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Time Thieves Delay Goals
You know them as well as I do. The following are some of mine and Nicole’s time thieves, we really have to plan and prioritize. It’s that next smartphone notification, unplanned phone calls, appointments, endless email, staff crises, speaking schedules, meetings with others, a new problem with construction plans, decisions to be made, planning new events, keeping up with blogs, writing sermons, travel, decisions about our home life, spending time with family, paying bills, dreaming and shaping plans for a future.
This is a glimpse into our life, yet all the while we continue to try to grow and learn and MOST OF ALL keep God in the middle of it.
What does YOUR life look like? What are YOUR time thieves?
By the way, it’s a time thief if that stolen time should be directed towards your goals, it is not a thief if it supports your goals and is in balance.
We can only effectively have one focus at a time.
We can only have one focus at a time. Multi-tasking doesn’t really work. You THINK you’re doing more than one thing at a time, but it takes up to 10 seconds for your mind to switch gears between tasks and to truly FOCUS on that next task. So as you jump back and forth, nothing is TRULY getting your gifted time and focus.
“Whatever may be your task, work at it heartily (from the soul), as [something done] for the Lord and not for men…” (Colossians 3:23)
Why do some people seem to go further in life than others when we all have the same amount of time?
− Focus
− Concentration
− Effort
− Single-mindedness
Consider the power and effectiveness of a magnifying glass or laser. That type of concentrated energy can bring things into focus or burn or etch something permanently. Focus is powerful!
Distractions are time thieves.
– Email addiction, put the phone down, email begets email
– Texting
– Social media
– Smart (or dumb) Phone
Finding focus in a preoccupied world.
In 1971, renowned social scientist Herbert Simon observed, “What information consumes is rather obvious. It consumes the attention of its recipients. Hence a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention.”
What has your attention?
I was on a date with my wife one evening, but we were basically on a date with our phones. I looked up and someone else made her smile from a texted she’d received, and it wasn’t from me. That was eye-opening. I should have been.
What you focus on is what you keep.
I’ve mentioned this in more than one blog because family is foundational. Whether it is your family or origin or your family of choice, what you focus on is what you keep. Set goals and boundaries that ensure your family is included in your long term plan. It is family that will be by your bedside or at your funeral someday, so invest in them, as they will outlast any business venture.
Don’t let time thieves delay your goal.
“Remember when obstacles arise, you change your direction to reach your goal, you do not change your decision to get there.” ~ Zig Ziglar
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