Time Paradox: Why People Only Appreciate Time In Retrospect

Choose your experiences carefully

Thomas Oppong

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Photo: Chenspec/Pixabay

As much as we would like to, we cannot foresee the future. There is no way to predict what our lives will hold for us.

What we can do, though, is ensure we’re making the most of time now and taking proactive steps to minimise worries about our future selves.

Appreciation for time is the best way to put it to good use. Unfortunately, humans are too preoccupied to recognise the value of time in real-time.

We don’t slow down on purpose to find ourselves or learn more about what makes us come alive.

“It does not matter how much time we are given if there is nowhere for it to settle; it escapes through the cracks and holes of the mind,” Seneca said, in his book, On the Shortness of Life.

Most people only appreciate time in retrospect; they are strapped for time in the present and miss out on meaningful experiences until it’s too late.

The value of time is often overlooked.

We only become conscious of ourselves when we realise we’ve wasted a lot of it on things that brought little or no fulfilment to our lives.

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Thomas Oppong

Making the wisdom of great thinkers instantly accessible. As seen on Forbes, Inc. and Business Insider. For my popular essays, go here: https://thomasoppong.com