Earlier today, I caught the movie Black Swan. I highly recommend it, especially for all of you out there obsessed with being perfect. I’ll probably work up a post on the movie because it really hit home on a lot of levels.

Moving on, the best part of a movie at the theater, for me, is the previews. The previews before Black Swan did not disappoint. The one movie that stuck out was called the Adjustment Bureau. It’s a horrible name for a movie and honestly doesn’t tell the story like the actual trailer does. Check it out here.

The line that sticks out to me is “All I Have Are The Choices I Make.” It’s subtle, but provocative. I think we’d all like to believe that we’re in control of our own destiny. The choices we make impact that destiny. While we may rely on others for input, the reality is we are the person making the decision…we are the ones responsible.

But, here’s the rub, we can make our own choices. But, it still takes other people to participate, in order to fulfill on the destiny you want. Matt Damon’s character may in fact believe all he has are the choices he makes, but unless Emily Blunt’s character (the female lead) says “ok” when he tells her “I need you to trust me” – his choice is irrelevant. Think about it. Sure, he’s made the choice, or as he says, “I choose her.” However, he will never have a chance at fulfilling his wants, desires, hopes, wishes and personal destiny unless she’s “in.”

As much as we like to believe we are in control of our own destiny, the harsh reality is while we can make the choices, we need other people to play ball in order for us to become who we want to be.

Last night I saw, Wall Street – Money Never Sleeps.  I’ve been looking forward to this for some time.  I was a big fan of the original Wall Street movie and was chomping at the bit to see Michael Douglas reprise his role as Gordon Gekko.  I won’t ruin the movie for you and give away secrets, but I will tell you that there is a profound scene in which Gordon Gekko explains that time, not money is the most valuable currency.

Of late, I’ve been thinking the same thing.  If you really think about it, time is the one thing that every day we get less of.  It’s a rapidly depreciating asset that we aren’t even control of.  It’s tragic really that we don’t value something like time more than cars, jewelry, HD TVs and of course money.  All of those and more can easily be added to, replaced and in some cases they can appreciate in value.  Nope, not time.  If you store it, unlike money, you lose it.  If you waste it, you can’t earn it back.  Time is ultimately invaluable.

The president of our agency, Michele Fabrizi, often challenges me and our Sr. leadership staff with an important question.  If you only had 2 hours in a day, how would you spend that time to drive the agency forward.  I won’t give way what I’d do here, but I can tell you that this concept works beyond the borders of our jobs.  If all you had was 2 hours, how would you spend it?  Would you really spend it shopping?  Or watching TV?  Or getting a manicure?  Would you?  I sure hope not, because all of those past times are wasted time.

Give some thought to the people that matter most in your life and the activities that make you happy.  Those are the things worth those valuable 2 hours.  Money, ultimately is insignificant unless you have none or you’re filthy rich.  If you’re in between those two extremes, money is worth less than time.  Why?  Well, if you have no money and all of a sudden have several thousand, you won’t waste it on expensive meals, because you know what it’s like not to have any money.  In effect, you’d treat every dollar very preciously.  At the other end of the spectrum are people like Bill Gates.  They have the luxury of being in complete control of how those 2 hours are spent, because everything is an option.  For you and I, using those two hours to fly to another state would be impossible.  For Bill, it’s possible with a simple phone call.

For all the rest of us in the middle, we spend most of our time chasing money instead of chasing moments.  And I can tell you, from experience, all the money in the world doesn’t help you get back a missed moment.

A highly recommend the movie and recommend you think about the value of time:

“It’s only my job, it’s not my whole life.” Those are the words uttered more like a question than a statement, by Rachel McAdams in the trailer for the movie, Morning Glory. I’m not a Harrison Ford guy or a Diane Keaton fan. I’ve enjoyed Rachel McAdams’ work, but not enough to make me line up to see a movie she’s going to star in. But, I caught this trailer Friday night and was lured in by that line and the subsequent one delivered by Harrison Ford…

“I was never at home, when I was I took every phone call, watching TV out of the corner of my eye, let me tell you how it all turns out, you end up with nothing.”

I love my job. I love my career. I love what I get to do on a daily basis. But, over the last few years I’ve learned that you can’t let your job take over your life. When that happens, you have no life.