How to Avoid "The Mañana Syndrome"
by Alexander Green

Two years ago, one of the nation's largest publishers, Wiley & Sons, asked if I would write a book about The Oxford Club's investment philosophy. I agreed and they paid me a sizable advance.

Unfortunately, I didn't make the first deadline. Or the second. As the third one loomed, Executive Editor Debra Englander was on the phone, and she wasn't happy.

Was I going to write the book or not?

I said I was. But when? I was already buried in other research and writing projects.

I tried knocking out my short-term deadlines first, so I could turn my attention to the book later in the week. But things kept piling up and "later" never seemed to happen.

It wasn't that I didn't have plenty of material for the book. What's more, I really wanted to do it. I just felt too exhausted at the end of each day to tackle such a big project.

As I traveled with a group of investors through Italy last year, I finally conceded that trying to write a book on top of all my other commitments was just crazy. Reluctantly, I decided to return the advance to Wiley and maybe try again some time when things weren't so hectic.

With me on the trip, however, was an aspiring writer from Tennessee, Richard Nelson, who had recently published a book of maxims. As we boarded the coach for the airport the next day, he handed me a copy.

On the first page, my eye fell on the following quote: "There is no shortage of time, only a confusion of priorities." I felt like I had been struck on the head with a ball-peen hammer.

If I really wanted to do that book, I had to stop wishing I had the time and start making it. In short, I went to war. I delegated some responsibilities to my colleagues. And no matter what was on my schedule each day, it had to wait until I had spent at least a couple hours working on the book.

With all the excuses out of the way and a genuine commitment underway, I finished it in just over five months. The book is coming out in August.

I couldn't have done it if I hadn't stopped deluding myself that I would get around to it "eventually." At some point, we all have to recognize that we'll never change our lives for the better - or accomplish the things we really want - until we change something we do daily. This applies to virtually every aspect of life.

Want to rise in your business? Start working harder and learning more about your organization today. Need to put together an estate plan for your family? Call your attorney right now. Want to lose 10 pounds? Start eating better and exercising today. Not tomorrow. Not when you get "one thing" out of the way. Today.

As Gary Buffone writes in "The Myth of Tomorrow," "The very fact that our time is finite makes living precious. When we exclude the recognition of our end, when we lose sight of the real stakes involved, life becomes impoverished. It becomes easier to develop 'mañana syndrome' and constantly postpone authentic living. People who presume that there is always tomorrow waste away in unproductive and meaningless jobs, joyless relationships, pointless worries, and vague plans for some distant future."

Don't be one of them. If you need encouragement, John Maxwell, author of "Today Matters," offers a helpful prayer:

Dear Lord, So far today, I am doing alright. I have not gossiped, lost my temper, been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish, or self-indulgent. I have not whined, cursed, or eaten any chocolate. However, I am going to get out of bed in a few minutes, and I will need a lot more help after that. Amen.

According to Maxwell, "People create success in their lives by focusing on today. It may sound trite, but today is the only time you have. It's too late for yesterday. And you can't depend on tomorrow. That's why today matters."

Most of us are planners, of course, and forward-looking by nature. But it's what you do today that determines what you are tomorrow. Or, as the great industrialist Henry Ford once said, "You can't build a reputation on what you're going to do."

So give yourself a friendly push and start pursuing what matters most. Commit to it daily. And, remember, "there is no shortage of time, only a confusion of priorities."

Carpe Diem,

Alex

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