The two minute warning

Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend.
Theophrastus
d. 278 B.C.

American pro football is an exciting game to watch, as its many devoted fans can attest. Playable time is limited to sixty minutes, divided into two halves. As time starts winding down in each half, the game is stopped with two minutes to play and both teams are given the two minute warning.

I don’t regularly watch football, but I’ve made an interesting observation: if the game is close, teams will often achieve more in the final two minutes than they did in the previous twenty-eight. Why? They know there’s an imminent deadline — that there’s an extremely limited amount of time left to accomplish their goals. So they increase their effort. They become highly focused and concentrate their energies.

What does this phenomenon have to do with life? Well, most of us live our lives as though there’s an unlimited amount of time left. (There is not.) Unfortunately, no one tells us time is running out. We don’t get a two minute warning. We have no observable deadline for accomplishing our goals, so we can and do let things slide.

For the most part, we have no sense of urgency and we often lack focus. We’re more concerned with getting through the day than with getting things done.

If you’ve ever faced the task of cleaning up a lot of loose ends before you go on vacation, you know the power of focus and concentrated effort. When we’re faced with a deadline, when we only have a limited amount of time left to accomplish a goal, it seems like we’re able to work miracles. In truth, we could work miracles each and every day if we would just get rid of all the distractions, focus our efforts, and concentrate on the task at hand.

We would all get more done in life if we would start using a two minute clock. Don’t actually limit yourself to two minutes, but do set and maintain deadlines. If you want to be a person that accomplishes more than others, force yourself to regularly honor time deadlines.

American football games are often won or lost in the last two minutes. Take a lesson from this sport. By keeping yourself aware of the value of time, you’ll waste less of it and achieve more.

It’s not lack of resources but lack of concentrated action that keeps most people from their goals. Stay focused and make good use of the time you have.

Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time; for that’s the stuff life is made of.
Benjamin Franklin
1706 – 1790