Time & Money
Two big, practical things stopping people from doing what they want: time and money.
When spending money is an issue for me, I ask myself what money is for. Is it for helping improve the quality of my life and those around me? If yes, then that $75 copay feels a lot more manageable. When obtaining money is an issue, I start by identifying how much money I need and list resources that can help me get there.
Most of us have time. We wouldn’t want to admit it. Culture tells us we’re – bizarrely – not supposed to have it. But my guess is we do. One of my translations for “I don’t have the time” actually means I’m not willing to sacrifice my time for existing activity x for new activity y. It is a matter of prioritization.
I’m not saying these are the answers. Like coaching, these offerings are simply meant to provide a different perspective to get you out of your personal stories – the ones that aren’t working for you. We rarely get past these easy excuses when thinking about how we’d really like our life to look. And for good reason, time and money aren’t effortlessly dismissed. So let me pose another perspective: what would you do if time and money weren’t an issue?
Casting them aside can crack open some serious self-reflection. Yes – the juicy stuff you didn’t really want to think about. I won’t pretend to know what’s under your rocks, but mine often sound like you can’t do it because you’re not good enough; you will fail and people will judge you; it will be too hard. None of these are truths. Even if they come true, what’s the worst that could happen? They just feel bad. And as my coach reminds me: if the worst thing that happens is a feeling, is it really that bad?
Resources, like time and money, become available when we expose underlying fears and start supplanting them with more productive thoughts. It’s not a miracle – it’s where you put your attention and energy.
If you’re often letting time and money get in the way of things you’d like to say yes to, I can’t recommend coaching enough. And if you’re rolling up your sleeves to do some of the dirty work under those excuses, having a coach to support you through the process is an indispensable resource. Go ahead and schedule a consultation with me to discuss how coaching could look for you, or keep learning about coaching on my site.
Go get ‘em this week.