Britney works as a CPA during the day and runs a business of her own on nights and weekends. To say her life is busy is an understatement.
She often feels overworked, underpaid and, like many folks, she feels like others are controlling her by controlling her time.
When she complained to her coach about how she felt, her coach asked her a simple question: Who’s responsible for how you’re spending your time?
Her coach asked this question to jolt Britney out of her victim mentality and into reality. After all, Britney’s life choices are hers to own – and no one else’s.
While it’s common to feel like you have no control over your time, the truth is that you have more control than you might think.
It’s just a matter of shifting your perspective from one of being a victim to stepping up and taking responsibility for the outcomes of one’s choices.
Here are some questions to think about – I’m sure they’ll begin to shift your thoughts and actions in a new direction.
- If you complain about time, what’s the payoff for you? What feels good about complaining? (I once heard a helping professional remark that complaining is the adult version of crying like a baby. I don’t know if there’s truth to this, but one is likely looking for attention/acknowledgement when they start complaining.)
- Who really controls your time?
- What’s the payoff for shifting blame about your life results from you to others? How does it feel? How will it serve you when it comes to accomplishing your goals?
Where do you allocate your time during an average week? Who made the choices as to how much time you allocate and where? - What do you do during the day to waste time? How many hours is this? (Think about this – if you watched TV just 2 hours each day, that would amount to 14 hours each week! Imagine what you could do with that time?)
- What can you change about what you’re currently doing to feel like you have more time?
Think about this: If you think your time is valuable, where are you spending it? This isn’t meant to be critical, it’s meant to make you think. We say to others our time is valuable and then we don’t use it in the best ways possible. What are the implications of the disconnect between what we say and what we do?
I’d love to continue the conversation. If you’re interested in working with me to explore your productivity habits, time allocation, and your business goals, let’s chat. Connect with me at
https://www.tarahelpdesk.com
To Your Success!
Tara
