#40 What have you decided not to do?

I don't have enough time.
I have no breathing room.
I'm always being chased by something.

When we feel that way,
we unconsciously
start looking for
ways to be more efficient.

However,
is that really
what we should be asking?

As we learn The 7 Habits together,
we keep returning to a certain perspective.

Time management is not
about using time well.

A day is
24 hours for everyone.

You cannot increase it,
nor can you decrease it.

Even so,
the way it is used
differs completely from person to person.

What creates that difference?
Is it ingenuity?
Is it ability?

Or is it—
is it choice?

Here,
let's change our perspective just a little.

Today,
what did I
decide
not to do?

If an answer doesn't come to mind
to this question immediately,

perhaps we are
ending our day
without having decided anything.

What happens
when we haven't decided what 'not to do'?

Someone else's expectations.
Sudden requests.
The urgency right in front of us.

They
quietly, yet surely,
take control of our day.

Last time,
we established the perspective that
'what is important
is determined by
your own end (goal).'

If that is the case,

what if you are still doing things today
that are not important
to that end?

What kind of feeling
does that
create?

Deciding "not to do" something
is not the same as being lazy.

It is not running away,
nor is it giving up.

It might be
a choice to protect your own end.

Finally,
let's return to the first question.

What have you
decided
not to do?

Today,
if you were to dare to let something go,
what would it be?

It is in that very space
that what is truly important
may return.