The Value of Time: Where Do Your 168 Hours Go?
Time is the one resource that every person receives equally. Regardless of age, education, wealth, or social status, each of us has 24 hours in a day and 168 hours in a week.
We can earn more money, replace material possessions, and sometimes recover from poor decisions. However, once time has passed, we can never get it back.
An example shared by financial educator Dr. Boyce Watkins encourages us to examine how we use our 168 hours each week. Consider this breakdown:
- Sleeping: 5 hours per night × 7 days = 35 hours
- Working: 8 hours per day × 5 days = 40 hours
- Traveling to and from work: 2 hours per day × 5 days = 10 hours
- Watching television: 3 hours per day × 7 days = 21 hours
- Using social media: 4 hours per day × 7 days = 28 hours
- Talking on the phone: 2 hours per day × 7 days = 14 hours
Total time used: 148 hours
Time remaining: 20 hours
This example is not meant to suggest that sleep, relaxation, communication, or entertainment are unimportant. Sleep is essential, work is necessary, and everyone needs time to relax. However, the breakdown should cause us to ask an important question:
Are we using enough of our time to improve our lives and prepare for the future?
After accounting for the activities listed above, only 20 hours remain. Those hours must also include eating, bathing, household responsibilities, caring for family members, attending appointments, exercising, and handling unexpected situations.
The real issue may not be that we do not have enough time. The issue may be how we use the time available to us. Imagine what could happen if we redirected just one hour each day from television, social media, or unnecessary phone conversations toward something productive.
That one hour could be used to:
- Read a book or study a new subject
- Take an online course
- Start a business or develop an idea
- Learn about saving and investing
- Exercise and improve our health
- Spend meaningful time with family
- Volunteer in the community
- Pray, reflect, and plan for the future
One hour a day equals seven hours a week and approximately 365 hours a year. That is more than nine 40-hour workweeks devoted to personal growth.
I must include myself in this conversation. We should all occasionally examine how we use our time. Are our daily habits helping us reach our goals, or are they quietly taking us away from them?
Time management does not mean that every minute must be devoted to work. It means using our time with purpose and establishing a healthy balance among work, rest, family, recreation, learning, and personal development.
Every week, we are given 168 hours. The question is not simply, “Where did the time go?” The better question is:
“What did I accomplish with the time I was given?”
Time is valuable. Spend it wisely, because once it is gone, it cannot be replaced.
Read. Share. Join the conversation.
How many hours each week could you redireimproving your life?
Marvin Dixon/Founder
vmgreview.com
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