The biggest lie we tell ourselves is “I don’t have time.”
Years ago, my husband and I checked off a bucket list item. We flipped a house. (Let me tell you, it is a lot harder than they make it look on TV.)
We needed to flip this house in the smallest amount of time possible.
My husband worked 40 hours + every week. I was teaching plus enrolled in a coaching program. We both had full schedules plus whatever activities our kids needed to get to and weekly house duties that needed to be done.
Before taking on this challenge, I would have adhered to the BIG LIE that we did not have time to do anything extra.
Once we took on the big task of renovations, there was no turning back. We spent evenings and weekends painting, drywalling and installing. Amazingly we got everything done without feeling overly spent.
I remember saying to my husband:
“What were we doing with our time before this?”
If we could achieve this plus everything else, what had changed?
What changed was how we prioritized our time to hit our target. Suddenly, we became hyper aware of our calendars.
The renovation made me realize this:
What gets scheduled, gets done.
There is plenty of time in the day; it is how you use your time that counts. It doesn’t matter whether you are flipping a house, wanting to become a better leader or developing a meditation practice.
Only what you schedule and commit to will create results. Truly, how much time do you waste in a day because you don't have a plan?
Here is another example of success I experienced (once I put the BIG LIE behind me):
I increased the number of books I read. I wanted to read more than a handful of books per year. After interviewing a Soul Sister Conversations podcast guest who reads 50 books a year PLUS raises 3 small boys and juggles a busy real estate career, I was inspired to read more.
My guest told me she started with a reading habit of 10 minutes a day. I thought to myself,
"I can do that!"
So, I committed to 10 minutes of reading per day. Eventually I increased that time then I started finding other times in the day to read. All of a sudden, the number of books read was piling up. The first year I read 25 books in a year. This well surpassed the number of books I read in previous years.
I felt proud of myself.
How did I overcome the BIG Lie? I committed to 10 minutes each morning. This was a powerful, yet small habit that created big results.
How do you overcome the BIG Lie:
Decide what it is you want to commit to.
Create a small goal that is easy to sustain.
Make space for the activity in your calendar.
Show up for that scheduled time.
Stick with it even when the excuses arise (and they will).
What will happen once you put the BIG Lie behind you?
You will get more done.
You will feel good about yourself. (Less beating yourself up about what you should be doing)
You will positively impact your personal & professional life.
Coaching Question: Where in your life do you use the BIG LIE, “I don’t have time”?
Want to start your week off inspired?
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