Have you ever had a day where you just couldn’t get it all done? Did you wish that there was a way to make a day last 36 hours or wish that you didn’t have to sleep so you could get more done? For me that was a daily occurrence. Dishes needed done, the kids were fighting, I was getting texts from work about a patient who needed updated orders, and my laptop opened to my writing project sat untouched in the corner of my living room (except for when my 2 year old started pushing buttons and I hurriedly set the laptop on the fireplace mantle for safety from this toddler with a known history of deleting my files). I was exhausted. I was racing against time. It seemed no matter what I did, I could not keep up with all my tasks. It didn’t matter if I got up before the kids did, or worked on projects or self-care after they went to bed. I couldn’t get everything done I needed to in 24 hours.

One day, I was dropping off dinner for my husband who is a farmer. It was during grain harvest, and it was going to take two hours of my time to prepare his meal for transfer, load up kids into the jeep, drive out to whatever farm field he was located at, find him, and return back home. I was pretty sour about this. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to help my husband out. Grain harvest can be a very stressful time. It’s just, I was already flustered about all the things that were already on my plate. As it was, I couldn’t get things done with 24 hours in a day! Now, with dinner taking an additional 2 hours, there was no way I was going to get it done in 22! I could feel anger boiling under my skin. It just didn’t seem fair.

As a working mother who considers herself pretty savvy, one of the hacks I had decided to implement in my personal battle of racing against the clock, was rather than sitting to read a book, I would listen to audio books as I completed house chores or while I drove. I was listening to one such audio book on my way to drop dinner off when the topic of Einstein’s Theory of Time came up. His theory states that time is relative. For example, when you’re having fun, time goes faster. When you’re doing something you dread, time goes slower. (You know this is true!) Now avoiding all the nitty-gritty of the theory, I’m going to get down to the specific take-away that has forever changed the way I see time in a day.

The idea is that rather than you only having a finite, limited amount of time in a day, is that in reality, you create time. Now think about it, if you did not exist, would there be 24 hours in a day?

The answer is no. Not for you anyway. By you simply existing, you create time. How powerful is that?

Now apply that to your life. I create time to be with my spouse and children. I create time to go to work. I create time to complete house chores. I create time to complete my projects and passions. I create time to care for myself.

And after that realization, the very day I was dropping off dinner to my husband, I whispered to myself, “I created this time to drop off dinner to my husband”. And suddenly all my anger and frustration vanished. I was in control now. I was no longer a victim to the idea that there isn’t enough time in a day. Because I was the one who created time in a day.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I get it. I was somewhat skeptical at first too. But think about this example. Your house is trashed, and you just don’t have the time to clean it…. but suddenly you do have the time when you find out that your in laws are stopping by to pay a surprise visit. Instantly, not only do you have the time to get your house clean, but you actually accomplished it. What changed? There is still 24 hours in a day.

Well, you made the time for it. That’s the simple answer. And the longer explanation: having a clean house wasn’t a priority to you therefore you didn’t have time for it. When having a clean house became a priority, you made the time.

So here is my challenge to you. Think about all the things you want to get done, all the goals you want to accomplish, and prioritize them. And the next time you feel rushed for time, say to yourself, “I will/can create time for xyz.” And if you still find yourself saying to yourself, “no, I really just don’t have time for this,” then here is the truth of the matter: whatever you don’t have time for, simply isn’t a priority to you.