You don't care about your time.
If you did, you wouldn't waste it.
"But, what do you mean? I don't waste my time."
Yes, you do. Most people don't consciously pay attention to it. Why? Because it is easier to avoid things than actively change them.
Still don't think so? Here is an example...
It is 10 PM. You are getting ready for bed. As you go through your nightly routine, you think about what tomorrow will bring. "Tomorrow will be better. I am going to start tomorrow. It's going to be great." These thoughts bring you excitement for the morning to come.
It is 7 AM. Your alarm (on your phone) goes off. Beep! Beep! Beep! You roll over and turn it off with excitement. After all, you were excited the night before. But wait...that was last night. As you swipe away your alarm, you open your favorite social media app.
You come back to reality. It's now 7:30 AM. You spent 30 minutes scrolling through other people's lives. As you roll out of bed, irritated that you wasted more time, you walk outside for some fresh air. You stand there, admiring nature, showing gratitude for another opportunity to improve. You walk back inside to get your coffee, open your computer, and get to work.
As you begin to labor through your emails and task list, you take a break to check Twitter (X). After all, part of your job is to do so. Immediately, you come across a tweet that intrigues you. You click on it and start reading the comments. Becoming more invested, you attempt to architect a reply. You allow it to consume your thoughts. You come back to reality and realize you just spent 45 minutes on this one tweet.
Once again, you get back to work, slightly frustrated with yourself. Then, an hour goes by and you get a phone call from a friend. You love talking about current events with this person. So, naturally, where does the conversation go? Politics. News articles. Sports. Solving all the world's problems, you talk to your friend for over an hour.
The lunch hour quickly presents itself. You heat up some leftovers. Sit down and...open your laptop or phone to your favorite social media app. You eat and scroll. Eat and scroll. Eat and...oh sh*t - another hour just went by. You immediately get up and get back to work.
You get to the end of your work day, not accomplishing your tasks. Fine. It is time to get a good workout in. But that lunch...it was heavy. The coffee has worn off. The carbs have set in and you're tired. Plus, you're a bit sore from the workout two days before. You decide to go on a longer walk today instead. You get home from your walk, which you cut short because it is dinner time. You get through with making dinner, sit down at your table, and...turn your TV on. Why not? The day was exhausting.
You finish eating. Clean up. Take a shower. Grab a book, sit down on your couch to read, and turn the TV on again. Your book finds the crease of the couch. Your hands find some snacks. You get locked into the entertaining, speaking box that sits in front of you. You snap back to reality, and realize it is 10 PM, and you need to get ready for bed. As you drift into the bathroom, you start to think (again) about your day. What you accomplished, what you need to do tomorrow, and how you will do it differently.
The cycle continues...
You don't care about your time.
You care about thinking about caring about your time.
Your thoughts do not count as action. Your thoughts are just that, thoughts. Floating around your ether. But, until you intentionally turn a thought into an action it remains lifeless. The change you constantly seek will forever outrun you IF you don't take the time to change. The time you waste on fruitless thoughts, tasks, and actions is time lost. Time spent out of your daily allowance in which you are depositing nothing of value.
If you TRULY want to change, you must make a conscious effort DAILY. You must care about how you spend your time. You must be aware of how you spend your time. You must actively adjust how you spend your time. You must follow through with the promises you make to yourself. You must take accountability for where you are and where you want to go.
How to start:
- Spend less time on your phone, laptop, TV, etc. for leisure. Set a timer. When it goes off, get off.
- Make a list of three things you want to accomplish tomorrow. Wake up and do them.
- When you make promises to yourself, keep them. No exceptions.
- When you get an urge to waste time, get up and walk. Replace a bad habit, thought, or system with a good one.
- Don't dwell on time lost. You can't waste more time beating yourself up. Focus on how you will move forward, progress, and evolve.
This is not written as an attack on you. This is written to serve as a reminder to you, us, and everyone else - your time is limited. Don't waste it on a screen, in the past, or in your head.
Carpe Diem - Seize the day!
Odisi
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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If someone sent you this, click here to subscribe!
