--- title: The Two Questions You Need to Ask Yourself to be Productive | The Sales Blog description: Your present cannot in any way impact your past, but your past can—and will—impact your future. Nothing you do today is going to change your past. Our perception of time flows only in one direction. There is an old saying that we are “too soon old and too late wise.” There is no way to […] image: https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/shutterstock_358780088.jpg --- ### [Now booking SKO meetings for 2026/27! 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Nothing you do today is going to change your past. Our perception of time flows only in one direction. There is an old saying that we are “too soon old and too late wise.” There is no way to reclaim lost time or relive a moment in time where you made a decision you now want to take back. The past is immutable. What you do today can and will impact your future. A few minutes from now, reading this post will be part of your past (whether or not it affects your future will be determined by your decision to act on what you learn or your hitting the delete button and hoping the idea fades away quickly). This concept is why I am full hot on the concept of Future You and Present You. We only perceive time as the present moment. It is always “[now](http://thesalesblog.com/2019/02/26/the-7-calls-you-need-to-make-now/),” and “now” is forever fading further into your past. Present You is the result of your history, events large and small, significant and insignificant. If Present You wants something you don’t have, you have to do something now so that it manifests in your future. What you are doing now is creating Future You, for good or for ill, making the best strategy for being more, doing more, having more, and contributing more is to allow Future You to decide what Present You does now. [![](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/planner-thin-ad-01-Jun-14-2021-02-30-22-20-AM.jpg?width=1488&height=160&name=planner-thin-ad-01-Jun-14-2021-02-30-22-20-AM.jpg) ](https://b2bsalestoolkit.com/) ## What Do You Want? Your single, finite, non-renewable resource is time. There is an abundance of other resources available to you, many of them renewable, like your energy level and money (both of which we perceive as being [scarce](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/a-list-of-negativity-tells) when they are abundant). Your time is not renewable, and once spent, it is gone forever. That being true, all you have is time. There are two questions you need to ask and answer. The first question is: “What do you want?” I have seen statistics that suggest almost no one has written goals or a plan for their (one) life. Without knowing what you want in the future, it is easy for Present You to make poor decisions about the future towards which you are most certainly racing. You need to define what Future You is going to want, not what Present You wants. The second question you need to answer is: “What should I be doing with my time now?” You will have a higher resolution focus by answering the first question before answering the second. ###### Tags: [Productivity](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/productivity) [2019](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/2019) Post by [Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/author/anthony-iannarino) on April 28, 2019 Written and edited by human brains and human hands. ![Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/ai-blog-profile-crop.jpg) Anthony Iannarino is an American writer. He has published daily at [thesalesblog.com](https://www.thesalesblog.com) for more than 14 years, amassing over 5,300 articles and making this platform a destination for salespeople and sales leaders. Anthony is also the author of four best-selling books documenting modern sales methodologies and a fifth book for sales leaders seeking revenue growth. His latest book for an even wider audience is titled, The Negativity Fast: Proven Techniques to Increase Positivity, Reduce Fear, and Boost Success. Anthony speaks to sales organizations worldwide, delivering cutting-edge sales strategies and tactics that work in this ever-evolving B2B landscape. He also provides workshops and seminars. Connect with Anthony on LinkedIn, X or Youtube. You can email Anthony at [iannarino@gmail.com](mailto:iannarino@gmail.com) [Follow me on my website](https://www.thesalesblog.com/anthony-iannarino) [Follow me on Facebook ](https://www.facebook.com/thesalesblog) [Follow me on LinkedIn ](https://www.linkedin.com/in/iannarino/) [Follow me on Twitter ](http://www.twitter.com/iannarino) [![AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27.jpg?width=400&height=400&name=AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27.jpg)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/authority) [![ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1.jpg?width=318&height=179&name=ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1.jpg)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/free-cold-calling-video) ![maximize-productivity-ebook-v3-1-cover (2)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/maximize-productivity-ebook-v3-1-cover%20(2).jpg?width=768&height=994&name=maximize-productivity-ebook-v3-1-cover%20(2).jpg) ### Maximize Productivity Being productive means getting important things done. The big stuff. The stuff that moves you toward accomplishing your biggest, most important goals. [![DOWNLOAD EBOOK](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/2922376/faff89b7-a7a5-474e-9a53-68c41c02cd55.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/2922376/faff89b7-a7a5-474e-9a53-68c41c02cd55) ## Are You Ready To Solve Your Sales Challenges? ![Anthony-Solve-Sales](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Anthony-Solve-Sales.png?width=290&height=221&name=Anthony-Solve-Sales.png) Hi, I’m Anthony. I help sales teams make the changes needed to create more opportunities & crush their sales targets. What we’re doing right now **is working**, even in this challenging economy. **Would you like some help?** [![Solve for Sales](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035) ### Join my Weekly Newsletter for Sales Tips Join 100,000+ sales professionals in my weekly newsletter and get my *Guide to Becoming a Sales Hustler* eBook for FREE! --- ```json { "@context" : "http://schema.org/", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Anthony Iannarino" }, "dateModified" : "2024-08-27T6:28:13 AM", "datePublished" : "2019-04-28 06:13:11", "description" : "Your present cannot in any way impact your past, but your past can—and will—impact your future. Nothing you do today is going to change your past. Our perception of time flows only in one direction. 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