“Time is like a sword: if you do not cut it, it will cut you.”

Written by Dr. Hamada Alantably

This is one of the sayings we are accustomed to repeating without truly dedicating any importance or meaning to it in our daily lives, whether in our work or our general life. The pressing question here is: Are we good at managing our time? Do we achieve the maximum benefit from it? I leave the answer to this question to each one of us.

The Almighty Creator has gifted us 24 hours a day, which cannot be increased or decreased. The difference between us lies in how well we manage this time. Most of us spend the majority of our day at work to the extent that it dominates our family lives. We become prisoners to our work, resulting in family problems, or later problems at work, because the extra time we devoted to work—simply because we love it or want to complete tasks even outside working hours—eventually turns into an “acquired right” for your supervisor. Later, when our life circumstances change and we need to adhere strictly to working hours, it is viewed by the manager as a “dereliction of duty.”

Many of us let work control us even during vacations and trips, sometimes ruining our rest. Others are experts at wasting time and escaping responsibilities. Some of us cannot say “no,” leading to an accumulation of burdens and obligations toward everyone we meet. Others have become prisoners of technology, allowing it to dominate all our time, whether through argumentative, valueless conversations or games that devour our time and waste our lives.

The writer of these words is not showing off or sermonizing; I have personally suffered from every one of the examples I have listed. The solution here is to know that we possess 24 hours a day that must be managed effectively. We must determine our priorities in accomplishing tasks, starting with the most important, then the important. We must finish work tasks during work hours and leave time for family and personal life.

In the workplace, we must follow administrative methods for good time management, such as the “Time Management Matrix” (the four quadrants) based on priorities, delegation of authority, the ability to plan and organize, decision-making, problem-solving, and the ability to manage meetings and relationships with colleagues and the boss. This is to ensure we get the most out of time, as it is the pivot of our lives. Proper time management leads to success, while poor management results in wasting our lives and the value of our existence in it.

Thus, the meaning of the saying becomes clear: #Time_is_like_a_sword_if_you_do_not_cut_it_it_will_cut_you.

By Dr. Hamada Alantably