After some self-reflecting thoughts, I want to talk about

How To Make Someone Not Say, “I Don’t Have Time For This.”

Well, the truth is, I didn’t have time to write this article either. But there’s a reason why.

DEDROX

Published in

the Challenged

6 min readSep 26, 2023

My 3D render in artstation — 3D renders made for this article.

Occasionally, when you tell someone to do something, they will say one of the following:

“Oh sorry, I didn’t have time.”
“I wanted to do it, but forgot… And I'm busy A.T.M.”
“My day was so hectic that I couldn’t find a moment to spare.”
“Time got away from me, not enough time to do it.”

When a receiver hears this, they are pretty much convinced and have already accepted their fate. Those lines just shut the argument. I’ve felt that way sometimes too. Damn it “She didn’t have time to watch all the cat videos I sent!”

Even my friends say this to me from time to time. I wondered why and it reminds me of the article I wrote recently.

Your Enemy Is All You Need to Listen to

How your friends won't say the reason, they just deflect it by talking about their timelessness | medium.com

“I don't have time for this…”

It feels like someone just slammed a door right in your face. In the process of thinking about a solution, you can't ask further questions like; “Where’s your time going?” or “What are you spending it on?". It becomes too personal. Not good. Sadly, what happens next is, a downward headshake filled with disappointment, continued by a subtle eye roll. That’s it.

I would always make sure at the end of the day the pointy finger doesn't direct its tip at us someday.

When is the last time you remember saying, “Ohh… I don’t have time to do this!”. Hmmm. I'm pretty sure you said it at some point in your life.

You see, it’s a two-way street! Everyone engages in it, including me. I was just thinking to myself that “I don’t have time to write this article”. Then I paused and pondered: Why does this happen to everyone?

Later on, I got to know the bitter reality is mainly:

You! Yeah, you-don’t-want-to-do-it! Cause, you don't want to spend time in it. Not that “time cuffed your hands” or “time told you not to”. It’s you.

There are countless examples:
I used to encourage my sis to pick up 3D as a hobby.
I used to share YouTube videos with friends who were not motivated enough in their lives. I used to also share new ideas with them to talk about.
I even used to shove books onto others in the hope of getting them to pick up reading as a habit.

But in return what I get is “I don’t have time for this…” I’d often end up disappointed and just let it slide.

A week ago, I saw myself being on the other side.
Sometime earlier, someone shared a video, and I told them ‘I don't have time for this’. A friend suggested me a book to read, and I said ‘I don't have time.’

That's when I knew, “Oh snap!” I simply don’t value that subject enough to the point where I would consider spending some of my time on it.

Calling out on myself sucks but it’s the truth.
So, if someone says they don’t have time, then it's a sign that they don't value it, or they don’t feel/see the importance of that very thing that you’re trying to get them involved in.

Furthermore…

How to make someone not say, I Don’t Have Time For This:

If they’re using their lack of time as an excuse to avoid your cat videos, there are only two things you can consider doing.

Impress & Inspire.

Impress: To capture their attention and suck them into the content so that they will value it more.
Inspire: to make them stay motivated into the matter of subject that you propose.

There is no alternative method other than these two, to make your peeps fall into your cat videos. You have to extend your hand pretty far to captivate them. It is a struggle. But that’s the way it works. But first, whatever you are sharing must be inspiring and impressive.

You-can-not share things like ‘‘Calm Sleep Stories | unintentional ASMR Must watch’’ and expect them to fall for it.

For instance, I tested it out on my friend; Convincing him to get into 3D. I failed at the beginning by his responding with “I don’t have time dude for this, I'm very busy at the moment”. Arghh… Typical. It makes sense, “Why would anyone pick 3D modeling out of the blue? Why would anyone care?”

So, all in all, I started to impress him with the world of 3D art and told him about how many cool people are involved in this. showed him some profiles of those who achieved great success and made a living out of this passion.
Additionally, showed him a clear path to achieve it. Also sprinkled a bit of FOMO into that poor soul.

Now, to date he is into 3D and, still contacts me when he needs help in 3D. He’s likely reading this article now. Hello, ma dood 🙂

Conclusion:

I have already said enough, and I don’t think I need to say anything more to prove my point on why people say, ‘I Don’t Have Time’.

Here is a live example I witnessed in my company which made me write this article.

Husband gets a call from his wife. Tells her "Hey, I'm busy and can't 
talk right now" 

He could have told his boss that he had Diarrhea and then gone somewhere 
to talk to her. He could have given her the TIME she deserved.

This shows how much importance he has on her.
Its just his sense of priority that matters. Its not TIME.

I sort of wanted to write this for him and his poor wife. I hope he sees it.

Remember, it’s not just about finding more hours in a day to spend time with someone; it’s about recognizing what and who truly matters and making the most of the time we have.
So, the next time you hear those familiar words, ‘I don’t have time for this,’ don’t be discouraged. Instead, take it as an opportunity to shed some insights you’ve gained and encourage a shift towards a more purposeful use of time.

Acknowledging this fact doesn’t make you not say it. You will. Just notice yourself next time when you tell others about your timelessness. Just know that it’s not that you don’t have time. You don't value it enough.

I'll go and manipulate my friend into watching cat videos now. Byee.