Achieving goals requires an investment and prioritization of three categories of resources. Time (which includes relationships and experiences), energy (health), and money (or things that money can buy).
The ultimate outcome of a goal will almost always result in an improvement of one or all of those resouces. For example, a goal will usually be defined in terms of time well spent, better health, or an increase in money.
Money
All three categories are important, but among them, money is the least.
When people are young they tend to have an abundance of time and health, but lack money, so their focus naturally turns toward getting more money. This is also ingrained in us by society with the question: “what do you want to be when you grow up,” which implies a money-focused goal orientation. The irony is that if you answer with something like “happy” people will think you are not being serious.
Underlying this drive is a natural desire for balance - because what good are time and health if you can’t afford to stay healthy and enjoy your time. The problem is that many people never get out of this money-focused mindset, and even as their money accumulates and their time and health dwindle, it’s not until it’s too late that they realize that they should have, at some point, started prioritizing time and health over money.
Money comes and goes. If you focus on accumulating money - say by working hard, spending little, and saving a lot - you will end up unhappy because the value of your money is manipulated and forced to decrease in value over time. Even if you acquire assets that increase in value over time, at some point you will accumulate more wealth than you could ever use, and will then be overly concerned with preserving and managing it - rather than living without care of it.
Living with a focus on accumulating money (or stuff) is a never ending emotional pendulum that forever swings between the highs of greed and the lows of fear. When it comes to money it’s best to define how much is enough, and don’t waste time trying to get more than that.
Health
Health is of great importance. People who are not healthy will usually be willing to spend all of their time and money on improving their health. Perhaps it’s our survival instinct, or maybe it’s driven by the desire to avoid pain.
Unfortunately, in the United States, our health is manipulated by people who are driven by money (and the fear and greed that underlies that drive). Our food has become poison, and there is no limit to the amount of “medicine” that is being sold to those who are willing to trade their money for health. It’s no coincidence that some of the largest and most profitable organizations in this country are related to health - whether it be pharmaceutical, hospital, or insurance. And if you need proof that the governement is in on it just observe the total lack of regulation (or at least enforcement) that pertains to those industries.
Also, our society has turned from one of being outdoors and doing physical work to one of being indoors and being mentally pre-occupied. That means there is much less physical activity occurring naturally, so we have to find ways to force ourselves to be active - such as by going to the gym, which is an unconceivable concept to some cultures around the world. There are tribes that live off the land that do no have words in their language for exercise or training because they are so naturally active that to force yourself to be active seems foolish to them.
If you do not have good health it will be hard for you to get the maximum benefit of your time, and you will ultimately end up spending all of your money trying to improve your health. Learn to protect and enhance your health. Take care of yourself!
Time
Time is the most precious resource because it is constantly dwindling. You can’t get more time, but you can improve the way you spend your time. You can improve your relationships - that is the time you spend with your loved ones, friends, and neighbors. And you can improve your experiences - such as by travelling, volunteering, or learning enjoyable skills such as cooking or music.
Everything you do (or don’t do) costs time, so don’t waste it. That doesn’t mean that you have to constantly be “busy,” but you should maximize the amount of time you spend doing meaningful things - as opposed to mindlessly being “entertained” and distracted.
There’s one aspect of time that most people tend to overlook, and that is eternity. We have eternal lives, which we will spend either with God or separated from Him.
An investment in time could be made with a focus on eternity. What do you want your eternal existence to be? Do you want to be in God’s kingdom? Do you want to have treasure in heaven? Do you want to be worthy of receiving rewards in heaven? How does one achieve these things, or move in that direction?
If you look at time from an eternal perspective, health will eventually deplete (in its current form), and resources will ultimately be given up (except for the treasure stored in heaven). That makes eternity the ultimate big-picture framework to set goals from.
What things can you do to invest in improving your eternal time?
- Spend time praying. Not just talking, but also in silence - contemplating your eternal relationship with God.
- Read your Bible. Don’t just turn the pages, but dig in and study the meaning behind things, and the implications of following through with God’s commands, and allow it to guide you in building your values and growing your character.
- Worship God. I mean sing! Perhaps learn to play an instrument. And even get an old-time hymnal and read through the lyrics and think about God’s greatness.
- Serve. I don’t mean just sign up for a church ministry on Sunday morning. Learn how to love sacrificially, and find ways to serve your family, friends, neighbors, and community - in a way that is truly for their benefit.
Dig deep into each of those areas, and approach them as the most important investment you can make, and let all the rest of the areas of your life be influenced and enhanced by the progress you make in them.