This article is part of Finding the Words, a newsletter that delivers practical insights on the day’s issues.

This past Saturday, a photo popped up on my iPhone, reminding me of a memory from one year ago that day. The picture showed my dad smiling with sunglasses and a baseball cap on. The sun was shining in such a way that I could see the reflection in his glasses. He was holding up the camera to snap this picture of himself, with the summit of Mt. Etna in the very near background. He was living fully in that moment, proudly standing atop a volcano on the east coast of Sicily. 

This particular photo had been texted to me and my siblings, during my dad’s final trip to Italy. He wrote that day to say the trip was magical. Turns out, that photo would be the last he’d ever send me. He returned home shortly after taking the photo only to experience a massive heart attack.  

He passed away the following week. 

Time. It’s a funny thing, really. We can be having the best time and then have no more of it. And as the riddle goes, once it’s gone, there’s no getting it back. 

Still, we let so much time pass right by us. So much precious time, lost in worry and work, trying to catch up and keep up that it’s natural to feel like we’re missing out on entire days. 

The Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho wrote, “You can become blind by seeing each day as a similar one. Each day is a different one, each day brings a miracle of its own. It’s just a matter of paying attention to this miracle.” 

So today, this Wednesday, September 25, 2024, join me in being present. Look at the calendar and take in the date. Pay attention to it. Don’t let it slip by. There will always be more work than you can get done and more demands that require your attention. Today, be sensitive with your time. Be protective of it.   

Be aware of it. 

Be aware that it is easy to get caught up in the feeling that you must move faster, think faster, and innovate faster. The same device delivering lovely photo memories also delivers constant pings and reminders about upcoming meetings, deadlines, and commitments. It’s easy to feel like every action is a time sensitive action. 

As a result, it’s easy to feel that every task is urgent, every meeting is required, and every moment is more pressing than precious. 

Time is precious. Your time is precious. 

If you’ve started to feel the tug of time, I’ve got two suggestions for you: 

• First, try Warren Buffett’s “two-list” strategy: write down your top 25 priorities, circle five of the most important, and avoid the rest at all costs. Stay focused on what matters so as not to get distracted by less important tasks. 

• And, second, to ensure the days don’t slip by you, try taking 10 mindful minutes each day.  Just ten. On a walk. In the quiet. Away from technology. If you don’t want the feeling of days slipping by you, don’t let them. Focus instead on what you can take forward from this day. 

In his 2012 TED Talk, Andy Puttycomb said, “I think the present moment is so underrated. It sounds so ordinary, yet we spend so little time in the present moment that it's anything but ordinary.” 

Bottom line this week: Don’t let your present-day become ordinary. Be present in the present and sensitive with your time. Like a photo, there’s something worth capturing right here and now. 

This post is part of the Finding The Words column, a series published every Wednesday that delivers a dose of communication insights direct to your inbox. If you like what you read, we hope you’ll subscribe to ensure you receive this each week.