“Think about what you want today and you’ll SPEND your time.
Think about what you want in 5 years and you’ll INVEST your time.”
When most people think of risk, they think of it in terms of some financial investment they make. Investing money in a new business venture, maybe investing in stocks, mutual funds, bonds, or lending someone money at the risk that you probably won’t get it back. But financial risk is actually NOT the greatest risk. You can always earn more money. “Money comes and money goes” as they say!
The greatest risk you take is TIME risk!
When you devote your time to anything, that time is lost forever. Time never gets renewed or returned – Ever! Those who do not value time, spend it.
Time is a finite resource, but how we invest it can yield infinite returns. Just like financial investments, wise choices compound over time, leading to exponential growth. As leaders, it’s essential to allocate time strategically, prioritizing tasks that align with long-term goals while delegating or eliminating non-essential activities. Remember, every minute spent thoughtfully today pays dividends tomorrow.
Over the last 3 years or so of my leadership, I have become a bit obsessed with managing my time. Not because I think my time is more valuable than anyone else’s, but because there are many more things that I want to accomplish, and to yield the best return on my investment, I want to be sure it’s deposited into the correct places! And, with the correct, investable people!
Sadly, people can easily spend most of their time by engaging in absolutely wasteful activities – laying around watching T.V., scrolling social platforms for hours each day, hanging out with people that bring you down, or just laying in bed when you should be up, or a 1,000 other non-productive activities! I’m not by any means saying we shouldn’t take time to relax and recharge. But I can tell you from countless conversations I have with people who are at a high level in their leadership, that these are NOT cup-filling activities!
From an investment standpoint, time spenders don’t begin to value time until time begins to run out. Those who were taught to value their time, invest it wisely!
Those who understand the value of time, invest their time wisely by pursuing dreams / goals, reading to become more knowledgeable in their job or profession, practicing their skills until they become an expert, building rich relationships or creating an incredible legacy that builds and benefits others. Any investment you make of your time should pay dividends down the road in some meaningful way – increased happiness events, financial security, longevity, a legacy that benefits future generations or helps improve the lives of others, or building a Team that will make your work life run smoother and gain you better use of time each day.
When you see time as THE greatest risk of all, it will force you to become more aware of exactly how you use it.
Let me ask you an honest question for you to think about… If you were to open up your “Time” bank account statement right after you read this blog, and checked all of your TIME transactions so far for 2024, would it show that you are primarily ‘spending’ your time or are you ‘investing’ your time?
Trust me when I say — Invest it wisely, because you will never get these days/months/years back!