People always seem to have enough time for things they shouldn’t be doing

Einstein ‘s theory of relativity proved that time shrinks and expands according to our mood.

Our intention before something, plus our attention during that something, determines our experience. It all depends on how we choose to occupy the space we find ourselves in.

As the classic illustration goes, when you put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, it feels like an hour. But when you sit with your beloved for an hour, it feels like a minute.

This theory has profound applications to our daily lives. More than people might realize.

For example, have you ever struggled to focus your attention on a single task or sit still for long periods of time?

Of course you have. There are many areas of life that can be boring, dreadful, repetitive and soul sucking.

I once worked an ad agency job where all of my work was basically finished by eleven o’clock each morning. Which gave me about five hours to kill each afternoon. The hands of time seemed to move at a snail’s pace. Each day dragged on like a bad cold.

It’s amazing what kinds of bullshit you can come up with to pass the time. What did people even do before the internet?

Anyway, after several months of this routine, I eventually grew tired of pissing the minutes away. I needed to start an exciting new project that would actually engage my head and heart during downtime at the office. Otherwise work would continue to feel like a slog.

That’s when I began channeling my frustration into what would become the source material for my first concert documentary. In between tasks for my work clients, I wrote down ideas for song lyrics, stories, sermons and scenes. Ideas poured out of me like a faucet. This new movie would be a completely new medium for expressing my sentiments. One that would challenge me to elevate my creativity to a new level and evolve into my next iteration as an artist.

As you might suspect, suddenly there weren’t enough hours in the day. Once all my outstanding client tasks were complete, it was back to chipping away at my fiery new extracurricular pursuit. About a year later, the result of that work became one of my proudest and most cherished creative projects.

What shifted in my situation? Did time suddenly speed up because some divine force was looking out for me?

Of course not. I simply chose to occupy the space I found myself in differently. My intention before work, and my attention during it, altered my experience. It was relativity at its finest.

You know, it’s funny. People are addicted to complaining about how busy they are, and how they don’t have enough time for habits and routines that will improve their lives.

And yet, they always seem to have enough time for things they shouldn’t be doing. They always manage to talk themselves out of doing what they know they should to be doing.

Nielsen reports that the average person watches over five hours of television per day. That’s over thirty hours a week. That’s over seventy days a year. Don’t tell me you don’t have time. And don’t tell me you have attention deficit disorder.

Clearly, people have the ability to pay perfect attention to the things that amuse them, and yet magically lose their focus when it comes to the boring and difficult things.

It’s like the toddler who’s cries about not being hungry for broccoli, but suddenly gets his appetite back when he sees a plate of cookies.

Each of us has incontrovertible proof that we already know how to focus. It all depends on how we frame the experience. It all depends on the nature and context of the activity.

With the right intention and attention, we take control over our psychic environment, uncover our existing ability to concentrate, and use it in service of our dreams.

Are you trying to make more time, or trying not to give it away when you don’t really mean to?