Make Your Time Count

The "now" that existed when you began to read this sentence is gone forever! No wonder the Apostle Paul wrote, "Redeeming the time for the days are evil." The greatest commodity you have is time. It is here and then it's gone.

Whew! That moment sure flew by! As they all do as the clock ticks on. Counting time is not nearly as important as making time count. The important thing in life is not how old you are, but how you are old; not how much time has passed in your life, but how you have passed your time!

So what is the best use of your time? While you are making a living, don't forget to make a life. Everyone has the same amount of time in a day. Those that use it wisely are the one’s that experience the most success.

Here are some ways to make your time count:

Enjoy your life by enjoying the present moment.

You can't relive your past, it's gone forever. You can't live the future; it's not here yet. The only time you have is the present moment. God desires for you to enjoy life.

Find a dream and pursue it.

Discover what you really want out of life and go after it! Do what you were created to do. Someone once said: "The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do."

Sincerely love people and treat them well.

Treat others with the respect and dignity they deserve as humans created in the image of God. Jesus taught that we are to love others as we love ourselves. In other words we are to treat others the same way we want to be treated.

Drop your regrets.

Live in the present, not in the past. Avoid self-tormenting language. "I should have . . ." "I could have . . ." "I wish I had . . ." "If only . . ." The Apostle Paul wrote, "Forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth to those things which are before, I press towards the prize for the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." Let the past go. There is nothing you can do to change it.

Learn to like yourself.

People who feel good about themselves are the most positive and productive people in the world. Jesus taught, "Love your neighbor as you love yourself." If you don't have a healthy self-concept (love) of yourself you won't have one of others.

Give every project your total concentration and maximum effort.

King Solomon once said, "Whatever your hands find to do, do with all your might." High achievers understand the value and necessity of giving it your all. It's easy to become distracted from the project at hand, however, only those who are able to focus their concentration and effort on what they are doing at the moment will achieve their goals.

Spend quality time with your family.

There is no greater relationship in the world as important as that of you and your family. Don't give them the leftover time of your life. Give them your best.

Spend quality time with your heavenly Father.

Time spent reading the word, meditating the promises and praying to God, is never wasted time. The prophet Daniel wrote, "The people that know their God, shall be strong and do exploits." The word “know," means to know in an intimate way. The only way intimacy can be developed with God, or others, is to spend time with them.

Guard your associations.

Choose your friends wisely. Run with the wise. The Bible says, "Evil associations, corrupts good manners." Whether you want to admit it or not, you become like the people you hang with.

Watch out for time wasters.

As you pursue making your time count, there will be many obstacles and distractions that rise before you. Before involving yourself in any pursuit ask your self this question: "Is this in line with my overall purpose and mission in life?"

Be Yourself

As author John Mason so aptly said, “You were born an original, don’t die a copy!” One of the biggest struggles of life is being the person you were created to be. All of us, at one time or another, struggle with our personal identity.

Far too many people live their whole lives trying to be someone they aren’t. It is frustrating to try to live someone else’s dream for your life instead of your own. High achievers are people that accept who they are and live by the dream in their heart.

In order to “Be Yourself,” it is imperative that you realize there is no one else in the world like you. No one else has your DNA, your fingerprint or your personality. If God had wanted you to be like someone else he would have made you a clone. God’s desire is for you to be the individual He made you to be.

Peer pressure is constantly trying to force you into one particular mold or another. As someone has said, “Don’t be a carbon copy, make your won impression.” Refuse to permit others to pressure you into being someone you aren’t.

Your significance, or value, is in your individuality, not in your similarities to others. Companies pay a premium to people that can do what no one else can do. Determine to not be like the rest of the world. Refuse to be average. Seek to excel in all you do. Coco Chanel said, “In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different.”

Keys to individuality:

Know your dreams.

What do you dream of doing or accomplishing? Make a list of everything you would like to do in life. If money were not an issue what would you pursue in life?

Know your talents.

