Time Flies When You Need It Most

One week.

That's how long it took for me to miss my target of once-a-week blog posts. It's tough. If I write a blog post, I'm not working on the book. If I work on the book, I'm missing an opportunity to keep you all in the loop on my progress.

I've always been bad at balancing my time. With me, it's either all or nothing. One thing or another. I started to learn balance nearly 2 years ago, when I got married. My wife, Arkann, taught me that you can't always be programming, writing, working... Sometimes you need to take a step back and reserve some time to watch Friends with your spouse. (Note: I still prefer The Office. Sorry Arkann.)

If you don't set aside that relaxation time, then even if you do accomplish everything you want, you may do it at the expense of your spouse's happiness. And if that's the case, is it even worth it?

So I learned to add some relaxing time into my workaholic tendencies. But that doesn't mean I gave up my goals. I learned to maximize my time. Like, seriously maximize.

I essentially studied for my real-estate license during bathroom breaks and meals. (I spend plenty of time eating and pooping. #NoShame)

I'm writing this blog post on the metro ride home. In fact, most of my stories were written almost entirely on the metro. You can make amazing use of time with a charged cell phone. And no, Snapchat / Instagram / whatever the kids are doing these days doesn't count.

If you find yourself yearning to do something with your time, but not knowing how to start... Just start. Figure out what you're losing your time to. If it's apps, delete them. If it's social media, set up a time-limiting app. Think about what you want to see yourself accomplish. If you aren't any closer to it than you were a week, a month, or a year ago, then your time is being stolen from you by things you don't need.

I used to tell myself "When I finish working and earning money, I can retire and do what I really want: write a book, coach basketball, etc." But years passed, and I was no closer to publishing my book, or coaching.

You can always get more money, but your time is the truly limiting factor. Make use of it doing the things you want with your life.

I decided I would not wait to become the person I wanted to be. Instead, I woke up one morning and said "What am I waiting for?" and I got started. I reached out to high schools and coached basketball after work. I stopped browsing Facebook on the metro long enough to write my story.

Don't wait. Be realistic about your goals, and evaluate what is most important to you. If you're not getting closer to those goals (and be honest), make an actionable plan to reach them. Waiting for something to happen is not a plan.

Put your goal in your control.

#Rhymes