Here’s one more email related to time…
By the way, I appreciate you taking the time to read it. ;-b
I want to address the “I don’t have time for X” thing, but in a different way today…
As you can imagine, I hear the “I don’t have time” thing A LOT in my line of work.
“I don’t have time to workout.”
“I don’t have time to cook.”
“I don’t have time to sleep.” ← Yes, I’m serious…I’ve heard that one.
By the way, “I don’t have time” is right up there with “I don’t have the money” REACTION.
I chose the word “reaction” because that’s most often what it is – an automated reaction. It’s kinda like when you go into a store and the salesperson asks if they can help you…
What’s the programmed automatic response?
“No thank you. I’m just looking?”
It just comes right out…like some sort of protective mechanism or something.
Anyway, here’s what I’m going to say about both the “I don’t have time” and “I don’t have the money” answers…
They’re both untrue.
Here’s the reality…
You (and I) do have the time.
We CHOOSE how we spend it.
You (and I) do have the money.
We CHOOSE how we spend it.
Now, before anybody gets their panties in a bunch over me talking about their finances (I’ve received nasty emails in the past) let me quickly address that…
YES. You do have the money. If you’re reading this, you have some money. End of story.
Now…you might be thinking…
“sure, but there’s still things I can’t afford!”
Yes and no.
No…no matter what…right now I simply can’t afford to go buy a jet. I don’t have the funds nor the credit.
But, I could afford that dream 470HP RUBICON 392 that goes for about 100k… I’d just have to live in it because I wouldn’t be able to afford to pay my mortgage!
The point (an extreme one) is that it’s not really about not having the money…it’s about choosing how to spend it.
In this example…shelter is probably a better choice than the muscle jeep.
Of course, if I CHOSE to, I could rent a small apartment for shelter AND have the jeep.
Again…choice.
For some, that might be the best choice. I don’t think Kathy would appreciate that choice. ;-b
The point is… I have a choice.
You have choice.
It’s a choice to have a smartphone…Netflix…and Amazon Prime.
It’s a choice to dine out…drink too much alcohol… and wear designer clothes.
And, all of those choices are perfectly fine!
As long as we recognize that we are choosing and when we make a choice to do/have one thing, we’re also making a choice to NOT do/have another…
Cool?
OK…How about time?
After all, there are only 24 hours, right?
Well, it’s the exact same thing!
We CHOOSE how we spend our time.
And…like with our financial choices…we can choose to spend time doing one thing over another…
It’s a choice to have your kids involved in so many after school activities that you have no time left for yourself.
Hey, that may be the right choice for you. Probably not the best thing for your kids in the long run, but that’s another conversation…
It’s a choice to work late or bring work home with you or be so tired from work that you don’t have energy for anything else. But hey…you may love that so it’s a good choice for you…
By the way, an upset reaction I sometimes get regarding the work thing is… “Well…I have to work!” or “I don’t have the freedom to choose my hours like you do!”
My response is simple…
“Well, you don’t actually HAVE TO work. You choose to work. But, I’m with you on that choice. I’m not interested in being homeless either.
However… if you don’t like your job or your job is negatively impacting every other part of your life, you could choose to get a different job…you could choose to make less money and give up some of the things your current job affords in order to gain the time freedoms another lower paying job might provide.”
And, if you’re currently a single parent working two jobs just to put food on the table for your kids…I commend you. This isn’t about you being right or wrong in how you spend your money (or time). In fact, if you’re TRULY that strapped let me know and I’ll be happy to provide you with some free coaching.
As for people commenting on MY flexibility/freedom – I’ll just say it was my choice to risk everything and start completely over to build something out of nothing.
You can do that, too…if you choose. 😉
Anyway, It’s not my place nor my desire to tell you what choices to make. However… as your “coach” I am here to gently remind you that you do have choices.
The real point to all of this is to just create some awareness for the next time the automated…“I don’t have” or “I can’t” response comes up…
Instead…say… “I choose not to…”
It’s more real and more empowering. 🙂
