I Did Not Have Time

I just read in Steve Chandler’s wonderful book The Story of You a great quote by Henry Davenport: “the great diving line between success and failure can be stated in five words: I did not have time.”

Which brings to memory one of my client’s, a very successful New York lawyer’s words that echo Davenport’s so well: “the secret to success is two words: DO IT.”

The “no time” line’s got to be among the biggest traps we set for ourselves, don’t you think? And we also believe it to be true. (!) Another trap. While it is nothing but an excuse to procrastinate one more time. Can’t even think how often I have said that over the years…And so this is what I have decided: I am taking the “I have no time” excuse completely out of my vocabulary. (Quite a challenge, but I like challengesJ.) Because every time I say that, I give a very direct message/command to my subconscious to make sure I experience shortage of time all the time!

And on top of it, it is simply not true. There is always enough time. We don’t “find” time. We make time. Otherwise “if you want to get something done, ask a busy person to do it” would not have become such a cliché. It has become a cliché because of how true it is. So I am retiring the “no time” excuse. I have made this choice. Now every time I hear myself say it (or think it) out of habit, I will also be telling myself: Stop lying to yourself. Stop making excuses. Just DO IT.

I would like to hear your thoughts on this. Do you believe that there really is not enough time? What does ‘time’ mean for you?