We all have the same 24 hours in a day. Not one single human being gets 25 hours or 14 hours. We all get 24 hours and that's it. No more, no less. How you choose to spend that time is up to you.
Seriously. Stop making excuses or saying you have to do something. Whether it be work, appointments, who you spend your time with, that's a choice. You can always choose to make a change. You can always choose who you give your moments to.
I get it. Some things you legit have to do (thanks smart ass). You have to go to the doctor. Get your car fixed. But realistically 98% of the things you do, they're a choice.
We are all important. But I think a lot of us get trapped into warped levels of importance. I've always had jobs that have long hours. And I've missed a lot of life events, put my health at risk, allowed personal relationships to be put on the back burner. And for a really long time, I used that as an excuse. Ultimately, missing these things, missing time with people - those were choices I made.
Of course there are times when work does prevent you from being somewhere. And sometimes you're tired - but if you find yourself saying no or I can't to things really often - you're making a conscious choice to prioritize certain things and put others on the back burner. And that's ok.
It's ok as long as you own what you're doing as a choice. Your priorities are your own to make. But making excuses, claiming you have to do something, that's not owning up to the reality of being a grown up.
Being a grown up means realizing that time is a choice, a really precious choice, and how you choose to spend your time is incredibly personal. But pretending that your time is anymore important, any less of a choice - thank anyone else - well its BS and its insulting to the people around you.
Time is limited. How you choose to spend your limited time is something you should think critically about. Get strategic and focused. Dedicate the most time to you and those closest to you. Choosing where and how you spend your time is choosing joy. And choosing to accept that there's no excuses for your unhappiness, no excuses for never seeing someone, and no excuses for not getting things done.
You have the same 24 hours a day that everyone else has. You don't care about their excuses so why are you listening to yours?