Double Time or Doing Time
Ladies and Gentlemen…I have one question for you…. What time is it?
If you just stopped and looked at your watch or a clock, then you have already missed the point. As we say at Empower U, the Time is Now! Time is a unit of measure. It is such a critical aspect of every American’s life. We have daytimers, dayplanners, palm pilots, Blackberrys, PDA’s, Personal Assistants, Secretaries, computers… all these people and devices so that we can keep track of time. What are you doing with your time? At some time in the future we are all going to wind up in the same place. It will most likely happen at different times for each of us. However, there will come a time when each of us spends some time in a box. As the words from, “The Dash of Your Life”…:
I know of a man who chose to speak at a gathering of family and friends...
He spoke of a friend no longer here... not long ago, had been.
In a box at the front of the room... there his friend does rest—his final bed.
Tears flowing... speaking words of wisdom... this is what he said!
There is the date of our birth and the day that we die—
In the “space between” our “Dash of Life” does lie.
The way that we live on this earth—this becomes our Dash...
When you live life like it matters, it matters not... the cars, the house... the cash.
Think about that... Are there things you ‘d like to change—
The “Time is Now”, you could be at the end, OR mid-dash range!
You can’t control the length of your dash—this is for God to divine...
The width... intensity... This is yours, No butt prints in the sands of Time!
What will you do today... Every day’s like a ticking clock.
How did you spend your time...before your time in the box?
When your Eulogy is written... life’s actions re-hashed
Its ok to be proud of the things they say—‘bout how you spent your dash
Scott V. Black
So right now how are you spending your time? How are you spending your time, before your time in the box? Are you doing time, or are you double time? Let me explain the difference between the two.
Double Time:
When I went to boot camp in the Army at Fort Bliss, Texas we would have to march in formation. Sometimes we would be required to also run in formation. When we ran in formation it was called, “Double Time”. In life, Double Time is when people are moving with a sense of urgency. The Time is Now, people to meet and places to see. There is a swing in their gait, they are always going somewhere, doing something.
Doing Time:
In prison or any other space of containment there is a lack of urgency. They are “Doing Time”. They are not going anywhere, so what’s the hurry? Their slow pace is often accompanied by sunken shoulders and thinking that tends to be negative. The have many things they “have to” do. They have to go to work, and have to pick up the kids and have to pay taxes…. They are burdened by life’s possibilities.
So how are you spending your time? It is easy to tell which group you fall into. Ask yourself this question on a regular basis and the answer will be clear… What are you doing with your time today that makes it matter that you are living at this time, using your resources and gifts to make it matter that you were on this planet, taking up space?
This is usually a question we ask ourselves in retrospect, as we are lying on our deathbed. However, when you live your life like it matters, this question is a question that guides most of what we do on a daily basis. Most people are going through life, doing time. They have to go to work, they have to take care of the kids, they have to die, the have to pay taxes… Everything is a burden and they wonder why life hasn’t brought them happiness or security. So many people get to the end of their lives and wonder, where did the years go? Many people do and wonder why they were short changed, why they didn’t get what some others go out of life. They are wondering why others got this or got that, and why they got the shaft. They are waiting for fairy dust to sprinkle from heaven and fix their plight in life. They have forgotten that the future is theirs to create today. As John Schaar put it:
The future is not a result of choices among alternative paths offered by the present, but a place that is created – created first in the mind and will, created next in activity. The future is not some place we are going to, but one we are creating. The paths to it are not found but made, and the activity of making them changes both the maker and the destination.
Scott V. Black
At Empower U we have a saying, “When you live your life like it matters… it does!” For so many people life is what happens as they struggle to pay the bills or to get through tax season, or to get the kids out of the house, or to get out of debt… Wondering where did the years go…. What if you lived your life Double Time. With a sense of Urgency realizing that today is a great day to be alive. I am working with a company based out of Cincinnati called 1st National Restoration Contractors. They created a motto that helps their company live this concept. That motto is, “Doing something…Today…Something Great”. Is that powerful or what? Grayson and Bob and the Team at 1NRC are Living it, Double Time.
Another trait of someone who is living it, Double Time is that there sign is “Under Construction”. They want to grow as a human being, individual, team member…all aspects of their leadership. Again, ask yourself these questions. What are you doing today, that is making it matter that you lived on this planet? What type of a friend are you? What type of a spouse, parent, mate… are you? What have you done today to make this world a bit better, what did you do yesterday, or last week or last year? Are you doing time or is life so exciting that you are double time. It’s a choice… a choice that is made on an hour-by-hour, day-by-day, week-by-week decision. Over a lifetime the sum of all those decisions, is your dash, the “Dash of Your Life”.
Nugget Markets, one of our clients out of California just sent a team of their executives to Leadership Adventure. They had a phenomenal experience and while talking with Marc Benton I found out that their motto this year is “Right Now”. The great Van Halen song, “Right Now”. That is the perfect example of a company that is Living it Double Time. A great company and great individuals living in the Now moment. You can’t work at Nugget Markets and Do time, you must Double Time. At Nugget Markets, at 1NRC, at Empower U and in our lives when you are Double time… The Time Is Now!
Time is a commodity that cannot be replaced…
- To realize the value of ONE YEAR, ask a student who failed a grade.
- To realize the value of ONE MONTH, ask a mother who gave birth to a pre-mature baby.
- To realize the value of ONE WEEK, ask the editor of a weekly newspaper.
- To realize the value of ONE HOUR, ask the lovers who are waiting to meet.
- To realize the value of ONE MINUTE, ask a person who missed the train.
- To realize the value of ONE SECOND, ask a person who just avoided an accident.
- To realize the value of ONE MILLISECOND, ask the person whom won a silver medal, instead of a gold medal, in the Olympics.
What are you doing with your time that makes your time valuable. How will you spend your time? What will you spend your time on? Who will you spend your time with? Once it is spent, it is gone forever, can’t be replaced….If you are doing time, the Time is Now…to jump start the heart and raise the eyes. Shout out with a resounding, “CLEAR”!
Those of us who live Double Time invite those of you who are doing time to step over the line. I know there is a fear of risking, but I promise it is worth the risk. It is much more exciting outside that comfort zone. Your actions create your destiny. What are you going to do today with your time?
What if…
It’s 11:59 on the clock of destiny
And you’ve only got a minute
Only 60 seconds in it
Forced upon you – can’t refuse it;
Didn’t seek it; didn’t choose it
But it’s up to you to use it.
You’ll suffer if you lose it;
Give account if you abuse it
It’s only a minute –
But eternity is in it.
How are you spending your time? Are you doing time or Double time. The Time is Now to make that choice. Choose well, because we are all running out of time.
With Passion—HBS
Scott V. Black
The Empower U Leadership Team
May 2003
« Back to Inspiring Articles
Read our clients' testimonials: