How often do you hear yourself – or that voice in your head – say ‘There isn’t enough time’ or ‘There just aren’t enough hours in the day’.

We all have the same amount of time every day. 24 hours. 168 hours a week. However hard you try you won’t create any more.

But you can make more of the time you have. I bet you’ve said to yourself ‘I must make time for….’ And then you’ve found a way.

Funny that. You can’t create time … but you can make more of it. Which is exactly what successful business owners do. It’s one of the behaviours of successful people.

We admire the person who achieves so much that it seems impossible; we are in awe of the super-achiever and wonder how they do it. You won’t see them doing it, but you might catch them not doing the things they can outsource or delegate.

Because like you they only have 24 hours each day; they know that the secret to achieving a lot is to stop doing even more.

As Confucius said ‘You have two lives…and the second one begins when you realize you only have one.

In many ways this is what 2020 has taught us. It is why for so many businesses it has been their best year yet. They have had to focus on what matters the most. They’ve had to — and continue to have to — STEP UP.

The biggest and best decisions they’ve made have been to stop doing the things that aren’t moving them towards their goals and trim the fat. They have protected their time, removed distractions and doubled up the value they get from each hour.

As the year come to an end, review 2020 in detail (if you haven’t already) and ask yourself what behaviours do you need to change to make 2021 your best year ever. If you go back to the basics and be present in the moment with a strategy for the future, then you’re going to be in a special place.

You only have one life. One opportunity.

Noel Guilford