How often do you hear yourself saying you don't have enough time? Even if you're not saying it out loud, I bet you think it. "I wish I had more time" or "There's never enough hours in a day" are statements voiced every day by most people. It's a fact of life that there just isn't enough time. There never has been and never will be more than 24 hours in each day. So, why can some people achieve more in less time? I suggest one of the reasons is attitude of mind.
"The greatest revolution in our generation is the discovery that human beings, by changing the inner attitude of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives". Author and Philosopher, William James.
While you have the attitude of mind that you don't have enough time, your actions will support this. When you approach things with the attitude that you don't have enough time, whether true or not, you'll find this to be so. What you think will be revealed in your life. You can however choose to change your attitude of mind. People who feel they've enough time to do what they want and time doesn't rule their lives, have mastered this attitude change. Telling yourself you don't have enough time can be purely an excuse. It's often easier to say there isn't enough time than to see what this excuse is covering up. It may be concealing the fact that you aren't willing to think it through further, you may not know or be willing to communicate the real reason, or the excuse of not having enough time just trips off your tongue.
Using time as an excuse in this way often leaves us stuck; it doesn't open up the opportunity to explore what you can do about it. Let's take the example of Colin who says he doesn't have enough time to spend with his family. First, it may be easier for him to stick with his excuse than to look at how much time he wants to spend with his family, and consider what would they be doing, sharing, experiencing, learning. If he starts to look at this aspect, this may require him to change and for most people, change feels scary. Saying "I don't have enough time" is an easier option. If Colin is totally honest with himself, he may find he doesn't want to spend time with his family doing certain things and for whatever reason, feels unable to tell them this.
Not having enough time is an acceptable excuse for most people nowadays. However, you need to be aware that this may be keeping you stuck in many areas of your life and business. This excuse of not having enough time stops you from exploring opportunities. It's also a way to keep busy and really believe you don't have enough time. The mental energy that's used up in thinking about not having enough time, could be used to free up extra time. When you're totally focused on the task you're doing, you'll achieve things much more quickly. Focused attention allows us to achieve more. As I mentioned earlier, it's your attitude of mind that counts here and when you start thinking "I have more than enough time for all I want to do", you start opening up the possibilities. This attitude allows you to focus and not waste time. It also puts you into a frame of mind so that you look for ways to find this time. When you approach a task with the attitude of having more than enough time for everything else in your life, the task is likely to be completed much more quickly because your attention is focused and less thought is wasted.
When you hear yourself say "I don't have enough time", I encourage you to stop and reflect for a few seconds to consider what really lies behind this excuse. Then turn it around to "I have more than enough time" and see what that allows you to do.
Wendy works with business owners to be more effective and successful, achieving a more profitable business in less time.
Click through to her business coaching website and find out how you can take your business to the next level. If you’re struggling with time management, then find out about her complete time management toolkit.