Always feel like you are running a little bit behind?  Are you endlessly taking phone calls and responding to text messages?  Does it feel like other people are controlling your life?  What controls our time?

That’s a great question.  What controls our time?  Tasks and activities in which we have total control, and tasks and activities in which we have some control.

Let’s examine the tasks or activities in which we total control.  It’s kind of a short list.

Our attitude – we can coach ourselves to look for the positive rather than the negative.  Being optimistic can be a habit.

We have total control about whether we exercise or not.  Everybody asks, when we are going to lunch – no one ever asks when we are going to exercise.

What we eat.  I have never accidentally eaten anything. I’m sure you haven’t either.  However, I know if I eat a heavy lunch, I’m kind of tired and sluggish in the afternoon.  If I eat a lighter lunch, I feel a little peppier and enthusiastic.

We also have total control of what we say. We can slow down our thoughts, and the feelings that follow, and respond rather than react.  We do have options.  It is sometimes wise to bite our tongues.

We also have total control of what we read.  I remember what Brian Tracy said at one of his seminars I attended, “A person that can read and chooses not to…is no better than a person that can’t read.”  So, what’s in your library?

What are the tasks or activities in which we have “some” control?  We have some control with everything else in our lives.  We just need to take some of that control back.

We have some control concerning how we spend our free time, what we volunteer to do, where we live, what we do for a living, what time we go to bed, what time we get up, who we spend time with and how much.  The list goes on and on.  If we can control our decisions we can control our time and our life.

When we feel overwhelmed, it is important to take stock of our life, consider all of the activities in which we have become involved.  We need to seriously consider whether it is a good use of our time. It might just be time to trim our task list.

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