Saboteur#2: I don’t have time
Crushing the top 3 saboteurs of goal achievement
We reviewed the #1 saboteur of goal achievement last week.
Today we’ll discuss #2: “I don’t have time.”
My grandfather was an elementary school teacher for over three decades. He had two favorite quotes. One, “Time and tide wait for none.” Two, “Early to bed and early to rise makes you healthy, wealthy, and wise.”
He embodied these two quotes. I watched him for twenty years. He led a life that exemplified them. Over the years, I have found both quotes practical and helpful.
Time levels the playing field. We all get the same 24 hours in a day—no more, no less, exactly 24 hours. What separates people with and without fulfillment is how we invest those hours—16 waking hours every day (I hope you’re sleeping well in the remaining eight hours). We can invest an hour or spend an hour. It depends on the activity. You get to decide and you need to own your decision.
A common theme that comes up in coaching is “I don’t have time” or “I’m too busy.”
In most cases, it comes to not knowing what’s important, the inability to distinguish between urgent and important tasks, and then relentlessly prioritizing “important” tasks first or creating time blocks for them.
In my journey, I have seen three levels of time management. These levels are cumulative. Level 3 includes skills from 2 and 1. Level 2 includes Level 1 skills.
Level 1 is about creating blocks of time for important tasks. Many people struggle here. Mindless distractions and lack of self-awareness steal time. At this level, people can carve out time for what they want to achieve. For many, this is a dream come true. If you’re not at this level, this is the first rung of the ladder to be on.
Level 2 is energy management. Here you can carve out time and show up with full energy to get your stuff accomplished. Energy—physical, mental, and emotional—is paramount. At this level, you have well-nurtured habits to generate and maintain the energy required to accomplish your goals.
Level 3 is all about attention management. Here you can focus your attention on one thing for a chosen duration. Like a magnifying glass burning a dry leaf, you’re burning away the task by making progress and reducing its size. Internal chatter is silenced; impulses are in control. You’re in flow and you’re moving forward. Like a bullet train going at full speed toward its destination. Nothing can hinder or stop you.
If you’re facing difficulties in time management, start with time tracking. Simply observe how you spend or invest your waking hours for a week. Track what you do every hour. This log tells you the truth. It won’t please you, but will surely serve you. You’ll see the truth like daylight—the whole truth, nothing but the truth. You’ll know where you are on the ladder of time management.
I would like to offer five practical tips to overcome this hurdle of time management.
Schedule your screen time, as opposed to unfettered access to your phone during your working hours.
Consider a 12-hour digital fast. You could stay away from electronic devices from 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. (or 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.).
Revisit your goals to see if they have the required amount of desire and fire to stay focused. A higher desire toward your goals lowers your desire for distractions.
Form a ritual to take a break after every 90 minutes of work; get up from your seat and walk around for 5 to 10 minutes.
Find an accountability partner to show your time log and commit to making changes to your work habits. Work with someone who wants to change, so you can help each other.
I love this quote from The Mahabharata (legendary Indian epic in Sanskrit) below—Devanagari script followed by its translation in English.
अहन्यहनि भूतानि गच्छन्ति इह यमालयम् ।
शेषाः स्थावरमिच्छन्ति किमाश्चर्यम् अत: परम् ॥
Despite knowing that many living beings die every day, survivors wish to live forever. What can be more astonishing than this?
Perhaps meditating on our mortality is helpful for some people. However, I prefer the other way, a way of reflection.
Reflecting on our dreams, desires, and life goals is a better approach in my experience. This reflection inspires us to consider the hourglass of life and focus on what truly matters.
“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.” - Stephen Covey