Recently, USA Today published a survey which showed how people viewed their time and how busy they perceived their lives to be. This report showed 69% of people were either “busy” or “very busy” and only 8% said they were “not very busy.” When asked what they have sacrificed as a result of their “busyness” 56% said sleep, 52% recreation, 51% hobbies, 44% friends and 30% family.

I want you to think about how you view “time” in your life right now. Are you working too much and sacrificing hobbies, family time or your friends? Studies consistently show working more hours actually decreases your productivity!

A woman, Jamie, on my Facebook page wrote the other day, “I have plenty of time. My problem is lack of organization and follow through. I waste most of my day. It is frustrating at the end of the day when you feel like you have been busy and yet nothing has been accomplished.”

It’s total truth! You see, every person has 24 hours in a day. What you choose to do with those 24 hours is the difference between your success and failure. It’s not as if millionaires get 30 hours a day. I only work 20 hours a week! And I refuse to work an hour over.

How you choose to spend your time has a huge impact on your wealth, health and your relationships. But today I want to address the latter two. If you happen to be one of the many who may be sacrificing sleep, relationships or more importantly your family, that is so not healthy for you!

Our society associates doing nothing with boredom or laziness. And often sleep or rest is replaced with a Red Bull or caffeine. “Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God, in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you.” (Exodus 20:9-10)

Friend, you were wired to work 6 days and rest 1! And it isn’t just biblical, there are countless scientific and social studies showing a lack of sleep is equivalent to suffering a mental affliction. U.S. military research has shown that losing just one hour of sleep per night for a week will cause a level of cognitive degradation equivalent to a .10 blood-alcohol level.

Not only is this damaging to your health, but it has a huge negative impact on your relationships. Your children are watching you! They take notice of your habits, your irritability and your time management skills. Always remember, your life is not yours and yours alone. If you are making sacrifices, you are passing on those bad skill sets.

Luckily, time management is actually a skill set – one of the most valuable ones out there. Not only because it helps you decrease stress, but it teaches you to work smarter (not longer) hours which frees up your time to live the life you want!

How are you balancing your work and life currently? Could you use a little extra help in the time management department? Leave me your comments below and don’t forget to like and share this message with your overworked, sleep-deprived friends and family.

Ready to end this week on a strong note? Come join us at 12 pm ET/11 am CT for The Dani Johnson Show. You can find the show on your TV and radio and please remember you can always stream today’s show LIVE right on our website. Let’s share a few minutes together…I promise it will be a productive use of your time!

In great faith,

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