It’s the age-old question, how to reconcile the fact that life is so short?
Make the most of every nanosecond.
Or at least, die trying…
Wasting time
Archived Posts from this Category
May 11, 2010
A short time to live
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: die, Life, nanosecond, question, short, Time, try |Leave a Comment
May 10, 2010
Day by day
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Life leadership, Procrastination, Results, Serenity, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: apathy, frenzy, Life, pretense, Time |1 Comment
| “Perfection of character is this: to live each day as if it were your last, without frenzy, without apathy, without pretense.” | |
| Marcus Aurelius (121–180) Roman emperor, philosopher |
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In other words, we should try to be fully aware of each moment, to do one thing at the time with people, to be active and productive and to simply be ourselves.
May 9, 2010
Why not forgive NOW?
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Control, Courage, Criticism, Death, Decision, Procrastination, Serenity, Time, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: Death, forgiveness, Life, selfishness, Time |Leave a Comment
“Forgive yourself before you die. Then forgive others”
Morrie Schwartz ( Tuesdays with Morrie p.164)
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Why is it so important to forgive ourselves? Why is it so important to forgive others as soon as we can?
Forgiving ourselves and others is an act of letting go, it is also an act of selfishness because when we let go, we let go of the emotions that are poisoning our day. Who needs these emotions? Shouldn’t we use our limited time and energy for more exciting activities?
Morrie said “Forgive yourself and others before you die”
But since we don’t know when we are going to die, why not forgive NOW?
If we know that we will eventually forgive, why wait?
May 8, 2010
Advice from Vince Lombardi.
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Choices, Results, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: Life, mistake, Time |Leave a Comment
“If you’re not making mistakes, you’re not trying hard enough.”
— Vince Lombardi, football coach
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There is nothing wrong with making mistakes. This is how we learn.
Where did we get the idea that we have to avoid making mistakes?
What we should try to avoid is repeating the same mistake over and over again.
When we learn from our mistakes, we improve our quality of life and we save time in the long run.
Do you try to avoid making mistakes at all cost?
May 7, 2010
Forget the past !
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Life leadership, Serenity, Success, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: Life, mistake, Now, past, Time |1 Comment
“Forget the past and live in the present hour”
Sarah Knowles Bolton
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There is not much you can do about your past. The only thing you can do is learn from it and try not to repeat the same mistakes.
But what if I cannot learn from my past mistakes? First, forgive yourself for not learning the lesson, then pay the price one more time until you sick of learning the same lesson over and over again.
Which lesson are you willing to learn over and over again?
May 4, 2010
Why would people waste their time criticizing others?
Posted by stephenlafond under Choices, Complaining, Criticism, Important question, Kvetching, Serenity, Time, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: criticism, waste, wasting time |[2] Comments
What do most people get out of criticizing others? I simply can’t understand that.
Sometimes, I still find myself doing it . I hate it when I do this.
What a waste of time. Live and let live.
Do you often “catch” yourself criticizing others?
Shouldn’t we learn to appreciate others?
What do we get out of it ?
May 2, 2010
Change! Change! Change !
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Choices, Complaining, Consequence, Courage, Decision, Important question, Life, Life leadership, Procrastination, Results, Time, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: attitude, change, complain |1 Comment
“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude. Don’t complain.”
— Maya Angelou, poet
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Good luck with this one. Have a nice day.
May 1, 2010
Seneca & Benjamin Franklin
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Aware, Awareness, Choices, Decision, Important question, Life, Life leadership, Procrastination, Results, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: Benjamin Franklin, Life, Time, waste, wasting time |1 Comment
“It is not that we have a short life to live but we waste a lot of it”
Seneca
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Sometimes we waste our time because we don’t have much control over what is happening to us. In this case, there’s not much we can do about it.
At other times we waste our time because we lack a definite purpose in our lives.
This we can do something about. We must take the time to ask ourselves the important questions, the ones that concern only us.
It may look like a waste of time at first, but in the long run, it will save us time.
Benjamin Franklin used to ask himself these important questions every night before he went to sleep.
What did I do wrong today?
What did I do right ?
What can I improve tomorrow?
