Success means being able to do what you want, when you want. It doesn’t mean being able to buy what you want when you have enough time off work to do so. Question what success really is and you’ll quickly realize that it is more related to freedom and than anything else.
Someone once said that “While money doesn’t buy happiness, it sure does make me giggle a lot.” Obviously, this was said by someone who not had significant wealth to their name, but also had time to spend it. Because the truth is, money alone doesn’t create joy; being able to spend time on what you love, and do things with those whom you love is, what happiness and success truly is. When people want to become entrepreneurs they don’t actually think about the work and the money; they think about the freedom.
What Is Success?
Success is freedom. Success means that you can take the day off to spend it with your kids on a school field trip. Success means that if you want to enjoy a leisurely breakfast with your spouse on a Monday morning, you can. Success means that if you want to take that trip to Nepal, you can. Yes, money does help you afford these things, but money is only the means by which you can purchase them and anyone can make money. Most importantly is the ability to enjoy your money and not everyone who has money has that ability. Time is finite; money is not.
The Value of Time
Timothy Ferriss, in his book, The 4-Hour Work Week says, “To enjoy life, you don’t need fancy nonsense, but you do need to control your time and realize that most things just aren’t as serious as you make them out to be.” That’s why if you choose to prioritize the things you do based on money, it will often backfire. Instead, base everything you do on what kind of time it will cost you. What will it take you away from that you really would rather be doing? Some things, of course, have to be done that we don’t want to do. But, most of those things can be outsourced and worked around to accommodate the most important things on your to-do list. Most things can simply wait.
People who are truly successful in life realize the reality of the limits of time and do everything they can to make the most of the time they have. That’s why some of the most successful people you know are probably so incredibly productive. Successful people often live by their calendars and schedules. This might seem unromantic but the truth is, scheduling in work and fun will make your life better by leaps and bounds.
In fact, get out your calendar right now and first schedule in all the things you want to do with your family and for yourself that are not related to work. Once you’ve done that, you can fit in work around those things. That’s the entire point of becoming an entrepreneur – to have freedom, but it’s important that you remember what really freedom really means. Freedom is time, not money. How much is your time worth?
