“For a long time it seemed to me that real life was about to begin, but there was always some obstacle in the way.
Something had to be got through first, some unfinished business; time still to be served, a debt to be paid. Then life would begin.
At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life.”
Bette Howland
Think about the things that you feel matter most in your life
Think about the people you care about most, the goals dearest to you – the dreams that you perhaps have kept deep inside, some perhaps waiting for “someday” when you will have more time to focus on them.
…When obligations pass, when you get through whatever “thing” is going on right now.
However, I want to challenge you to think very hard about whether you really are “temporarily” putting some of those things on hold – or if these current obligations, these current “distractions” are actually becoming your life… because I have been there in my life myself.
My Epiphany – There Is No “Other” Things In Life
When I took a hard look at my life, I decided there were no “other” things I was doing in my life.
It’s not like I have a separate bucket of time for “other” tasks.
All I have is one life, filled with the same hours, minutes and seconds – and the time passes, no matter what I am spending it on.
I said to myself – Sid, everything you do IS what you are doing with your life.
So if you are working on a project, if you a leading a team, if you are working with a client, if you are taking a few hours to help your mom or dad on a spreadsheet …. make it matter, do what you feel is important.
If you are taking an online class or listening to audiobooks or whatever the case may be after the normal daily work is done, don’t do it because you are trying to “keep up” with everyone else, or because you feel you “should” do it – make it matter to you, or let it go!
Make everything you do (within reason) consistent with the type of person you want to be.
Ultimately that’s how you make the most of your time.
You can’t be doing a thousand “other” things all the time.
Be all in.
Do the things that define you.
Spend Your Time Doing What Matters
And lest you think I mean be always stressed, always going, always “producing” – take a step back.
I don’t mean you need to always be plowing ahead and working on what you “should” do to impress somebody, or to always be trying to build a legacy.
Just be intentional about what you are doing – and make sure what you do is what matters to you, and not a life filled with “other” things that really don’t.
“Start living now.
Stop saving the good china for that special occasion.
Stop withholding your love until that special person materializes.
Every day you are alive is a special occasion.”
Mary Manin Morrissey