Use it or lose it
29. Use It Or Lose It
You can't take it back, cannot find it again, cannot buy it, steal it, borrow it, or use someone else's. You either have total control or it is gone. Each one of us on this earth has the same amount to start with, to use, or to throw away. Do you know what it is?
It is time. We have it to do with as we wish. But, are you really using your time effectively or are you just letting it escape through your fingers like sand through your toes as you walk along the beach?
"Hold fast to time! Use it! Be conscious of each day, each hour!" ~ Thomas Mann
I have a friend who always complains about not having enough time to start a new business that would allow him to make the break from his normal job, a job that he detests with a passion. But, why doesn't he have time?
He doesn't have the time because he spends too much time at work, is totally involved in family activities when he gets home so there is no time left before bed, and where his weekends are filled with activities that take his every waking hour. If this was the case, I could understand completely why he has no available time to pursue even the planning of a new business. But, sadly, none of this is true.
This is a man who does not spend hours at home participating in all kinds of family activities, nor is this a man who has every waking moment used completely on his weekends. Instead, this is a man who comes home every evening to eat and then to sit in front f the TV for the rest of the evening. He spends his weekends doing nothing but watch TV or visiting with friends. Do you think he has time available?
He has the time available if he chooses to use it. Instead, he chooses to waste it. Does he have a burning desire to actually start planning and taking action to begin a new business? No. And, with his current attitude, do you think he could actually make a go of his business? Unlikely. Why? Simply put is because, to run your own business takes a great deal of effort, and a huge amount of time. Those who actually run their own businesses realize all too well that time is scarce and most of their time goes into all those varied but necessary tasks that cannot be done sitting on the sidelines enjoying yourself.
Time is not your enemy. Passion is the enemy or, I should say, the lack of passion, lack of perseverance, lack of the singular focus necessary to succeed. If you want life to roll by without accomplishing anything you want, simply keep throwing your time away. You will never get it back.