Who Do You Spend Your Time With?
Some people are loose with their money. They are fun to be around but always penniless. But time is money, so what do you say about people loose with their time? Greediness or thriftiness in time is essentially the same as with money. We only have so much time to spend in life. Are you spending yours wisely?
As writers, our time spent outside of writing feeds our experiences to write about. I draw on my recent adventures on my 11-day delivery of a Leopard 46 catamaran from Fort Lauderdale to Colombia to write a yacht review of the same model. Christine draws on her participation in the Caribbean 1500 to write about the noisiness of land. Mike draws on going to West Marine in Fort Lauderdale to write about his Christmas wishlist. Our experiences shape our art.
Ok, step 1 to happiness is to mark whether the experiences you are engaging in are developing the knowledge and skills that you seek.
But it is not only where you are and what you are doing, but also who you are spending your time with or on that colours your experiences. Are you spending your time wildly partying with colleagues or watching TV with family or riding Harley motorcycles with buddies. Do the people you spend time with curse a lot. Are they democrats or republicans. Are they lazy or dreamers or overachievers. How old. How wealthy.
The people you consort with affects who you are. There is a saying that "if you admire someone and want to have their skills, spend time with them and you will drift in their direction." Look at your friends. In what direction are you drifting? Look at your family. What kind of person did you marry?
If I want to speak fluent Spanish, I must meet and socialise with Cuban Americans or South Americans in South Florida. Only by doing so will I learn the vocabulary and accent to master the skill.
And seeing if your direction diverges from your ambitions, how do you adjust? Ending interpersonal relationships is more difficult than going to the gym more often or to the office earlier. But it seems in this practical world it must be done with the same realism. I guess I have been too idealistic.
I made a spreadsheet analysing what and who I spend my time. I need to make some changes. They will be resolutions, nay alternations starting now, into 2012, and beyond.
Share on Facebook
