I don’t have time.
“The way we spend our time defines who we are (Jonathan Estrin). ”
To Benjamin Franklin, time is money. To Steve Jobs, time is limited and not to be wasted by living someone else’s life. What is ‘time’ to you?
In this article I challenge the choices we make of what to spend the precious commodity ‘time’ on.
“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst” (William Penn). A recent time-tracking study supports Penn’s view. It reveals that we spend nearly 50% of our life sleeping (and trying to sleep), 20% on work and commuting, followed in 3rd place by a whopping 17% on watching TV and following social media.
So, when we say “I don’t have time for this” or “I get back to you later” – what does this mean for the choices we make on what to spend our time on?
The diary squeeze
We all have the same 24 hours, 7 days a week to fit in our personal, social and work-related activities. In our busy lives, demands on our time often exceed what we can pack into our diaries. We are constantly juggling what to prioritise and fit in versus what to drop.
Telling ourselves - and others - “I don’t have time for this right now” is often accompanied by a feeling of guilt, regret, anger or frustration which indicates that we did not really want to make this choice.
Reasons behind “I don’t have time”
There is no question that the demand on our time is bigger than ever and that this impacts our wellbeing and relationships.
The number of courses that offer time and task management skills is mind-blowing. Whilst these courses provide helpful tools, it takes more than optimising our meetings to enable ‘having more time’.
“I don’t have time” is a form of self-protection from getting overloaded with further demands on our time.
As a coach, I challenge that ‘not having time to …’ is an excuse for ‘not making time’.
Let’s be honest with ourselves; it is easier to brush aside a request than reflecting on WHY I don’t make time for it (which includes the effort of re-arranging things so that the request can be accommodated).
Do I not have/make time because
It requires a change to my routine?
I am avoiding or am afraid of committing to something?
I would have to say ‘no’ to somebody/something else first?
Is ‘not having time to …’ an excuse to avoid stopping what you are doing, and to challenge yourself by asking how well you use your time for things that are REALLY IMPORTANT to you?
I have seen many clients who wanted to learn a new skill like playing the guitar or dancing. Who meant to see their elderly parents more often than they did. Who stayed in a job that did not fulfil them, yet they were afraid to resign or change their careers. So often ‘I didn’t MAKE time’ has been their frustrating answer.
What is important and how to make time for it?
Making conscious choices that align with our values and beliefs create an inner compass that helps us to prioritise demands and to make time to fit them into our life.
People who use their 24 hours, 7 days a week to make time in this way often feel less guilty or frustrated about not having time for other things.
Many of my clients approach me because they juggle too many balls. They find it difficult to prioritise what to make time for or to become clear about what their true priorities are.
Coaching is a powerful approach that can assist in finding out what is and what is not important in your life. We are all individuals with our own specific life circumstances. There is no “one fits all” answer to Making Time.
If you want to make better use of your time - I can work with you on this. The first step towards this goal is to MAKE TIME and reach out to me for a no-strings-attached initial conversation.
I want to end this article with a quote from Charles Brixton that summarizes the choice we have to make:
“You will never find time for anything. If you want time, you must make it.”