Apparently, he did this for most of his life.
If you want to learn more about this, I recommend that you read his autobiography. It will make you realize that even if he had lived more than 250 years ago, he was facing similar challenges like the ones we have to deal with today.
Great weekend to all of you!
April 29, 2010
Under which influence are you living ?
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Aware, Awareness, Choices, Clarity, Decision, Here, Important question, Life, Life leadership, Results, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: disillusion, influence, Life, Time |[2] Comments
Some of us live under the influence of alcohol.
The influence is good as long as we are under the influence. The next morning, the influence can be quite different.
Some of us live under the influence of shopping, and the influence is good until as we receive the credit card monthly statement…
Some of us live under the influence of gambling, and the influence is good until as we realize that the house always wins against most of us.
Some of us live under the influence of buying expensive toys to impress others who don’t care at all. This influence is gone when we realize that we become a slave of this habit.
Some of us are under the influence of a new religion, and the influence seems to disappear when that special God of ours doesn’t answer our requests.
Some of us indulge in sexual escapism, and the influence is gone when the temporary thrill is over.
Some of us will study philosophy and believe that they have found the Way, only to wake up later and realize that their particular philosophy can fail them.
Some of us will swear by the world of reason and science, only to discover the actual limitations of our understanding. At least at this point of our evolution.
Some of us will invest in the joy of parenthood only to realize later that our kids will be entitled to their own lives.
Some of us will want to earn a lot of money until they realize that money can’t buy love.
And while most of us live under one kind of influence or another, Time goes by.
Under what kind of influence are you living ?
Is this the kind of influence that you enjoy?
It’s up to you!
April 28, 2010
Consequences
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Aware, Awareness, Choices, Clarity, Consequence, Decision, Illusion, Results, Wasting time | Tags: Choices, consequences, Life, mistakes, Time |Leave a Comment
We have control over our choices, but we don’ t have any control over the consequences of our choices.
What this means is that we don’t always know how things will turn out.
What it means is that we can’t always predict how people will respond to our decisions.
That is why we should be aware of our choices as much as possible if we want to improve our quality of life.
Sometimes our decisions can result in big mistakes that will be costly in time.
From the moment that we know clearly what we want, it becomes easier to make the best possible choices for ourselves. These decisions are unique for each one of us.
Do you ever think of the big difference between your choices and the consequences of your choices?
April 24, 2010
Julius Caesar on worrying
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Courage, Fear, Important question, Life, Procrastination, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: Life, Time, worry, worrying |[3] Comments
“As a rule, men worry more about what they can’t see than about what they can.”
Julius Caesar
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Why do we worry so much?
What do we get out of it?
What’s in it for us?
It is true that we worry more about the unseen and the unknown.
Many people who have written or spoken about worry have told the statistics story. The earliest source that we could find of the story and most probable author was Thomas S. Kepler. He wrote about a woman who realized fears were ruining her life. She began to keep track of what was worrying her and she found:
40% of the things she worried about were about things that would never happen.
30% of the things she worried about were about things that had already happened, water under the bridge.
12% of the things she worried about were about others’ opinion. When she thought about it, she realized that criticisms are often made by those that are jealous or insecure; therefore unjust criticism is a disguised compliment.
10% of the things she worried about were needless health worries, which made her health worse as she worried.
8% of the things she worried about were “legitimate,” since life has some real problems to meet.
If you consider the above as probable statistics, it would seem that only 8% of the things that you worry about are worth the worry. Next time you are worried about something, perform a check to see if the worry is in a category other then the 8% category and if it is, perhaps logic will help free you from the worry.
Will This Matter a Year from Now?
How much quality time do I spend worrying?
April 23, 2010
Why wait?
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Illusion, Life, Now, Procrastination, Serenity, Time, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: Life, Time |[2] Comments
Do you ever find yourself saying:
When I’m older, I’ll do this…
Or when it’s time or when I have a chance…
When I finish school, I’ll be able to…
When I have more money…
When I get married, I’ll be …
When the house is paid, we’ll go …
When the kids leave the house, we’ll move…
When I retire, I’ll have more time to…
When I’m dying… Oh no not already… AHHHHHHH…
We should learn to enjoy the road while we are travelling, because if we put all our hopes on the destination, we could be disappointed.
