How I manage my time so well that it feels like I have more than 24 hours/day.

The most precious and valuable resource of life.

Ordinary people think merely of spending time, great people think of using it.”

—Arthur Schopenhauer

The clock started ticking (tick-tock) when you were born and came into this world. And it won’t stop ticking until you get buried.

Time is the only resource you cannot control, but it plays the most important role in your life. You can’t stop it, you can’t rewind it, nor can you forward it. The dial has its own pace. Still, it’s the most valuable resource in life.

Time works the same for everyone. Everyone has 24 hours in a day equally.

Time is not controllable, but it is manageable. You can manage it.

Today, I will teach you how I controlled managed my time so well that it feels like I have more time than others.

AI can make it more than 24 hours a day. Thanks to GPT:)

A concept famously known as “time billionaire.”

“There’s a myth that time is money. In fact, time is more precious than money. It’s a nonrenewable resource. Once you’ve spent it, and if you’ve spent it badly, it’s gone forever.”

—Neil A. Fiore

A "time billionaire" is someone who has over a billion seconds left in their life. It clearly says if you are young, you’re a billionaire, not with money, but with time.

I first heard this concept from Sahil Bloom, an entrepreneur, author, and one of the wisest men I’ve found online. He blew my mind with this concept.

The term "time billionaire" was coined by Graham Duncan during an episode on The Tim Ferriss Show. He explained:

"A million seconds is 11 days. A billion seconds is slightly over 31 years...I feel like in our culture, we’re so obsessed, as a culture, with money. And we deify dollar billionaires in a way...And I was thinking of time billionaires that when I see, sometimes, 20-year-olds—the thought I had was they probably have two billion seconds left. But they aren’t relating to themselves as time billionaires."

I find this the most valuable lesson I’ve learned in the past few years.

The point is: time is our most precious asset. It’s not just realizing you are a time billionaire, it’s also recognizing and valuing the time you have.

Follow this: Treat your time as your ultimate currency. Every minute is costing you. Use or spend it wisely.

Choose activities where you are investing your time (and not spending it).

I have seen it’s hard to choose what to do with your time. I may not be correct here for you, but I am correct for myself. It’s because the things I say I am spending time on might be the ones you say you are investing time in. It differs goal-wise.

If your goal is to become a football player, sitting down and watching matches alone won’t help. You have to invest more time in playing and practicing on the ground. Investing and spending time depend on what your goal is.

Follow this: When choosing what to do, prioritize investing time, not spending it. Invested time are actions that compound. It could be reading, exercising, practicing mindfulness, or relationship building. Spent time are actions that don’t.

My Rule: Schedule everything (don’t let yourself remember things to do).

I believe my brain is bad at remembering things. It’s good at collecting details but bad at storing them. That’s why I try to write them down and make my calendar or other tools to remember them and remind me when the time comes.

It helps me focus on things that matters the most. I think and collect with my brain, and I store them in my calendar, notepad, or whatever you use.

With scheduling, I do two more things. They are:

• I don't try to schedule everything. Sometimes I force myself to remember ideas. It's an exercise for my brain. It's risky but worth it for my brain’s health benefits.

  Pro tip: Stop scheduling everything. It's ruining your brain's potential. Try to remember one or a few things you have to do. It's not risking out. It's an exercise for your brain's health.

• When I am walking or doing something, I voice-type my thoughts instead of writing them.
  Pro tip: Use voice typing to jot down your ideas while you are walking or doing something.

Coming to my calendar, my calendar is filled with what I do every day, and it reminds me 5 minutes before every event that is scheduled.

Follow this: Take a piece of paper and write down what you do every day. Then open your calendar and schedule the ones that are important. The rest should be either delegated or automated.

Un-scheduleable things you do (things that are not in your hands).

As we are humans and not machines, a pile of emergencies and uncertain events keeps happening in our lives. We can’t control them or avoid them for long. Let’s say your friend or someone close to you is caught up in an accident. You have to stop managing your time well and go see that friend of yours. It’s okay, you should go.

You know, that’s what makes us human. This is what we are—imperfect beings.

So, whenever these events or emergencies happen, ask: Is this worth my time? Seeing your friend who has been in an accident is a must to take care of. You should go for it.

Sometimes, uncertain things came out during your time. It can be calling a plumber to fix the water pump, or it can be going to the nearest market to buy some vegetables.

When these things come in your way, follow this rule: If it takes two or five minutes of your time, then go for it and do it. If it doesn’t, then schedule it for later, or you can delegate or automate it if possible.

Final note: the truth.

The truth is, we all have the same 24 hours equally every day. There is no more time for me, nor for you. The only thing is who manages their time so well that it feels like they have more than 24 hours. It could be all of us. We need to be great with our time. We need to own our time well. Take the concept of time billionaire so seriously when it comes to taking charge of your time.

Use your time wisely and focus on investing it, not spending it.

“This is your life and it's ending one minute at a time.”

—Tyler Durden, from the movie Fight Club

Sumit,
Curator of Simple Digest

Connect with me on: Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn