Got A Minute?

Got A Minute?

TIME is defined as:

the indefinite continued progress of existence

If you think about it, "time" is the only thing in life we are all given equally. It doesn't discriminate. Ironically enough, it's the one thing we all complain that we don't have enough of. The reality is: time is all we have. We all get 1,400 minutes each and every day. Nobody gets any more and nobody gets any less - 1,440 minutes. That's the same amount of minutes a day that Leonardo Da Vinci had. Same for Shakespeare, Abe Lincoln, Albert Einstein, Martin Luther King Jr, and Steve Jobs. When we say things like, "I just don't have time for that", we're really turning our backs on time. We're denying its power.


So when things aren't getting done, "not enough time" is really just an excuse. It's about energy, focus, and priorities, not time. It's about organizing your day, your week...your entire life. Most people live life like they went to a movie - they sit there and hope something good happens. Meanwhile, the minutes are ticking away.

You think you're in control, but you're not. Your old habits are in control and those old habits are filled with time-wasters. You may believe you don't have time to do anything more, but take a count in a given week of how many minutes and hours are spent watching television, surfing the web, or playing on Facebook. Be honest with yourself. You would be surprised how much time you really do have available to excel and achieve all that you desire.

Break Free

We have become slaves to our calendars that are filled with appointments for lunch meetings, kids sporting events, birthday parties, etc. You manage to adjust your day according to what is in your calendar. Here's a tip: If you want to break free of your time-wasting habits in an effort to achieve more, start with making appointments with YOU.

In my calendar, these are labeled as "SI MTG" -- which stands for Self Improvement Meeting. The purpose of this meeting is to work on my strategies for personal growth. I start out each week setting these appointments in my calendar along with an agenda of what needs to be accomplished. It's important to treat each of these appointments as important as any other in your calendar. Should you need to cancel one, reschedule it. Trust me, you have the time.

Greater success in life is not about one big moment; it's about continual incremental steps toward a consistent goal. The famous people I listed above did not have one good year, they had many. They also had many years when life wasn't going well and they doubted themselves. They endured because no matter what obstacles in life they were confronted with, they found the time to keep moving forward with their vision. They chose to make the greatest possible significance in the time they were allowed, because after all... we all get the same.

Printed in The Title Examiner (MLTA's newsletter), Summer 2012