You’re Not Running Out of Time—You’re Wasting It

What Stoic philosophers like Seneca and Epictetus can teach us about reclaiming our days.

Photo by Aron Visuals on Unsplash

Happy Easter, and thank you for being here.

Whether you’ve been reading for a while or this is your first time, I’m truly grateful for your support. It means a lot to have you as part of this growing community. I hope today brings you peace, reflection, and maybe even a little inspiration.

We always say we’re too busy. That life is flying by. That there aren’t enough hours in the day.

But what if the problem isn’t time?

What if the real problem is how we spend it?

Seneca, the Stoic philosopher, knew this truth centuries ago. In On the Shortness of Life, he wrote, “It is not that we have so little time but that we lose so much… Life is long if you know how to use it.” That hits hard. Because deep down, we know he’s right. It’s not that the days are too short. We’re too distracted, too reactive, too stuck waiting for “the right time” to start living.

We scroll. We delay. We plan a better life in some far-off future while ignoring the one we already have. “They lose the day in expectation of the night,” Seneca said, “and the night in fear of the dawn.” How often do we do that? We dread Mondays, live for Fridays, then wonder why the weeks blur together.

It’s not about cramming more into your calendar. It’s about being intentional. Seneca reminds us: “You are arranging what lies in Fortune’s control, and abandoning what lies in yours.” We can’t control everything, but we can control how we show up—right now.

That’s where Epictetus takes the baton. In The Art of Living, he challenges us: “How long can you afford to put off who you really want to be? … From this instant on, vow to stop disappointing yourself.” It’s a wake-up call. If you’re waiting for the perfect moment to chase your goals or become your best self, here’s a truth that might sting: it’s not coming. The perfect moment is now.

Books, podcasts, courses—these are great. But Epictetus warns us not to mistake learning for growth. “Books are the training weights of the mind… but it would be a bad mistake to suppose that one has made progress simply by having internalized their contents.” In other words: don’t just consume wisdom. Live it.

Because time is not promised. Seneca didn’t sugarcoat it: “You squander time as if you drew from a full and abundant supply… though all the while that day which you bestow on some person or thing is perhaps your last.”

Here’s the hard truth:

You don’t need more time. You need to use your time better.

And here’s the good news: You can start right now.

Call to action:
Take one small action today that your future self will thank you for. Write the email. Go for a walk. Start the thing you’ve been putting off. Not tomorrow—now.

You don’t need a full plan. You just need to stop letting the days slip by unlived. Be bold enough to live immediately.