Most of the time, the anticipation is more exciting than the actual outcome.
For years, I wanted to be older, but NOT ANYMORE.
What about you?
April 22, 2010
Is there a life after death ?
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Aware, Awareness, Choices, Courage, Death, Life, Life leadership, Now, Procrastination, Time, Wasting time | Tags: afterlife, Death, Life, sense, Thoreau, Time |[5] Comments
The real question for me is : Is there a life BEFORE death ?
When they asked Henry David Thoreau his opinion on the afterlife, he answered to them: One Life at the time.
Sometimes , it seems to me that some of the people who worry the most about the afterlife are often the ones who don’t know what to do with this one.
Why should we worry about the unknown, why should we worry about something over which we seem to have very little control?
I hear many people talking about faith and yet, at the same time worrying constantly, how can they worry and have faith at the same time? Isn’t worrying the opposite of faith?
Do you spend too much of your time worrying about things over which you have no control?
Does this make any sense to you?
April 21, 2010
Full Consciousness and full acceptance
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Aware, Awareness, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, Aware, Awareness, Life, Time |[3] Comments
Only when your consciousness is totally focused on the moment you are in can you receive whatever gift, lesson, or delight that the moment has to offer.
Barbara de Angelis
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It seems to me that we are stubborn students of life.
Life seems to tell us; here is a situation you need to face for your own developpement, and yet, most of the time, we will try to avoid the lesson. Why? Because it’s too damned hard! The funny thing about this is; the lesson we try to avoid seems to come back to us in many unexpected ways. Somehow, we can’t escape it.
When we focus on the moment and accept to face what we have to, it is difficult, but it is one of the best way to grow.
What does this post have to do with time?
The sooner we understand this concept and that we put it in practice, the more time we will save to do other activities that we really enjoy. Have a nice day.
April 20, 2010
Are You Afraid of Dying ?
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Courage, Death, Fear, Important question, Life, Time, Wasting time | Tags: dare, Death, disease, Life, Procrastination, Time |[7] Comments
Most people I know prefer to avoid the subject of their own mortality. I know , it’s not the most exciting subject, but I think it’s a mistake not to look at death straight in the face for what it really is. Why? Because if we would dare to look at death , most of us would change a lot of things that we are currently procrastinating about.
We have seen this happen many times: when someone gets diagnosed with an incurable disease, when they learn how much time they have left to live , they change a lot of things in their life.
Some of the people who went through this extreme experience said that it was the most intense, fulfilling genuine experience they ever had.
My question to you is: Why wait until you have no time left before making significant changes in your life?
April 19, 2010
Procrastination
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Choices, Failure, Fear, Life leadership, Procrastination, Success, Time, Wasting time | Tags: desire, determination, existence, Life, persistence, Procrastination, Time, world |[2] Comments
“Procrastination,the presence of mere intention, is the bane of humane existence.”
Unknown author
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How many times in our lives did we say; we should be doing this or we should be doing that, and then nothing happens.
Why?
Is it a lack of determination?
Is it a lack of desire?
Is it a lack of persistence?
It could be, but what if it was something else?
What if it was because we think that we have all the time in the world? Do we really have so much time?
I’ll let you answer these questions for yourself. Have a great week.
April 16, 2010
A life of quiet desperation
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Aware, Awareness, Choices, Clarity, Complaining, Control, Courage, Failure, Fear, Illusion, Important question, Serenity, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, chance, change, desperation, feel, Life, lives, men, quiet, Time |Leave a Comment
“The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation”
Henry David Thoreau
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If this is how you feel, there is still a chance to change it. It’s up to you.
Will you?
April 15, 2010
Time is a tool, not a couch!
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Results, Time, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, actor, choir, contest, couch, golf, hockey, individual, karaoke, Kennedy, reality show, spectator, Time, tool |Leave a Comment
- We must use time as a tool, not as a couch.
- John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1917-63)
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- If If someone is watching a reality show about dancing on TV, aren’t they using time as a couch? If someone is taking some dancing lessons with a friend or partner, aren’t they using time as a tool?
- If someone is watching a reality show about singing, aren’t they using time as a couch? If someone is taking singing lessons, entering a karaoke contest or joining a choir, aren’t they using time as a tool?
- If someone is watching hockey or golf on TV, aren’t they using time as a couch? If someone is playing hockey or golf with friends, aren’t they using time as a tool? Is your satisfaction in the watching or in the doing?Are you a spectator or an actor?
Which one will make grow you as an individual?
April 10, 2010
Unimportant Things
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Choices, Consequence, Control, Courage, Decision, Important question, Life, Life leadership, Results, Serenity, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, important, improvement, Life, things, Time, unimportant |1 Comment
“No matter how small and unimportant what we are doing may seem, if we do it well, it may become the step that will lead us to better things.”
Channing Pollock
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This is encouraging and inspiring ! Why ? Because there is always room for improvement
Don’t you think so?
April 9, 2010
Stay hungry , stay foolish
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Aware, Awareness, Courage, Death, Decision, Fear, Here, Important question, Life, Life expectancy, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time, Wisdom | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, foolish, hungry, startup coach, stay, steve jobs |1 Comment
I really enjoyed this clip and I’m sharing it with you.
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April 9, 2010
Are you busy like the ants?
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Awareness, Choices, Clarity, Life leadership, Now, Results, Serenity, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, ant, ants, busy, Life, people, Time |[3] Comments
It is not enough to be industrious; so are the ants. What are you industrious about?
Henry David Thoreau
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Some people are so busy.Really? Busy doing what exactly ? Do you really want to do what you do everyday ?
If you had 10 million dollars, would you keep doing what you are doing now?
Do you enjoy what you do so much that you would gladly to do it for free?
What is YOUR answer ?
April 8, 2010
Preparation is essential
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Aware, Awareness, Choices, Clarity, Important question, Results, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, Life, opportunities, preparation, Time, Tom Peters |[3] Comments
Preparation is essential, but even more essential is the willingness to let go of a plan in a flash and off in a revised direction.
Tom Peters ( perhaps influenced by John Boyd United States Air Force fighter pilot and military strategist)
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If you want to use your time in the most productive way, it is important to plan and prepare, then start and finish.But you have to keep your eyes and your options open to new opportunities when they arise. Your biggest opportunity could turn out to be life changing and life enhancing.
How do you make sure to keep your eyes open so that opportunities don’t pass you by?
April 6, 2010
Life is what happens to you… Was inspired by John Lennon.
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Choices, Courage, Decision, Here, Life leadership, Now, Results, Time, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, busy, happen, John Lennon, Life, Now, peace, Time |1 Comment
“Life is what happens to you while your busy making other plans”
John Lennon (1940-80) British rock musician
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We often say things like, “when I’m older, I’ll do this; if I had more time, I would start this project; when my children are grown up, I’ ll have more time to take care of myself.” If, If, If, when, when, when…are just excuses to test our determination.
When we really care about someone, we do what we must do.
When we really care about something, we become very creative in order to get what we want.
What we can be, we must become, ultimately, it is one of the best ways to be at peace with ourselves.
Stop waiting and Start acting NOW.
What are you waiting for?
April 5, 2010
Buddhist Wisdom …
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Aware, Awareness, Here, Life leadership, Now, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time | Tags: 36525 days, greed, Life, possessiveness, rich, Time, today |Leave a Comment
In India, Buddhist aspirants used to visit burning grounds and watch the corpses of those whose families couldn’t afford a cremation rot away. They did this to terrify the GREED and POSSESSIVENESS out of themselves. After that, they changed their perspective about life, death and what was the most essential things in their lives.
As of 5 April 2010, the human population of the world is estimated by the United States Census Bureau to be 6,812,400,000.
It is estimated that 156 000 people on this planet are dying everyday. One day it will be our turn.
I don’t care how rich you are, I don’t care how smart you are, I don’t care how proud you are, because, ultimately, your only real earthly possession is : TODAY.
Can you always tell the difference between your needs and your wants?