If you did, you wouldn't waste it.
"But, what do you mean? I don't waste my time."
Yes, you do. Most people don't consciously pay attention to it. Why? Because it is easier to avoid things than actively change them.
Still don't think so? Here is an example...
It is 10 PM. You are getting ready for bed. As you go through your nightly routine, you think about what tomorrow will bring. "Tomorrow will be better. I am going to start tomorrow. It's going to be great." These thoughts bring you excitement for the morning to come.
It is 7 AM. Your alarm (on your phone) goes off. Beep! Beep! Beep! You roll over and turn it off with excitement. After all, you were excited the night before. But wait...that was last night. As you swipe away your alarm, you open your favorite social media app.
You come back to reality. It's now 7:30 AM. You spent 30 minutes scrolling through other people's lives. As you roll out of bed, irritated that you wasted more time, you walk outside for some fresh air. You stand there, admiring nature, showing gratitude for another opportunity to improve. You walk back inside to get your coffee, open your computer, and get to work.
As you begin to labor through your emails and task list, you take a break to check Twitter (X). After all, part of your job is to do so. Immediately, you come across a tweet that intrigues you. You click on it and start reading the comments. Becoming more invested, you attempt to architect a reply. You allow it to consume your thoughts. You come back to reality and realize you just spent 45 minutes on this one tweet.
Once again, you get back to work, slightly frustrated with yourself. Then, an hour goes by and you get a phone call from a friend. You love talking about current events with this person. So, naturally, where does the conversation go? Politics. News articles. Sports. Solving all the world's problems, you talk to your friend for over an hour.
The lunch hour quickly presents itself. You heat up some leftovers. Sit down and...open your laptop or phone to your favorite social media app. You eat and scroll. Eat and scroll. Eat and...oh sh*t - another hour just went by. You immediately get up and get back to work.
You get to the end of your work day, not accomplishing your tasks. Fine. It is time to get a good workout in. But that lunch...it was heavy. The coffee has worn off. The carbs have set in and you're tired. Plus, you're a bit sore from the workout two days before. You decide to go on a longer walk today instead. You get home from your walk, which you cut short because it is dinner time. You get through with making dinner, sit down at your table, and...turn your TV on. Why not? The day was exhausting.
You finish eating. Clean up. Take a shower. Grab a book, sit down on your couch to read, and turn the TV on again. Your book finds the crease of the couch. Your hands find some snacks. You get locked into the entertaining, speaking box that sits in front of you. You snap back to reality, and realize it is 10 PM, and you need to get ready for bed. As you drift into the bathroom, you start to think (again) about your day. What you accomplished, what you need to do tomorrow, and how you will do it differently.
The cycle continues...
You don't care about your time.
You care about thinking about caring about your time.
Your thoughts do not count as action. Your thoughts are just that, thoughts. Floating around your ether. But, until you intentionally turn a thought into an action it remains lifeless. The change you constantly seek will forever outrun you IF you don't take the time to change. The time you waste on fruitless thoughts, tasks, and actions is time lost. Time spent out of your daily allowance in which you are depositing nothing of value.
If you TRULY want to change, you must make a conscious effort DAILY. You must care about how you spend your time. You must be aware of how you spend your time. You must actively adjust how you spend your time. You must follow through with the promises you make to yourself. You must take accountability for where you are and where you want to go.
How to start:
- Spend less time on your phone, laptop, TV, etc. for leisure. Set a timer. When it goes off, get off.
- Make a list of three things you want to accomplish tomorrow. Wake up and do them.
- When you make promises to yourself, keep them. No exceptions.
- When you get an urge to waste time, get up and walk. Replace a bad habit, thought, or system with a good one.
- Don't dwell on time lost. You can't waste more time beating yourself up. Focus on how you will move forward, progress, and evolve.
This is not written as an attack on you. This is written to serve as a reminder to you, us, and everyone else - your time is limited. Don't waste it on a screen, in the past, or in your head.
Carpe Diem - Seize the day!
Odisi
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you enjoyed this, send it to a friend!
If someone sent you this, click here to subscribe!
