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In order to compete goals, create works of art, find a partner, achieve anything in life you need resources to spend in order to build or find them.
Below I outline four and explain why they are necessary and some ideas on how best to use them.
Money
Probably the most obvious resource. The one we think of when we talk about spending something. Money is the resource we have been traditionally told is the one we should aim in getting more off. More money, personal wealth that is what makes you happy and successful. Yet as we have seen in our own personal lives this idea has fallen flat. True enough, a minimum amount of money is needed to maintain living standards but beyond that more money will not make us happy.
However money is the one thing we all seem to want more of, because it allows us more time to do the things we want to.
Enough money can mean working fewer hours on a job we have to do and more on the things we want to. Money can give us time for ourselves, our own goals and dreams.
So what is a useful attitude towards money?
You need to know what sort of lifestyle you want, then workout how much money you need. If you want to get away from that dead-end job be modest in your aspirations. Give up on the fancy car and the nice house.
Instead, figure out what you really need, the most pressing requirements and desires, things you are not willing to give up on. Reduce your hours of work if you can. Then spend more time on something you find fulfilling.
Let’s be fair here, money is not the route of all evil, it’s just the attitude we have about it. We despise people who have a lot of money whilst at the same time wishing we were one of them.
We need to spend the money we have more wisely, before we should expect any more.
Richard Collison
Those individuals who have succeeded learned this.
Time
Unless you happen to be Dr Who, we all have only twenty four hours in the day.
Wanting something more in our life means finding space for it. So we will have to give up on something, in order to fit it in.
Those who are successful are already the ones who manage their time well. They use the hours, days, weeks, and years carefully by using their time on things that will help become successful or happy. Things that nourish and give meaning to their lives, whilst reducing or minimising those things that are unhelpful, wasteful or life sucking.
They key point is how do you intend to use the finite time you have? Today, this week, this year, your life?
This fact should not be a lesson in despair, but a lesson in desire to find out what matters.
The best time to start was twenty years ago, the second best time is now.
Time is the most important resource because we cannot get any more of it.
Energy
Not something people tend to think of, but energy is without doubt necessary for success. Another name for it is Focus or Willpower.
Energy is important because it allows us to do work through the day. It’s what enables us to concentrate and solve problems using our mind or body.
An example are exams when you were a child. After concentrating for a couple of hours you walked out of there feeling tired. It’s the same at the end of the day, when you get home after work.
Energy rises and falls during the day, but we have most of it in the morning and the least at the end the day. This is why binge eating tends to happen most in the evening. With willpower at it’s lowest we can’t resist sweet or fatty foods as well.
Or problem is we tend to work so hard without any breaks, thinking if we just work a little more can get this task finished and perhaps go home a little early. Or we work through lunch because we need to keep this job or get a promotion.
What we don’t notice however is that as this energy falls so does our attention and concentration, so our work rate falls.
If we just set aside a few minutes and take a break we can came back to the problem in a clearer frame mind.
They key point here is in learning to pace yourself throughout the day.
In-between times of work we need periods where we relax and get something to healthy to eat.
It’s about taking better care of ourselves, which brings me to the fourth resource we have.
Health
Often this resource is the one thing that gets overlooked the most. Health is necessary for two reasons. You need to be so in order to have enough energy to do the work. See energy above.
Health is also intrinsically valued because it equates to life and vitality.
Further you can’t enjoy the work or the celebrate your success if you are feeling I’ll.
The problem is people in their efforts to find success can neglect their health. Working very long hours, often stressed, neglecting their diet. Falling energy levels mean people will turn to high energy foods full of sugar and fat.
They may even resort to stimulants. Legal ones like coffee, energy drinks like Red Bull. Or even illegal ones like the recreational drugs that give them the energy and help them get rest afterwards.
It becomes a vicious cycle, failing health causes people to neglect it further so increasing the rate of breakdown. The result are illnesses like heart disease, diabetes, immune problems like auto immune diseases and so on. Including the most common compliant as doctors surgeries, fatigue.
Mental health can also suffer along side it, anxiety, depression, but stress had to be the biggest.
Ill-health is a wake up call! The question is are you paying attention
Richard Collison
Such problem can have far reaching effects. Breakdown in relationships, poor performance at work, which can lead to yet more stress.
The worst that can happen is death, many chronic illnesses are called ‘silent killers’ because you will only notice them once the late stages symptoms become apparent. A heart attack can be the first sign of a heart disease for example.
Health then is critical to your success and the enjoyment of it. So we need to take care of ourselves whilst we go about our work and lives.
A healthy diet and lifestyle, taking regular breaks through your day, proper hydration, spending quality time with friends, family and more can all help your health and well-being.
These four resources interact with each other, and all of them are critical to success.
Our problem is not that we can do away with them, but that we use them poorly.
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