When we become too possessive, doesn’t it remind you of little kids who refuse to share their toys?
April 2, 2010
The thief of time
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, afraid, health, Life, money, people, poet, Procrastination, thief, Time |1 Comment
“Procrastination is the thief of time.”
Edward Young (1683-1765) British poet
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A lot of people are afraid to lose their health.
In most cases, we can and will regain our health.
A lot of people are afraid to lose their friends.
We can always make new friends.
A lot of people are afraid to lose their money.
But we can always earn more money.
Very few people are conscious of the time they are wasting
Procrastination robs us of our time, life is short.
In which area of your life are you procrastinating?
Why ?
April 2, 2010
Time is a great teacher
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Life leadership, Time, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, teacher, teachers, Time |Leave a Comment
“Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils”
Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) French composer
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Time is a great teacher when we dare to make mistakes.
Time is a greater and more effective teacher when we accept to learn from our mistakes.
Time is the greatest and wisest teacher when we learn from the mistakes of others and avoid to make them ourselves.
Time will eventually kill all of us, and since we don’t know when, one of the most important lessons Time can teach us is: To live each day like if it was our last .
What would you do differently if you learned that you had 100 days left to live?
If you can find YOUR right answer to this question, Why wait ?
April 1, 2010
Now is the time!
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Courage, Life leadership, Time, Time magagement, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, legacy, martin luther king, nobel, Now, passion, Results, task, Time |Leave a Comment
“Now is the time”
Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968)
American civil rights leader & Noble prize Prize winner
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Martin Luther King died at 39 years of age. When we look at everything he accomplished in such a short period of time,
I think that he fully practiced what he preached. He was totally focused on his task.
What fascinates me is that with so little time, he produced RESULTS that are timeless.
Doesn’t it fascinate you that he accomplished so much in so little time?
How focused are you on YOUR tasks , on YOUR projects, on YOUR life passion?
What will be YOUR legacy?
Do you even care?
March 29, 2010
Why are they kvetching all the time?
Posted by stephenlafond under Choices, Complaining, Important question, Kvetching, Life leadership, Time magagement, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, Kvetching, Life, Time |[4] Comments
It seems to me that some people are complaining and complaining and do nothing else.
If only they would realize how short life really is, they would come to the conclusion that their complaining is a waste of precious time, time that will never come back.
Since our time is so limited, doesn’t it make sense to figure out what we really enjoy and try to spend as much time as possible doing it? Again, I know, it is so obvious, so why are there so few people doing it?We all have responsibilities, but we also have spare time, and it is in that spare time that we can improve our quality of life.
Shouldn’t we all try to find a way to make a living while having fun?
Do you find yourself complaining too much?
Do you think it’s a waste of time and energy?
March 26, 2010
Sweet illusion, disappointing results
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Choices, Illusion, Life leadership, Results, Time magagement, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, Illusion, Life, reality, Results, Time, vigilance |[2] Comments
One of the great illusions in our life is to be addicted to busyness, it gives us the feeling of being productive, but are we really?There are so many demands in our life that it becomes very easy to lose focus.Our attention is requested by family members, people who depend on us and friends who want to spend time with us.Then there is the information overload or all kinds of other activities. It’s not always easy to SAY NO to less important activities when we should SAY YES to our most important projects. It requires constant vigilance.
The time that we waste will never come back. I repeat; the time that we waste will never come back.
It is a sad reality but it is also a great wake-up call.
How do you make sure that you don’t waste too much precious time?
March 23, 2010
Why do so many people waste so much time?
Posted by stephenlafond under 36525 days, Choices, Life leadership, Time magagement, Wasting time | Tags: 36525, 36525 days, Life, people, Time, waste |[6] Comments
I’m astonished how so many people in so many fields of activity and from different backgrounds are wasting so much time. Think of all the kids who are wasting too much time on video games instead of learning practical and useful skills. Think of all the adults who are wasting too much time watching television or surfing aimlessly on the Web. Think of all the people of all ages wasting time on the phone or chatting on the net. What a waste of resources. Of course, we need to relax once in a while and it is good sometimes to do some mindless activities. But how much is too much?
What do you think ?
36525 days to live 