Life isn’t fair. The world is filled with all sorts of inequalities. Some people win the genetic lottery, exuding an unparalleled level of natural beauty that aligns with the prevailing standards of the day. Some people are born into tremendously wealthy families and they never have to worry about money. Math or science or music or language might come very easily to some individuals, but those same subjects can be overwhelmingly frustrating for others. Life isn’t fair.

But there is one thing that we all have in common, regardless of sex, ethnicity, wealth or social status. It’s time. We are all provided with the same 24 hours each day, the same 7 days in a week, the same 52 weeks in a year. The most successful people in human history achieved what they did using those same 24 hours as everyone else.

As obvious as it may sound and as difficult as it may be to accept, lack of time is not the problem. Even so, many of us feel like we are constantly stretched for time, like there is never enough of it. There’s always so much to do and not enough time to do it.

I Get Asked This Often

As part of his ongoing podcast series highlighting Canadian dad bloggers, Ricky Shetty interviewed me earlier this week. We talked about my career as a freelance writer, how I got started, how I got to where I am today, and where I’d like to see myself going from here.

During the interview, the conversation shifted to life-work balance and time management. We talked about how I keep up with blogging here on Beyond the Rhetoric, in addition to producing the weekly vlog, working on my next book, running my freelance writing business, and taking care of full-time daddy duties. I’m also very active on social media. With juggling so many different responsibilities and being pulled in so many different directions, how do I find the time to do it all?

Spoiler warning.

I don’t.

Once upon a time, I’d have a new blog post go up each and every day on Beyond the Rhetoric. Then, I dropped Saturday posts on BTR. These days, you can expect to find a new post here four times a week. I couldn’t keep up, so I had to cut back.

Doing All the Things

One of the biggest struggles that I face as an online professional and as a work-at-home dad is this intense feeling of FOMO. I get really enthusiastic about many things and I want to explore them all. As mentioned, I want to keep blogging here. I want to vlog and start a podcast and watch everything on Netflix. I want to explore every opportunity and learn more about everything. But obviously, I can’t.

There are only 24 hours in the day.

There is only so much I can do.

To this end, I referred back to a post I wrote back in January about my three guiding words for the year. instead of a new year’s resolution, I have endeavored to frame my experiences and decisions around these three words: acceptance, prioritization and completion. It’s really hard for me not to give myself a hard time. I have to accept that I am only one man and I can only take on so much, even if I oftentimes feel like it’s still not enough.

Do Anything, Not Everything

If you are reading this post and you feel the same way, take some solace in knowing that you are not alone. I don’t have any more time than anyone else does. I don’t find the time to do everything I want to do, so I just need to do a better job at prioritizing and completing what I actually do choose to do.