TIME: Don't Have vs. Don't Take

(be sure to check out the podcast on iTunes or on the RSS feed)

"I would but I just don't have the time!"

How many times have you either SAID that or HEARD that said? As a matter of fact, take a moment and try to think of when the last time YOU said this phrase occurred...was it sometime today? Yesterday? We likely say something along this lines way more often than we realize.

Many times we say this to our kids when they are seeking our help and/or attention but we are busy with something else..."Mom! I need you to help me!" "Not now honey, I don't have time!" We don't want to sound like bad parents by saying what is actually true which would be, "Not now honey, I'm not going to TAKE the time for you right now."

Is that bad? No! Listen parents, there is no way in the world that we can devote all 24 hours a day to our children - IT'S NOT POSSIBLE! Now listen, if you're sitting in front of the t.v. eating Cheetos and watching a soap opera when your kid asks for your help and you say you don't have time - SHAME ON YOU! That's right... I said it.

But, if you are busy with something that helps the family (cleaning the house, balancing the checkbook or paying the bills, etc.), then there is nothing wrong with actually saying, "I can't take the time right now."

So many times we say we don't HAVE the time when, in reality, we simply choose to not TAKE the time. So, the question actually is this: What are you TAKING the time for during your day?

This SHOULD be obvious but it still needs pointing out - we ALL have the same amount of time every day. We ALL have 24 hours a day, divided up by hours, made up of 60 minutes, made up of 60 seconds each. It doesn't matter how rich or poor you are and it doesn't matter where in the world you live - TIME IS THE SAME FOR US ALL!

Here's what I want you to do to start this series off for the week - get out another piece of paper like you did during last week's series. Go ahead, get that paper and something to write with and write this across the top of that paper....

IF I HAD TIME, I WOULD...

Do that and then start writing things down - WHAT WOULD YOU DO? Don't over-think this, o.k.? Just write down what you would do IF you "had the time".

No, this isn't a trick. Take a few minutes and do this and feel free to add to it as you go through your day. DO NOT THROW THIS PAPER AWAY! Hang on to it - I will be coming back to it later on in the week.

Many times we don't want to hear the truth behind this fact but it's still true: THE TIME IS THERE!

I hope you'll join me the rest of the week as we go though and discover the time that is already in our day that we may be able to use for those things that we've always wanted to do.

Be thinking about that - fill out that list on that piece of paper and, in the meantime, whatever you do, where ever you go, be sure to...

"Make it an AWESOME day! (Who else is going to do it for you?)"

Mike

What Would YOU Do If...

It's "Wide-Open Wednesday"...what will YOU do with this special gift?

What would YOU do if today - yes, today - you could do ANYTHING that you wanted to do and/or go anywhere you wanted to go? What if, what if, what if!

Many of us have had such thoughts and, too often, "fantasies" of such a happening for our lives and, many times it is associated with the thought of, "If you only had 2 weeks to live, what would you do?"

Isn't it kind of sad that we have to associate our pending DOOM in order to think that way? Queen Latifah stars in a movie that came out in 2005 entitled, "Last Holiday" in which she is mistakenly told she only has a short time to live. And, friend, live she did! Money was no object because, after all, you can't take it with you and she was no longer afraid to live the live she had only dreamed of before. She DID have a bit of a money issue once she realized that the diagnosis was a mistake - but she learned to truly "live" her life!

Bottom line, here's the truth: Today (any day) you CAN do anything you want to do! Sure, there may be obligations, responsibilities and our moral compass that keeps us from acting upon some things without thought or regard to others or these responsibilities but...the truth is that you CAN if you want.

Many do so every day REGARDLESS of these responsibilities leaving destruction in their wake. Families have been destroyed by one or both parents deciding to do what they wanted to do without any thought (or little thought) to those hurt by such decisions.

However, I'd like you to consider a more positive approach to this topic. Sure, you may not be able to leave all the stress and responsibilities of your life behind (although some try by faking their disappearance) but there ARE things you can do today that, for whatever reason, you have thought were out of your reach.

Have you decided that you are stuck at your job and there is nothing you can do about it? NOT TRUE! Sure, think wisely and make a wise decision but, at the same time, it may take a sudden and decisive action in order for you to stop TALKING about it and start TAKING ACTION with it.

Many people feel that they must wait until they can "afford it" before they have children. I understand the thought and I also agree to a certain extent but, my friend, you'll NEVER be able to 'afford" the expense of raising a child. If you wait until you think you can afford the financial AND emotional cost and investment then you will NEVER have that child. You will continue to TALK about that child but you will never HOLD that child in your arms!

Hey, listen to the podcast (on iTunes - http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/mike-spillmans-future-you/id423660739 or via the RSS feed - http://mikespillman.hipcast.com/rss/futureyouuniversity.xml ) to get some more insight on this topic and think on this yourself.

Don't come to the end of your life saying, "What if..." or "If I only had done..."

Remember, TODAY is all we have and, as you go through this day be sure to...

"Make it an AWESOME day! (Who else is going to do it for you?)"
Mike