What are you good at? What do you enjoy doing? What seems to come naturally to you? The answers to these questions are indicators as to your God-given talents and abilities.

Know your passion.

What is it that excites you? What stirs your creative juices? What do you really love? What drives or motivates you to action?

Believe in yourself.

If you are going to be the person you were made to be you must begin to believe in your dreams, your talents and your passion. You must believe not only that you will succeed but also that you have the right to succeed.

Develop your abilities.

Take a class. Attend a workshop. Get a job. Do whatever it takes to maximize the development of your talents and abilities. Practice them over and over again until they are perfect.

Accept your individuality.

Be happy being you. You are a match for why you were placed here on this earth. You are valuable. You have significance. You were born an original, don’t die a copy!

Adding Meaning to Your Life

When I die, I want to know that my life had meaning. I don’t want to live a full life only to look back and regret what I didn’t do. My wife likes to say, “Live each day so you have no regrets tomorrow.”

In order to live a meaningful life it is important to understand that you are not an accident. You are here with a destiny. The moment you were conceived in your mothers’ womb, God assigned purpose to your life.

All of your talents and abilities, your dreams and your aspirations, your strengths and weaknesses, your likes and dislikes are all keys to understanding your purpose in life. By developing and understanding each of these puts you on the path to living a meaningful life.

Meaning is found in fulfilling your life purpose. It is found in having a God-given dream and doing your part to see it become a reality.

Here are some ways to add meaning to your life:

Determine to make a positive difference in peoples lives.

Significance is found in you ability to make a positive difference in others lives. One key to making a difference is “Find a need and meet it.” There is no feeling so great as the one that follows helping others succeed.

Be a person of vision.

Vision adds meaning and gives direction to life. “Without a vision people perish.” Vision sees by faith what can be instead of what presently is. People with strong visions approach life with purpose and a sense of destiny.

Determine where you want to go in life.

As Denis Waitly says, “If you don’t know where you’re going, how are you going to know when you get there?” Destiny adds meaning to life. Highly successful people understand the value of goal setting. A goal is a dream with a deadline. Without goals you will never be able to live a meaningful life. Goals give you a target to aim at.

Be a person of planning.

Nothing of significance is done without planning. My mother always told me, “Plan your work and work your plan.” All highly successful coaches understand the value of a solid well thought out game plan. Like someone has so aptly said, “To fail to plan is to plan to fail.” Know where you are going and what you are going to do to get there.

Develop bounce-back-ability.

Everyone faces setbacks in life. In order to live a meaningful life one must learn to be resilient. One must refuse to let their setbacks cause them to stop what they are pursuing. Rather they should choose to use their setbacks as stepping-stones to their comeback.

Take personal control of your life.

Be responsible for your life. If you don’t take charge of your life, someone else will. Dream for yourself. Set goals for yourself. Develop your own expectations. Don’t allow yourself to get caught up in trying to be who everyone wants you to be. God has made you to have dominion or control of your life. (Genesis 1:23)

Develop communication skills.

Understand the value and power of words. What you say can make or break you. Remember, “Loose lips sink big ships.” Also learn to listen to others. Seek to understand them.

Learn to relax.

Lighten up. It is a proven fact; people that learn to live a relaxed life are more successful, fulfilled and happy. You cannot enjoy life if you are uptight all the time.

Develop a sense of humor.

Refuse to be overly serious about everything. Look on the light side. See the humor in life. Learn to laugh. “A merry heart does good like a medicine.”

Be a person of decision.

Life is about choices. You are the sum-total if the decisions you have made. All highly successful people not only know how to make the right decisions they also have disciplined themselves to live with the decisions they make. They don’t constantly second-guess themselves. Be decisive. Once you’ve made a decision don’t allow others to pressure you into changing your mind.

Do what you love money will follow.

