One of my least favorite things to hear people say, and something I don’t allow myself to even say is “I don’t have time.” We all have time. You’re spending your time reading this right now. You could be spending the time on a million other things: working out, walking your dog, cleaning your house, etc. Saying you don’t have time is a lie. So, stop using it as an excuse.

If I’m honest with myself, I have all the time I need to do what I need to do and what I want to do. So do you. If you find yourself saying “I don’t have time” in regard to something you should be doing or want to be doing, re-evaluate your life. Maybe you’d love to take a painting class but you just don’t have time. Maybe you know you should exercise but just can’t find the time to go for a 30-minute walk when you get home from work. Maybe you don’t have time to get around to reading that book you’ve always wanted to read. Well, the way you make more time is by saying no to things. Prioritizing.

I realized last spring that I wanted to spend more time outdoors, so I bought a bike and started biking to work. It’s been, I would almost venture to say, life changing. I love it. Yeah, it takes twice as long as driving but I made the time by not lifting weights or not running on my bike days. I always wanted a dog (and to give him an awesome life) so I set up my life to where I don’t work 12-hour days. I cut evening activities and even some social activities so I could spend time with my pup. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. At work, when I find myself feeling overwhelmed and “not having enough time,” I cut. Maybe I go without addressing a patient’s elevated blood pressure or skip offering a flu shot or overlook their comment about an eye twitch—to focus on addressing the patient’s need for birth control and her complaint of knee pain. I only have so many minutes.

Not everything is important. Not everything needs to be done. You have all the time you need – it’s up to you how you choose to spend it. I would encourage you to make time to exercise each day. Stop believing the lie you don’t have time. Cut your social media scrolling back to one hour a day; forgo watching the news in the morning; eat breakfast at home instead of driving a little out of the way to get food (that could save you 15+ minutes). Say no to some things so you can say “yes” to others. You have time. It’s up to you how you spend it. ~