No matter how much money, education, or influence we have the one thing none of us can ever produce more of is, time. How we make use of this invisible asset determines how successful we are both, professionally and personally.
God gave us all a pre-determined life clock that constantly ticks 24 hours a day. They’re moments that cannot be duplicated, manipulated, controlled or bought. And once they pass, they pass, with no recourse at all. Time can be selfish, move to slow or fast, can eat up our youth within a blink of an eye, or linger while refusing to budge. In reality, time is the great equalizer of people--none of us are given more hours in a day than another.
I recently read an interview with the legendary businessman, Warren Buffett. Most would think he’s constantly busy with meetings, phone calls, and doing whatever else requiring his attention. And to operate such a huge organization, only the traits of superman could ever keep up. But, he states his life’s philosophies are simple: 1) Don’t concern yourself with things that ultimately don’t matter. 2) Deal with the big items and not the little. 3) Surround yourself and share your time with those who only have your best interests at heart, never wasting it on those who are unprofessional, petty, dramatic, or disrespectful. 4) Only focus on that which is important to you and those truly close to you, never letting others problems distract you from your life’s goals. 5) And last, time is something which even I can’t buy more of; use it wisely like water in the middle of a dessert.
He also said that meetings are useless, his phone number is only given to family members and his closest advisors, and although technology is great, recreational cell phone usage is perhaps the biggest misuse of time.
Like him or not, the man is pretty smart. And I’ve come to learn from people like, Mr. Buffett. He teaches that time management should be one of our top concerns everyday.
Look at number three and five again. There’s a lot of meat there, don’t you think?
#3) I agree with this wholeheartedly. Those who possess the traits in bold are what I call time suckers, trolls, and distracters of focus. They believe their time is always more valuable than yours. Their drama is never-ending, always requiring your attention therefore keeping you from fulfilling your goals. They are always late, never considering your schedule. They focus on the smallest distractions. They disrespect your time and others because it’s all about them. Being unprofessional is their normal way of living, and what’s important to them, is only important to them, and definitely not to you. Distancing, even deleting people like this could roughly save you hundreds of hours of wasted time a year; time which could be better spent pursuing your dreams. And as he stated above, “surrounding yourself with those who only have your best interests at heart,” is in my opinion, a golden recipe for success.
#5) He’s so right. Even with his billions, he cannot produce another second of what God has intended for his life. What he’s saying here is use time everyday like it’s your last hours on earth; to be respectful of time. To share your life with those who carry the same philosophies, maintain healthy balances with you in business and within your personal life, and are willing to make the most of your time together—realizing life is short and isn’t to be wasted. Do all of this and you’ll have more time to be creative and productive.
Since I was a kid, my parents, especially my father, always taught me the concept of time. He always believed in punctuality, professionalism, and respecting others schedules. If he had an event to attend at say, five o’clock, he’d start eyeing his watch at three making sure he had plenty of time to arrive early. To him, when someone was late to an appointment, either for business or personal reasons, he considered it rude and disrespectful unless they were lying in a hospital bed. He was a man who thought this way because he liked getting things done, and believed in, like I said before, respecting others goals and schedules. And considering how many today respect the clock, he’d probably move to a secluded log cabin, throw his watch in a stream, and call it a day if he was still around.
Somehow, I think Warren Buffett oftentimes feels the same.
To read more of Randy Mitchell's writing, visit his website @ www.theinspirationalwriter.com
His debut novel, inspirational romance SONS IN THE CLOUDS is now available for pre-order through his publisher @ www.tjtdesigns.com