Thinking About Time

Today is Thanksgiving Day in Canada, and a well-deserved respite for the workforce. I'm sure that everyone relishes the day off to relax, but also worry about maximizing their free time to 'get things done'. Since I quit working, I have had lots of time on my hands, and sometimes the things that I said I would get done "when I had more free", still haven't been done. Most are mundane tasks such as sorting out my old financial statements, cleaning out closets, wash the car etc. Sometimes, no matter how much time we have, we will still procrastinate because no-one really likes to do the small and often dull stuff.

I am a great proponent of making 'To Do Lists' as it prioritizes the day's activities and gives me direction. When I have completed the list of tasks, I also gain satisfaction in accomplishing things I probably would not have done if I had just been left to my own devices. My biggest problem, as is for most others, is that I often tackle the easy tasks on the list first, and carry over the hard ones to the next day (indefinitely). I know that I should be doing it the other way, but humans tend to look for the easy way out first.

This got me thinking about how I use my time, and how many people seem to be so time-stressed these days. Rushing around like crazy, not enough sleep, not taking their full allotment of vacation days are all symptoms. We often spend inordinate amounts of time doing unproductive things, e.g. watching re-runs on TV, standing in line-ups, window-shopping etc., instead of more important things like connecting with friends and loved ones. I remember when I was working 60 hour weeks, my Mom would often ask why I hadn't called or visited for a long time, and my excuse was always that I was too busy at work and ran out of time. I had broken one of my own rules that I had demonstrated in an exercises used in seminars and workshops that I had delivered. The exercise was simple: Fold a sheet in half, and on the left side of the paper, write down the 10 areas where you spend the most time every day. On the other side of the piece of paper, write down the 10 most important things in your life (that you value or are passionate about). More often than not, this simple exercise demonstrates that incongruency between where we spend the majority of time (work, shopping, commuting) versus what's most important to us (family, friends, travel, reading, hobbies etc.)
I came across a little note that I had cut out many years ago, and every now and then I use it to remind me of the value of time. I'm not sure who the author is, but it has meaningful lessons that we can all use in our daily lives. Here it is:

Some Thoughts on Time

- How you spend your time is how you spend your life

- Each hour you spend is a piece of your life that is gone forever

- Spend your time on those things that matter to you most

- How you spend your time is a matter of choice

- Time, like money, is a resource. But you can't steal it, borrow it or save it for a rainy day. You must use it or lose it

- You can make time work for you or against you

- Where you are in your life right now is a result of your past choices you have made about how to spend your time.

I hope this post helps you to make better use of your time or help prioritize where you spend your time. And Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadian citizens.