You Can Do Anything But Not Everything- Why You Need To Be Selfish With Your Time- Part 1
We have a finite amount of:
Time
Energy
Motivation/ Will
You can do anything, but not everything sums up the urgency of doing what matters in your life now.
Not everything is worth your time, and energy. Not every battle is worth fighting for, hence pick and choose your battles.
Discernment is key
You need to be wise enough to choose what matters to you at each stage of your life as you navigate it. Otherwise, you will get swept along the tide of what others expect of you and the societal expectations etc.
Eg if you want someone to grow old with and spend your days with it is wise to actively date, and give yourself as many opportunities to meet someone. It is pointless to expect to meet someone if you stay hidden away at home. This may mean reorganising your schedule so you have time to do social events and potentially meet someone.
For example, if you have a business or career perhaps you may want to focus 110% on those during those seasons and others seasons focus on your family, personal development or fitness.
It’s pointless to focus on a single area and neglect other areas of your life.
For eg focusing on fitness alone without finding ways to make money and survive,
Another eg, is focusing so much on your career, that you do not have a social life and that you lose the opportunity to find a potential mate. You didn’t succeed either.
Or perhaps it’s working so much on your business that your health declines and you can’t take care of yourself and your family, or you realise that you missed the opportunity to travel, explore the world and live your best.
What then should I prioritise?
Most people that l have met much wiser than me have told me that the important things are the things that we usually neglect when we are young and growing up:
Time with family and friends
Experiences and travel
Dating/ Relationships
Mental health
Personal goals
Non-priority things that happen as you journey through life are:
Getting a qualification- Being educated
Getting a job- Joining the workforce
Paying bills, rent and taxes
The big things in life are the “rocks”, things that make a difference and we remember when we are old and grey. The “sand” in this image is the fluff that we go through in life, things that will happen in life but are not necessarily as important years down the road when we are old and grey.
Green rock balls
Those are things that really matter in life and something that you will cherish as you go through life.
Family and friends
Dating/ Relationships
Experiences/ Travel
Personal goals
Mental health
Personal Beliefs/ Faith
Sand
Those are things that happen in life without much effort but something that automatically happens as you journey through life
Job/ Job title
Status
Material possessions
What people think of you- Realising it doesn’t matter since most people are too worried about their own lives to think about yours.
Final thoughts
When you prioritise things that matter, the non-priorities also will find a way to fall in line. However, if you do the reverse and prioritise things that don’t matter long term, you end up with regret.
Choosing to exercise discernment and wisdom is key in doing what matters most now because we only have so much in a day with what we have and what we can give.
Lastly, we can do anything, but we can’t do everything.