But it’s not just a mundane aspect of life; it’s the driving force behind every decision we make. Time is omnipresent, influencing every facet of our existence. We save it, we seek it, and above all, we spend it. Years ago, I decided to return to the travel industry. This choice came after a transformative year filled with significant personal changes—an empty nest, a milestone birthday, and the unexpected loss of a friend. During this period, I realized two fundamental truths (not secrets, but nonetheless impactful for individuals navigating their middle years).

• Time waits for no one – I wasn’t getting any younger. What was I waiting for?
• The sands of the hourglass were trickling down faster than I had imagined. It was later than I thought, and my Time on this planet was limited.

[Read further to learn the secrets to dealing with these revelations.] Acknowledging these truths presented a challenge. I found that once I grasped the fleeting nature of Time, it became impossible to ignore. This realization brought me back to the central theme of TIME. At that moment, I realized I wasn’t living in alignment with my values. Although I professed that my priorities were:

1. God
2. Loved Ones
3. Health
4. Travel (with loved ones and solo for personal growth)
5. Charitable causes with meaning

Sadly, my actual way of life and priorities looked more like this:

1. WORK
2. God
3. Household chores
4. TV
5. Internet

There was barely any time left for loved ones, and I neglected my health, travel aspirations, and charitable endeavors. 

So, what steps did I take to turn my life around?

Here they are – the Three transformative tips that helped me reclaim my Time:

1. Scheduling: This is not earth-shattering, but it does take a commitment. I began by prioritizing my values and scheduling them first, fitting everything else around them. My long-time friend and mentor always says, “If it is not written, it is not so.” Just remember you are committing to your loved ones and yourself; you wouldn’t break a commitment to people and things further down on your priorities. WHY would you break it to your loved ones or yourself?
2. Boundaries – I established boundaries to safeguard my values and protect my Time. Keep office hours (even if you work from home), shut off the devices at a specific part of the day, only take scheduled calls or ask callers to leave a message when working on one of your scheduled priorities. No one has to have the same priorities as you, but it is fair to expect others to respect yours.
3. Delegating – I started delegating tasks and responsibilities to professionals who could handle them better and more efficiently than I could. This one is simple – if you can pay someone to do it at a lower dollar value than what you value the thing you’ll do with that Time instead, it should be a no-brainer.

By focusing on these three steps, I turned my life around while still having a significant portion of my life left to live and rediscovered my passion for travel. I created Benvenuto Travel Design Firm, a modern-day travel agency dedicated to assisting busy individuals who value Time, their own Time with their loved ones, and meaningful experiences in destinations around the globe. Now, I help them live that priority. You can live your priorities too!

NOTE: If your Time is too precious to be consumed by research, vetting destinations, navigating travel complexities, and managing all the moving parts, and you’d rather entrust these responsibilities to a professional so you can savor the joy of traveling – complete a travel inquiry using this link. Let’s make the most of your precious Time!