Allocating Your Resources

You may already be aware of this, but your resources extend to more than just money. Resources also include time, energy, ideas, motivation, zeal and land, to name a few. These different resources have different values for people, according to their socioeconomic status or rather, their station in life. To the average teenager during summer break, time is lower in value relative to money. Why? Because their perception is usually that they have a lot of time, but not a lot of money. This is one reason why so many teenagers work at minimum wage jobs during the summer---because their time is not occupied by school, giving an abundance of time; but in order to pay for such things as gas, insurance, dates, movies, snacks, make-up, you name it, they must work a job to pay for the things they want/need. Thus, working a minimum wage job during summer break increases the value of their free time because they will have the money to do the things they want during that free time.

For an executive who makes over $1.2 million a year, time may have more value relative to monetary resources. Their lives are filled with board meetings, teleconferences and constant crisis situations that pop up and seem to keep them at work late every day. They may be willing to sacrifice money for the sake of spending more time with family or even more time doing things they enjoy.

Some people think they have boundless energy, but the cold fact of it is that energy is a resource which is also limited. You only have so much energy in a day. People who are in-shape and put healthy things into their bodies will generally have more energy than those who are obese and eat unhealthy foods. I have seen people spend the majority of their energy in the day too soon and don't have energy enough for more meaningful activities later on in the day. It would benefit people to spend their energy wisely.

How much is an idea worth? Idea worth is often measured in the amount of time or money you can save in implementing a particular idea. Some people make ridiculous amounts of money with their ideas. How much are your ideas worth? This is an important question to ponder from time to time.

Motivation is a valuable resources because it has to do with one's personal drive. Your level of motivation depends on my factors; one of them being the value of the carrot in front of you. I use the term 'carrot' for a reward that someone is motivated by to work towards. Motivation also depends on the power of a person's drive. What motivates you? How powerful is your drive? How can you become more motivated?

In this picture, I was motivated to do some pull-ups

Zeal has to do with something one believes in very strongly and cannot contain their excitement about. I remember times of zeal in my life and it is exhilarating. Zeal can be someone's strong belief and excitement about their cause or spiritual beliefs and can also have to do with organizational zeal, which I like to refer to as esprit de corps. Zeal makes motivation stronger, because zeal goes deeper than just motivation.

The Marine Corps is one organization whose members have a lot of esprit de corps. The leadership of this organization fosters this esprit de corps and translates it into motivation for Marines to train hard, work hard and fight heroically.

Land, like money, is a tangible resource. Back when my ancestors lived in Wisconsin, they referred to themselves as 'land poor'. They had a ton of land, but not the money to work it. They decided to sell their land and move out west nearly a hundred years ago where they eventually became more prosperous. In the city where lots are generally smaller, a person's yard has more value per square foot because their space is limited. In the backyard, they have to choose between getting the kids a trampoline or a swing-set while also making enough room for their fire pit and lawn chairs. Out in the country where someone owns, say, seven acres, their space is not at such a premium and they will have plenty of room to add virtually whatever they want. Are you maximizing the space you have to ensure you get the most enjoyment from the land you live on?

I have written on this topic to show my readers that resources are limited, and that you should allocate your resources where they can do the most good. It may benefit you to plan your day for better use of resources. Some people are averse to this because they think it takes the serendipity and spontaneous joys out of their day, when in fact it might allow them the time and resources to have more moments of spontaneous fun or enjoyment. How can you optimize the use of your limited resources? What are some ways you can conserve or increase your resources? I have found that staying healthy is a force multiplier of resources.