We’ve all heard the saying, “time is money”, and in Justin Timerberlake’s new movie, In Time, it truly is. The plot is complicated, but in essence time is the new currency. In the movie, when people reach age 25 they stop physically aging. Sounds great except there is a catch – everyone has been genetically engineered to live only one additional year. A countdown clock is embedded in your forearm so it’s clear to everyone who sees it how much time you have left.
The wealthy, who have often inherited a lot of time when they turn 25, become essentially immortal in a youthful body and mind. The rest beg, borrow or steal enough hours to make it through the day. For example, bus fare could cost you 2 hours, apartment rent maybe 2 months, a day’s wage could be day — you get the idea. To pay for something, people place their forearm under a scanner and it drains the time out revealing the new balance of time left.
One behavior that clearly distinguishes the poor is that they run everywhere because they literally are living day-to-day. To make the most of the day, they are motivated to get to where they’re going as quickly as possible so they can get on with it.
It made me ponder – what if we all lived with such zeal and really did seize the day? Imagine what we could accomplish. Think about how much more we would get out of every moment.
I don’t intend to be morbid here, but the reality is that each day could be your last! My challenge to you is this: For one week, wake up each morning with that sense of urgency to make the most out of the day as if it were your last. Really think about the kind of legacy you want to leave here on earth and go do something about it!
I’d love to hear your stories, so please respond to this post and astound me with what you are doing with the time you’ve been given! Tick-Tock!!
Martha Duesterhoft is a partner with PeopleResults and can be found on Twitter @MDuesterhoft.
