No Time……..Really??

I love to pay attention to the language I use and also the words my clients choose. Being aware of our own language provides a window into where we may have blind spots, fears or beliefs standing in our way. I often catch my clients using the phrase, “I just don’t have time.”   It’s a sentence that suggests that we have no power over how we spend our time.  And the truth is, we do.  Certainly there can be negative consequences to choosing to spend our time in one way over another.  And avoiding those negative consequences can drive our choices, but, at the end of the day, we are choosing!

For instance, you can choose to make no time for food all day.  The consequence is feeling ravenously hungry, shaky and weak at bed time.

You can choose to skip your exercise plans for a month.  You will not experience the physical health that you could with the exercise.  But you can choose it. 

Really a truer statement is, “I’m just not making the time.”  Because the fact is, time is a constant.  It is always coming at us.  We get more in each instant.  And we get to choose how we use each new moment.  We can use that time with great intention or we can spend it frivolously.  Either way it is whizzing on by.

In every moment we are saying yes to one thing and no to many others.  “I choose to give other things a higher priority right now”, is more empowering than saying “I don’t have time”.  And the simple act of being more accurate with the language you use about time will make you more aware of how you are spending the precious moments you are given.

• Where are there inconsistencies between what you say you value and where you spend your time?
• Do you find the time to veg. in front of the television but can’t carve out time for exercise? 
• Are video games or computer time being prioritized over spending quality time with family or friends? 
• Or, are you constantly on the go working towards your goals with no chance for personal rest and rejuvenation? 
• Where do you need to say no to others to say yes to your own priorities?  

None of us knows how much total time we will be given over the course of a lifetime.  So, use the time you have with intention.  You owe it to yourself to be a good steward of your time.  It’s not about being in motion in every moment. It’s about being intentional and real about the choices you are making with your time.  Even if it’s lying on the couch, choose to lie there.  Own it.  Become the emperor of your time and use it well to create the best life, the best relationships, the best you that you can!