Time: The Only Commodity That Matters

TL;DR Time is the only commodity we can never get back. We've built a matrix that convinces us to trade it away for status, consumption, and metrics that don't matter. Know where you are in the hierarchy, know where you're going, and when you get there, don't forget to stop.

Coming out of these holidays, I felt something I suspect many of you felt too.

Life slowed down. The inbox could wait. There was family, laughter, long meals stretching into longer conversations. No one watching the clock. No one optimizing anything.

And somewhere in that slowness, a realization: this is another world. Fun, loved, long-lasting, unhurried. A world that exists parallel to the one we sprint through the other 50 weeks.

That feeling. Maybe that's what we were meant to create all along. Not just visit during holidays, but build into our lives.

Because time is the only thing we can never get back. More precious than money. Money can be earned again. Scarcer than gold. Gold can be mined. Time flows in one direction only. It doesn't negotiate.

The Matrix We've Built

We've been inducted into a system so pervasive that stepping outside feels like vertigo.

We've been trained to optimize for things that don't matter. To chase metrics someone else defined. The modern world doesn't just consume our time. It convinces us that giving it away is the point.

We've become consumers, not customers. Buying things we don't need, chasing the next purchase that promises to fill a void it cannot reach. Social media perfected making you feel like you're missing out. Everyone else thriving while you compare your behind-the-scenes to their highlight reel. The scroll never ends because the emptiness it creates never gets filled.

And status, social and economic, the ultimate bluff. The title, the car, the neighborhood. We chase these markers not for joy, but to feel superior. A hierarchy we invented, then enslaved ourselves to.

All of it costs time. Your time. The only resource you cannot buy back.

The Hierarchy We Climb

Let me be honest. Talking about time as ultimate wealth is easy when basic needs are met. For many, this isn't practical. It's a distant luxury.

There's a hierarchy we climb. First, self-respect and confidence. Then money and family, stability, security. Only once money no longer drastically changes your day does your mind have space for time. And only after reclaiming time does philanthropy enter the picture.

Most people are in earlier stages. I'm not pretending otherwise.

But here's why I write this: be wary of it. Know the climb even while climbing. The trap isn't being in an early stage. It's reaching later stages and forgetting why you climbed. People chase money for decades, finally get enough, and realize they've forgotten how to do anything else.

Know where you are. Know where you're going. When you get there, don't forget to stop.

Treat Time Like It Should Be

Time is freedom. The pinnacle of wealth.

Money buys convenience, options, experiences, all proxies for time. The wealthy don't buy things. They buy hours. Yet many who chase fortunes trade the very thing they seek, spending time to acquire means for time, only to run out of it.

There's nothing that compares to owning your own time. The luxury isn't the car or house. It's waking up and choosing what you do with your hours. Being present with people who bring out the best in you.

We protect our money fiercely. Our time? We give it away freely. To meetings that could be emails. To scrolling that brings nothing. To obligations we never chose.

Treat time with the same reverence you give your money. Guard it. Invest it wisely. Spend it on what matters.

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As we step into a new year, carry that holiday feeling with you. Don't let it fade. Build it into your days. Protect it fiercely.

The question isn't whether you have enough time. You don't. None of us do.

The question is whether you'll treat it like the irreplaceable thing it is.

Happy New Year. Make it count.

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Thoughts? Hit me up at [email protected]