day (waiting for meetings, compiling code)

How did I implement these steps?

Simple — I used this technique to increase my knowledge.

1. I enrolled in a few courses about fitness and nutrition and kept watching the tutorials and/or doing assignments during the down time like commute time.
2. I also followed some creators on YouTube that put informational videos, and also created a playlist of some 5–10 min videos that have to be in my watch list.
3. Instead of watching social media, now I use my 5–10 minute free time chunks to watch these videos. I’m not a productivity maniac, but I genuinely find that these videos are more refreshing than mindless scrolling on social media in free time.
4. I also use app-blockers at times to force-limit my social media usage :P

Results that you will see if you follow this:

1. Discovery of “hidden” hours in your day.
2. Improved focus and presence during your passion activities.
3. Maintained connection to your passion even during the busiest periods.
4. Skill improvement through frequent, short practice sessions.

Hack #4 — “The Weekend Intensity Principle”

Use weekends for deeper immersion while maintaining weekday consistency.

“Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency.” — Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson

While daily engagement is crucial, I reserve weekends for longer, more intensive sessions for my sport. This dual approach — maintenance during the week, advancement on weekends — creates a sustainable rhythm that prevents burnout while enabling progress.

How to implement this?

1. Schedule at least one 2–3 hour session for your passion activity each weekend.
2. On weekdays, you are allowed to keep your sessions smaller, 60–90 minutes.
3. Use weekdays for consistency, and weekends for progress.
4. Alternate between different aspects of your passion on different weekends

How did I implement these steps?

For me, it was pretty simple, I use the weekend to focus on my passion without any stress.

On weekdays, I try to maintain a list of some workouts that I’ve missed, or some new training regimen that I wanted to try, and I do that on weekends.

Results that you will see if you follow this:

1. Noticeable skill improvement through dedicated practice time
2. Expanding social connections with like-minded enthusiasts
3. Deeper satisfaction from extended engagement
4. Something meaningful to look forward to throughout your work week

Hack #5 — “The Accountability Alliance”

Partner with others who will hold you responsible for showing up for your passion.

Whether it’s scheduling your passion activity with friends, joining a team, or hiring a coach, external accountability can ensure you show up even when motivation wanes.

How to implement this?

1. Find a “passion buddy” with similar interests and schedule
2. Join classes or teams with regular meeting times
3. Share your goals publicly on social media or with friends
4. Use financial commitments (paid classes, non-refundable bookings) as motivation

How do I implement these steps?

In my case, it’s simple, I sometimes workout with fellow powerlifting enthusiasts :)

Results that you will see if you follow this:

1. Significantly higher consistency in pursuing your passion
2. Reduced likelihood of canceling on yourself
3. Enhanced learning through feedback from others
4. Enriched experience through social connections

The compounding effect of “Following your passion”

What started as a personal challenge to integrate my passion for powerlifting into my busy engineering life has transformed into a lifestyle that enhances every aspect of my existence.

The benefits extend far beyond the joy of playing sports — I’ve learnt better time management, more present in various commitments (one thing at a time), and more satisfied with life overall.

Remember, you don’t have to implement all of these five strategies at once. Start with one that resonates most strongly, establish it as a habit, then gradually incorporate others. The key is consistent action, however small, that moves you closer to a life where your passion thrives alongside your profession.

Bonus Hack — Keep the passion burning!

I didn’t include this in the main list of hacks as this is not something that everyone might do, but I’ll still go ahead and suggest it anyway.

Here’s the deal — you have to be constantly reminded of what’s the most meaningful activity in your life. And here’s how I do it — On my room’s walls, I’ve pasted infinite posters of things that remind me of my sport.

This isn’t my actual wall :P This is just an AI generated image

This simple trick can help you keep your passion alive — and remind you that you need to get up and work for your passion, even when you don’t feel like.

Now your family might not allow you to spoil your room’s walls with endless posters, but hey, how about just one poster or a frame of something or someone that reminds you of your passion? How about a simple printed table mat or a sticker on your laptop?

The key is to keep your passion near you, always!

That’s it, I hope you found this article helpful. If you did, don’t forget to hit the clap button to leave some claps for this article.

If you need any help from me, don’t hesitate to reach out, I’m active on Instagram and LinkedIn -

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theleanprogrammer/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/madhavbahl/

Feel free to drop a “Hi” if you want to connect :)