Do you take time – or make time?

"I had made up a shot clock, and it was driving me—but I was not driving it. My only game was a full-court press, and the way I was playing was becoming a limiting factor everywhere.

My Mom will tell you that I was always a hard-charging little guy. I had more stitches on my forehead at age 6 than I should have. I was either crashing my big wheel, chasing girls up the bleachers, tripping and bashing my forehead or just busting my lip running around. I loved chasing the world in all its beauty and possibility. But after my father died, that narrative shifted. I formed a new set of beliefs and mindsets that drove "hard-charging." I unconsciously set an imaginary timer that was a great driver of success in my career. I often heard things as a young executive, like "you are wise beyond your years." Well, duh, I was living like a 51-year-old. I would be promoted and paid well for driving great results in my work. The full-court press worked--until it didn't. More on that later...

If you visit my office today, you will see a clock hanging on the wall right by the door. It has no hands on it. To remind me to live my life "off the clock." I chose to live my life in a way that expresses my true self and purpose. I now choose to enjoy the moment when my mind wants to take me into a place of fear and concern about how my life will go tomorrow. I see that nobody has promised me one more second than the one that I have right now. I see that I could die today, tomorrow, or age 80, but the clock is in my mind- an illusion informed by a tragic event in my life, designed to keep me secure."

How has your relationship with the present moment and the concept of time changed over the course of your career?

(Excerpt from The Present Executive by Scott Cornwell…)