Recently I was “killing time” surfing the web.

Leaders: don’t miss the two major problems in that one little sentence above.

Without being aware of it, I quietly transitioned from reading legitimate news stories into consuming pure sludge. The news stories were hosted on legitimate websites: online versions of “big city” newspapers. But the stories themselves were base and macabre, including the sordid details of killings, kidnappings, and rapes.

I experienced a range of emotions. I felt violated. I felt twinges of fear, thinking about what might happen to my kids. I was angry about injustice. I felt empathy and heartbreak for the victims.

These crimes happened more than 2000 miles from me. To people I don’t know; in situations that do not impact me directly; in scenarios, I can do nothing to change.

Indeed, I had genuinely “killed” that time. I will never get it back. I killed time and wasted valuable attention by saying, “Yes” to the wrong things.

Over the years I’ve learned to protect my time and my mind. I’m imperfect in this; however, I’ve significantly improved how I invest my time and my attention. As a result, I’m able to accomplish more with less effort while feeling more at peace.

What are you saying, “Yes” to? Are you saying, “Yes” to purveyors of fear on radio and news sites? Are you saying, “Yes” to the merchants of discontent on TV and the Internet?

There was a cost associated with me saying, “Yes” to my little web safari. It cost me peace of mind. It muted my creativity and innovation for a period of time. And, I don’t know how to quite describe this, but it almost felt like there was a murky film slowly covering my mind.

[ttshare]As leaders, it’s critical that we set boundaries in our lives and pay strict attention to what we’re saying, “Yes” to. [/ttshare]

When we fail to set boundaries, we spend too much time with people who draw us into the doldrums of their lives. We read and watch things that neither relax us nor energize us; instead, they sap us and distract us. It’s difficult to lead in a fog. And, we have only ourselves to blame if it’s a fog of our own making.

What is one thing that you need to stop saying “Yes” to?