Those who make best use of their time have none to spare.

A lack of time seems to be a modern complaint - we have romantic images of a bucolic past when everyone had loads of time to chat with neighbors, potter in the garden and leisurely chew on a straw. This old saying appears to suggest otherwise - for busy people lack of time has always been a problem.

Another saying "Work expands to fill the time allocated to it" is supposed to be a practise of the lazy who will dawdled and delay until the last minute and then complain of a lack of time. So there appears to be two types of people who are short of time - the over workers and the under workers - but how does the ordinary individual with a balanced approach to life cope with time management? Do proverbs give us any guidance?

Well how about: "Don't bite off more than you can chew"? Keep your workload to sensible levels and learn your limits and try to work within them.

"Don't put off till tomorrow what you can do today". Work efficiently and don't let small tasks accumulate. Try to deal with them as they come up if possible - visiting the same task twice is a waste of time.
"Lost time is never found again" This we all know but is a reminder to use time effectively.

"Where there's a will there's a way" Many an individual has pitted their wits against a problem when all others have passed it by and eventually they have succeeded but the cost in time is usually great. Be determined but be wary of pigheadedness leading you to horrendous time costs. Even if you do succeed will it be worth it?

"Time and tide wait for no man" This being so it is essential to be like the Boy Scout and "be prepared" so that your precious time is used as it should. Having to go back to base because you have forgotten a tool etc. wastes everybody's time.

"Time brings roses" Most worthwhile things take time and we need to cultivate patience. Waiting for something can be agonising, especially for the young who are often wishing their time away, but whilst waiting for a main event try filling in the gaps with something useful. Having an improving book to hand helps to use spare moments productively as they come up.

Time destroys all things" As we grow older we realise that our time is limited and we often wish we had spent it more wisely - there seemed so much of it when we were young. Change is constant and we see the things that were an important part of our life fade and disappear. Time never stands still and where there is time there is change.

"Time is money" This saying is a rod for our backs. Self-employed people soon realise the truth of this and it can drive some people to wreck their health whilst it spurs others to wealth achievement and fulfilment. Don't let it become your master.

Time is the great teacher. How often do we wish we had known something when we were young? Some lessons are painfully learned over a period of time and the realisation that, if only you had had the right instruction much of the pain could have been avoided, can be quite bitter.

"Time is the rider that breaks in youth". This is much the same as above - with the passing of time we experience and learn often from "the school of hard knocks".

"Time tries truth" Things we believed in passionately in youth can seem less certain with age and experience. Mass movements that enthral a generation can seem clearly flawed to the next one. With the passing of time and new perspectives apparent certainties crumble to dust and blow away on the wind of knowledge and understanding.

"Time passes, sayings endure" This is surely one to end on. Use your time wisely - you only get one allocation!


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