We all have the same amount of time each and every single day. What we do with that time is entirely up to us.

We usually find ourselves saying, “I do not have enough time for ____ because ____.”

Fill in the first blank with something on your goal or bucket list, such as “work out more,” “have dinner with my friends,” “take a class,” or “travel.”

Fill in the second blank with your favorite excuse, such as “I have kids,” “I work 10-hour days,” “I volunteer everyday after work,” or “I don’t know how.”

We are so good at coming up with excuses not  to do things and completely forget how easy being active and working toward our goals truly is.

Therefore, our problems have nothing to do with how much time is in the day – our problems have to do with our priorities.

It’s all about priorities

Take a good look at how you’re spending your time.

What takes up a lot of your day? Work is probably the biggest time hog. But what else do you do?

What do you do before work, during your lunch break, after work, and on the weekends?

If you claim that health and exercise is important to you, but you don’t spend much time being active, your priorities are not aligned with your health goals.

If you have dreams of starting your own business, but you don’t spend much time learning about your craft or creating a product, your priorities are not aligned with your career goals.

How we spend we time speaks volumes about our true priorities.

Our true priorities dictate our time

What we truly prioritize determines how we spend a majority of our time.

Just think: What did you do last week? How did you spend your time while you were awake?

Be honest with yourself. There’s no sense in sugar-coating this.

Did you do everything that makes you happy? Did you get another step closer to your goals? Did you structure your schedule to reflect the lifestyle you desire?

Were there any periods of time that you feel were wasted?

If looking back at the past week doesn’t make you feel successful or on the path toward success, then you really need to hunker down and clearly state what is truly important to you.

When you clearly define your priorities, you can take action by structuring your schedule around your priorities.

We structure our schedules around our priorities

How we prioritize our health and goals affects how we manage our time.

If we value a healthy body, we figure out how to set aside a half hour or so to exercise and be active everyday.

We find creative ways to turn social time into physically active time. Instead of sitting on the couch watching a movie, we grab the kids or a few friends and go climbing or swimming.

The people we see running everyday after work are not super-human nor do they know some top secret information. They simply value their health and choose to allocate some of their spare time to exercise. It is that simple.

The people who start businesses, write books, build networks, and improve their career skills are also not super-human. They simply look at their calendars, carve out time to work on strategy, build relationships, and learn new information so that they get closer and closer to their goals. It is that simple.

Everyone has the same 24 hours.

We all face the same choice

Whether you have babies, three jobs, a broken leg – it doesn’t matter.

You have challenges in your life that are personal to you. Your job is to determine your true priorities and manage your time around those priorities so that your challenges do not create barriers.

Do not allow yourself to fall victim to time.

You can easily judge others wrongly thinking, “That person’s life is so much easier because ____,” or “That person is lucky.”

Luck has nothing to do with it.

Everyone has a choice. Each and every single second of every single day, we all face the same choice.

The most liberating thing in the world is to choose how you spend your time.

Take ownership over your life and manage your time so that you have zero excuses and can live the life of your dreams.

REFLECT

Think about how you allocate your time everyday. Also, think about all the excuses you make in order to avoid doing things you know are good for you.

Are your priorities lined up with your actions? If so, keep up the great work and continue to challenge yourself! Wellness is something we have to work on our entire lives.

If not, maybe you need to re-evaluate your priorities. Maybe what you claim is important to you is not really that  important to you.

Figure out what motivates you to take care of yourself. Come up with some ways to align your lifestyle with your priorities. Then, most importantly, do what you say you are going to do!

It is just that simple. Do not make it more complicated than it needs to be.

 

This article was originally posted on May 25, 2012 and has since been revised and republished.

(photo credit: Dave Mathis cc)