Have you ever found yourself saying to someone, “I don’t have time”? Life can be chaotic and crazy. In all its busyness, it’s easy to feel like each hour and minute of your time is already dedicated to some worthwhile project or activity. However, 99% of the time, we do have time. Here’s why.
1. Values
I’ll let you in on this truth: if you value it, you’ll have time for it.
Every day we brush our teeth, shower and eat food. Why? Because we value health and hygiene. Many of us use social media every day because we choose to. We prioritise these activities. Finding time isn’t the issue.
Last year in the lead up to Christmas, my dad and I drove past some beautifully decorated houses dressed in lights. He said, “I don’t understand how people have time to put up Christmas lights. I don’t have time to do that”. However, the truth is he doesn’t value decorating a house enough to spend time and effort on it, while others love the magical feeling and atmosphere the lights create, appreciating how it brings people together during the holiday season.
One busy week, I started a Netflix TV show: Lucifer. At that time, I had a lot on - three heavy school assignments, and extracurriculars every afternoon. Yet, in just one week, I reached season 3 of Lucifer! I realised I’d watched a whole 24 hours worth in only 7 days, alongside my “busy” schedule. Our time is truly precious; once it’s gone, it’s gone.
Just imagine placing those 24 hours into something else - anything else. How many songs on guitar could one have learned in those 24 hours? Or how much money could be earned working, even with a minimum wage job? Yet, if beforehand, you’d told me to work for 24 hours that week, I’d have undoubtedly declined, saying I absolutely “don’t have time”. In truth, I wouldn’t have been willing to sacrifice my cherished leisure time. Funnily enough, that exact week, when my sister and I went into a store for 3 minutes, I said “I need to go home to study, I don’t have time to shop”. It’s incredible how much time we actually have.
What are you valuing in your life?
A particular activity or hobby?
A particular relationship?
A place, like school or work?
A goal you’re working towards?
Write down a list of everything that comes to mind. Ask yourself, are you happy with how you’re using your time? Do you need to shift your priorities?
This reflection process can help you take a step back and look at the bigger picture that is your life. Where is your time being invested? The worst feeling is looking back on a day, week or month, and regretting how you used your time, or thinking you could’ve achieved so much more.
2. Hiding the truth
The excuse “I don’t have time” can be used to cover up that in reality, we’re not interested, don’t value, or don’t have the self-control to complete an activity.
One time my mum asked me to hang up the clothes for her. I told her I didn’t have time to do it, but reflecting on it later, realised that actually, I just hadn’t felt like helping.
“I don’t have time” can become an excuse for avoiding:
Challenges
Discipline
Responsibilities
Commitment
Social interactions
Conflicts
Suddenly, because we “don’t have time”, we don’t go out with our friends, we don’t clean the house, or maybe we don’t invest time in ourselves and our goals. We can easily become stagnant.
Replace the excuse “I don’t have time” with “this is not important to me/not a priority right now”.
3. ‘Making’ more time
Elon Musk manages to run multiple giant corporations.
Mark Zuckerberg manages to work 50 - 60 hour weeks, exercise, travel, set goals like learning mandarin, and spend quality time with his family.
How do these hugely successful, busy people do it?
Here’s one way how: they utilise every minute of the day for productive and fruitful activities. When we use the excuse of not having enough time, we’re actually demonstrating that we lack the discipline and ability to manage our time wisely; it’s much easier to not maximise your time. Going straight to study after school when you could sit on the couch for a few minutes is tough. Getting up as soon as your alarm clock rings in the morning instead of hitting the snooze button or checking social media first is tough. All these seemingly small moments build up and lead to us feeling like time keeps slipping out of our hands.
Cut out your non-essential choices.
Actively decide how you’re going to spend your time. Don’t let it vanish into the abyss because you didn’t take control.
Conclusion
There are 24hrs in a day. 168 hours in a week. You’re awake for about ⅔ of it. All this time has potential, so use it wisely - you can’t get it back! Organise your priorities. If you really care about something, I promise you, you’ll have time for it.
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