Your reward should be found in what you are doing, not in what it pays. Money can be a harsh taskmaster. So many I come in contact with are more concerned about how much money they can make rather than living their God-given dream and pursuing their destiny. By determining to be the person God made you to be and doing the things God created you to do money will follow. It is a law that is inescapable. I have learned that my provision is at the place of my life assignment.

Be grateful.

An attitude of gratitude is essential to a meaningful life. You may not have everything you want in life, but you should be thankful for what you do have.

Have proper priorities.

One must get their life in order if they are going to live a meaningful life. Put first things first. Prioritize your activities in order of importance.

Cultivate relationships.

God made you to relate to others. It is imperative to seek to cultivate and develop good relations with others. No man is an island.

Include God in everything you do.

God is the source of all good things. God plus you are more than a match for anything. Solomon wrote, “In all your ways acknowledge him and he shall direct your steps.”

Mental Toughness

One quality that separates winners from those that aren't is mental toughness. Mental toughness is the conditioning of ones mind that keeps one going regardless of the circumstances. It is the ability to keep trying despite the pressure against you.

Great athletes, performers and highly successful business people possess this quality of mental toughness. They believe they will succeed at what they are doing regardless of how tough it might be. They live by the credo; "it's not over till it's over." Mentally tough people never give up. They are constantly looking for and believing for a way to win.

Mental toughness is not something a person is born with. It is something that must be developed. It will not grow over night. You have to start small. Every time you achieve success you become stronger mentally. Over time, with each added success, it grows to the point you believe you can accomplish anything you set out to accomplish.

Through mental toughness a person can focus on their goal in the face of great opposition or adversity. They are able to hold on to what they want in the presence of what they've got.

Tiger Woods, the young phenom on the PGA tour, is a prime example of what mental toughness is all about. In a recent tournament at Pebble Beach in Carmel California, Tiger trailed the tournament leader by seven strokes with seven holes to play. The average professional golfer would give up at this point and settle for a second or third place finish. After all, it isn't possible to make up that many strokes with so few holes to play.

But, this is what separates Tiger from his peers. He never believes he's out of the tournament. He believes that if he keeps trying good things are going to happen for him. And more often than not, they do. In this tournament he used mental toughness to execute tremendous golf shots and ultimately he won the tournament by two strokes. He accomplished the improbable, and what many thought the impossible, through being mentally tough.

Becoming mentally tough involves developing the following characteristics. They are attitude, sacrifice, self-denial, dedication, courage, and determination.

Your attitude is your outlook on life.

It is how you see things. It is your perspective. In order to be mentally tough you must begin to see the possibilities in circumstances not the impossibilities. You must choose to see what can be instead of what is. Looking for, expecting, and believing for the best develops your attitude.

Sacrifice involves what you are willing to pay for success.

How hard are you willing to work? How many hours are you willing to put in? Answers to these questions reveal your willingness to sacrifice for success.

Self-denial is what you are willing to give up in pursuit of your goals.

It is a willingness to give up instant gratification for long term success. It means not giving in to the pressure of the moment if it interferes with your goals and objectives. It means doing what you don't want to do in order to get what you really want.

Dedication is your ability to put all your time, energy and resources into reaching your goals.

It is giving 100% to a desired end. Dedication means that you do what has to be done in order to achieve your objectives and reach your goals. It is what keeps you going when the going gets tough.

Courage is your willingness to take a risk regardless of the odds.

It is not an absence of fear, but rather a commitment to what is required in the face of fear. Courage is the ability to stand for what you believe. It is the ability to go for your dream although others may think you are foolish. Mentally tough people are not afraid to do what they've never done in order to get what they've never had.

Determination is your ability to keep doing what needs to be done.

It is the decision to keep trying until you succeed. People that are determined don't know the meaning of quit. They live by the credo, "Quitters never win, and winners never quit!"

The Apostle Paul is an example of mental toughness. He said, "I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13) Paul faced much adversity in his ministry, yet he never succumbed to it. He had mental toughness that produced tenacity, which in turn produced great victory.