What is Your Most Valuable Asset?
Randy Wolken, President & CEO

Think for a minute and identify for yourself what your most valuable asset is as a leader? What did you come up with? For me, it’s my time. Time is a limited asset that once spent, can never be reclaimed. Time is precious and how we use it makes all the difference in the world.

Everywhere you go today people will tell you they are busy. And, I believe they are. But, how are we all using our time? This is a daily question we must ask ourselves. If not, we will squander our most precious asset. Making the most of our time is critical to our success and the success of our organizations, families, and communities. Smart time use is essential.

I find time the most difficult to manage. Most of my other valuable resources I do pretty well with. As leaders, we are asked to spend our money wisely, hire capable people to work with us, and serve our stakeholders and customers. The one thing that all of these purposes require is our time. That makes time the most valuable asset we have. If we don’t use it well, we will suffer.

Having a daily plan to use our time wisely is key. Also, we must reflect back on our time used during the day so we can know we spent it effectively and efficiently. Each morning, I plan for the use of my time. It does reside within the context of the week, month, and year, but I only get to spend it daily – minute by minute. I like to think of my days as hours of time invested. What kind of investment will I make today? How will I use my hours? One important way to think about my time is to determine if it helps create a better future for someone. A wise investment has a return. Creating a better future is a wise investment. Each hour of each day I get to invest in the future. How much I do will determine both my current success and my future sustainability. Having a smart plan and executing on it is very important. Also, deviating from the plan when a better use of my time emerges helps me achieve even more. Each day offers these challenges and rewards.

At the end of my day, it is important to assess how I did. Did I use my time well? Did I create a better future for someone? Did I serve others? Did I demonstrate what I value and hold dear? These are the questions I need to ask myself so I can learn and perform better tomorrow. I now keep track of the time I directly spend on creating the future each day. The future must be actively worked on or we just live the same way we did yesterday. This is a formula for being left behind. Moving to the future quickly is a critical skill of every successful leader and organization today.

So, how will you use your time today? How did you use it yesterday? What is the best use of your most valuable asset? These very questions could determine just how happy and successful you are. Choose wisely.