Where does water come from?
If you live in a developed country, you may answer that question as simply as “from the faucet.”
Of course, this isn’t true. There are countless water sources.
According to Water.org, the average American uses 176 gallons of water per day, while the average African only uses just five. Most Americans don’t even think about water. They just assume it will always be there.
So why am I talking about water?
Well, it’s to make a point about how you spend your time. You see, most of us treat time the same way people in the developed world treat water. We don’t think about it. We assume there will always be time to do things. We waste time like we often waste water.
If you know how to set goals, you’re off to a good start. But you also need to know how to direct your energy to achieve your goals. Directing your energy to achieve your goals requires you to take two important steps:
1. Recognize that time, like water, is not an endless resource; and
2. Gain control over how and where you use time.
Today is the oldest you’ve ever been and the youngest you’ll ever be again. Make today count because you can’t recycle wasted time.
When it comes to planning and setting goals, wasting time is a big hurdle. It hinders your ability to achieve your ultimate goal in the allotted time frame and contributes to unnecessary stress along the way.
Occasionally, time-wasting circumstances are random occurrences and beyond your control, such as bad traffic, a sick child, or a delayed flight. Prepare yourself for unforeseen delays and develop backup strategies to minimize their impact.
Some people are compulsive time wasters. These individuals do not have the strength to seek closure. The lack of action zaps the energy from their existence. It’s futile to direct your energy toward achieving your goals if you don’t have any energy left.
Time wasters can also show up in the form of other people who either consciously or unconsciously try to influence you. Because of them, you give up your ability to avoid fruitless investment of energy, time, money or attention.
Time wasters can also be non-productive activities such as reading emails, perusing social media, surfing the internet or watching TV at home. These types of activities can self-sabotage opportunities for you to be successful. Yet you can reprogram yourself to build new habits that become your default activities for reaching your goals.
The concept is simple -- change your behavior and you change your outcomes.
Sure, on occasion, it is necessary to relax and blow off steam. Being unfocused is good for us in short doses. However, anything without limits can become a liability.