If you tell people that time is their most valuable asset, most will nod affirmatively. There is not much debate here. We all have a limited time to exist on this planet and, while this resource seems plentiful, there are no certainties. Why then do so many people seem to squander their time, particularly as it relates to money?
Millions of people the world over have turned themselves into wage slaves who trade their time for money. Others stubbornly pursue DIY projects (burning a ton of time) that could be outsourced. Others invest in things without a thought for how much time said investments will take to manage. Tim Dwyer, a recent guest on the Get Invested show is all too familiar with this dynamic. ‘The time-for-money model is dead, you still need measure time but don’t price it that way,’ Tim says.
Let’s assume that everyone reading this has the goal of living a good and happy life (who doesn’t?). One of the best things you can do to this end is to free up the chokehold financial constraints have placed on your time. How to do this? This is one fundamental problem that our KnowHow team is looking to address… it underpins everything we do.
Downloading our entire approach, system and philosophy is well beyond the scope of this article. So instead we’ll do this. Below are six quick ways you can start making more of your time. This can apply to investing, your career or life in general.
- Don’t wait for instructions or permission. Often, inaction is worse than doing the wrong thing, so make the most of your time by making sure you don’t cease forward motion.
- Listen more than you talk. Adopt all of Stephen Covey‘s seven habits but, most importantly, ‘Seek first to understand then to be understood’.
- Learn from others’ mistakes. You don’t have time to make all the mistakes yourself, and dodging bullets is a big time saver. Read books, listen to podcasts, follow people publishing valuable content and never stop learning.
- Stop complaining. People waste an inordinate amount of time complaining about things. Simply not directing your energy in this manner can create a huge surplus of time and, more importantly, energy.
- Understand the systems you’re involved with. Do your homework and figure out how the game is played. Understanding how your corporation functions or exactly how an asset class works sets you up to streamline efforts and maximise your time.
- Get better and think of how to be different. Always strive to improve, this should go without saying. Loosely trying to get better can improve results 10-20%, but if you break the mould and try a completely new tact that sees you improve just 1% per day, you will be 356% better at the end of the year.
Time is more than money, time is everything. Start following the above steps to make the most of yours.
Listen to our entire conversation here!
