Live in a way that makes time your friend

One of my personal values is to live deliberately. But what does that mean and how do we do it? For me it starts with two beliefs and ends with a little trick.

I believe that things can change. I can change and everything around me can change. I also believe that it’s possible for me to influence that change.

There are so many things within myself and my environment that I can control or influence, that if I work through them one by one, I will never run out. Think about that for a second.

Nelson Mandela believed this and its why he recited Invictus to his fellow prisoners on Robben Island.

I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

My little trick is to think about the direction of my life. I add up all my current habits, hobbies and relationships. From friendships to diet. Even how I spend, save and invest. What time I go to bed and wake up. My exercise routines and what I’m reading.

Then I hit fast forward in my mind and imagine where all this will lead me to in a year, 5 years and 20. Is this where I wanted to be?

Now I go back to the first principle and live deliberately. I am the captain. I can make course corrections. Shane Parish puts it well: “Live in a way that makes time your friend, not your enemy.”