You'll never be able to catch up on the woulda, shoulda, couldas. But from this day forward you can create the world you want to have.



A few years ago, my husband and I decided to volunteer to do some church work at the urging of our friends. We had very busy schedules but felt the need to help where we were asked to help. This meant we had to get up at 5 a.m. and working until 6 to 12. With full time jobs and personal errands this seemed an almost impossible feat. But we did it.

We thought how are we going to keep up with our jobs, do the lawn work, clean the house, do the shopping, laundry, family, sleep and still do this?

It was an amazing journey into the self-discovery of learning what is important and how to prioritize what needed to be done. We found we had even more time - we actually went to the movies more, out to dinner, we accomplished a great deal more in every 24 hours than we did before we started. It was challenging at first but we did manage to work it out. It comes down to what do you really want to do? Not just dream about it but actually want to achieve it.

Sometimes companies call in experts at time management to create a work environment that increases the productivity of their employees. My husband recently got the chance to participate in one of these month long assessments. Everything he did was documented, if he talked on the phone, they wanted to know why, how long, and the result. Everyone on his team went through this process. It was tedious and a real pain (at least from my perspective).

In the end, this company was able to give some very constructive advice to enhance the work environment and productivity. In essence, they weeded out the unnecessary and honed the teams focus so they were able to accomplish more in the same 8 hours of daily work.

There are simple steps to deciding what we want to do in order to accomplish all we want out of life. Start today, keep a journal of all the things you do, how long it takes, and the results. At the end of the month go back and add up all the times for all the different things.

Talking with Aunt Betty for 2 hours everyday may actually the difference in your taking the art class you really want to take. After careful consideration, you can decide what to cut out or cut back on. Maybe tell Aunt Betty, you have to run, you just started a new class and you'll be late. Tell her you'll call her Sunday afternoon for a nice chat. Eventually, she too may find something to do that she has been wanting to do and you'll both be happier.

So, go out there and get what you want out of life. It's yours, all yours and you deserve it.