Many would find the definition of year to be quite a straightforward one: a time period spanning 365 days, which results in the restarting of the calendar by use of days, weeks and months. This may be true, but is not the best we can do. We have the capability for eloquent and advanced use of language, so let us redefine this term in a more apt manner. It is time to expand on the meaning of a word with such powerful potential.
The concept of time, a year specifically, is not one of nature. It is man-made and has been used to shape the world around us. There is no corner of the planet not bound, to some degree, by the modern idea of time. In the Western world, it is all that we live by. Day in and day out, clocks define our lives: alarms in the morning, meetings in the afternoon, clock-out in the evening, repeat, repeat, repeat. These cycles of time are measured in small increments, seconds and minutes, but add up to something larger: a year, and then a lifetime. We ignore feelings, desires, seasons even, opting for a world where everything we do is dictated by this construct.
In this period of advancement in which we live, it is time to re-evaluate the way we understand the measurement of our lives. A year can no longer simply be a culmination of days, weeks and months, but rather should be defined by moments, opportunities, and chances. The potential behind redefining an “8-to-5” to a day in which everyone takes five chances, seizes three opportunities and learns something new, is groundbreaking.
Life is a lengthy period in which goals should be achieved, dreams should be followed and success should be earned, not just a way to block out life for the next 40 years. Any opportunity to live life beyond the cubicle should be seized and maximized, thus making the year into, "a year." The number of things accomplishable in a single "year" (not just spent crunching numbers) is life-changing and may actually lead to a life.
Now, there is value in timeliness, punctuality, deadlines, and routine, and the importance of these aspects in the business place is obvious. There is more to life than punctuality, though, and yet this seems easily forgotten by those who are wrapped up in the corporate world.
The cultural necessity of clocks means they will not fall from grace. But "time" should be joined with the concept of "a year" to break the constraints of a "timed, trapped life" that so many of us have, often without realizing. There is so much more out there than what most of us are confined by.
Go. Enjoy. Take those chances and seize those opportunities.
