I Finally Realized That Time Isn’t Everything In Life — It is ‘The Only Thing’

Throughout my childhood, I would think about what it actually meant when people said ‘it’s all about perfect timing’. I mean, if something is about to happen, wouldn’t it just happen regardless of everything? Think about the years when MySpace was ‘the thing’ before the era of Facebook. It was such a great idea, but at the wrong time. The world wasn’t simply ready for such a huge shift in social connections.

I have given much thought to how things evolved in my life as well as our society and the way we perceive each event. I was always a huge believer in destiny, but I am finally ready to understand the major factors that 28 years of my life on this planet have taught me. What I have here in this piece are probably things you already know and are aware of. It’s just for me to realize from the core of my heart, especially now that I have written it all out. Hence, my realizations bring me to conclude that —

Time marches on

It is true that things don’t just happen miraculously. There is always us and then there is the environment we are all part of. It is a combination of these two factors that make things happen. Just like crashing waves in the ocean, there is no pause in time. We can’t control it but we can just plan around it. Everything is a function of time and having the right moment.

So what does right timing actually mean? It means making the right move in a changing environment so everything in our life falls into pieces just like a puzzle.

New opportunities will come and go, but we need to be sure of the moves that will make the mark. How so? Well, the cost of living is not just a simple measure of time or money but a combination of everything: time, money, energy, health, relationship, and mental health. All these factors need to be aligned well to serve our life goals and to make things happen at the right time. Life comprises moments and moments are actions. The best actions are the ones that are in balance with everything else, especially our environment as time marches on.

Time does not always mean money

Yes, the century-old phrase ‘time is money’ that we grew up hearing does not always mean what it says. Time and money are both resources, but as time is more finite, its value overshadows the value of money. With time, we can’t control our surroundings, neither can we alter the course of it. We use ‘money’ to buy time and we take ‘time’ to make money. The relationship is like a paradox if you think about it. Enough action at the right time creates money — and an abundance of money creates freedom of action within a certain time. People spending more time in profitable circumstances end up making more money, whereas investing time in others makes meaningful relationships — all of which come down to how one spends and values time.

We can control money in a more materialistic world. Money is a supplement, a super important one, but not equivalent to having limited time. Having more money simply creates power dynamics in the society as people can have an unequal distribution of money, but everyone on this planet has a fixed time by which they need to live their life. What we do with each of these resources makes our lives worthwhile.

Managing time = managing energy

The core concept of the relationship between time and energy comes from a good balance of emotions, mind, body, and spirit. If certain habits are developed in a timely manner and at an early age, then we will have more energy in life to do everything that we want to do in later life. For instance, if we are to eat healthily, exercise regularly, and manage social/family time accordingly, then ideally we’d have the best of all worlds. A little discrepancy in the earlier age would mean less energy and more fatigue — meaning we’d not be able to enjoy life as we’d imagined in our 20s.

There is no winning over time, so we need to focus on saving time and manage our energy levels. Our physical, emotional, and spiritual energy combinedly will impact our overall wellbeing at a time. Thus establishing simple rituals in life would positively impact both physical and mental health.

To conclude

One common misconception is that we have to choose between whether we want time, money, or energy in life. Most people encourage society to choose one over another, but very few will actually tell you that all three aspects are heavily interconnected with each other. So the question is not about ‘either-or’ but there needs to be a shift in conversations to ‘and’. These aspects can be a winning combination that together will make up a positive equation to productivity, positive wellbeing, healthy, and successful life for all.