Time.  It is without a doubt our most precious commodity.  Time is something that we are all given at birth.  If you are alive and reading this post, you are one of the over 6 billion inhabitants of this planet who has been given 86,400 seconds each day to use.  Whether you're super rich or desperately poor, we all have the same number of seconds in the day.  86,400.

What we do with these seconds is another thing.  Let's go with another number for a second.  Let's say that you are working a J.O.B. and you get paid 500 bucks a week.   That's equals to 50,000 pennies.  It's not hard to spend 50,000 pennies in a week.  Of course I'm equating the pennies to the seconds in my time example.    How do you spend your money each week?  Most of it probably goes to bills, mortgage, food and other necessities.  In terms of time, this would be equivalent to spending some of your 86,400 seconds on other "necessities" such as sleeping, showering, eating, commuting to and working your J.O.B. if you're employed.  So how do you spend your left over money at the end of the week?  Go out to the local pub and blow it all?  Save it for the future?  Maybe you spoil yourself with a new gadget.

It works the same way with time, only there is one difference.  If you lose money, you can always get it back.  If you waste your money, you can always get more.  If you lose time, it's gone forever.  If you waste time, its gone forever.  This is what makes time even more precious than money.  Time can never, ever be recovered, yet we are all paid the same each day that we are alive in terms of seconds. Every wasted hour, every wasted day accumulates in a sort of time debt.  The more time that is blown, the more regret that will build as you become closer to your final day.  When you reach your final day, will you be happy with the way you spent your time.  Was watching TV and playing Poingo on some spyware infested website for years on end worth having a negative net worth as you cash in your chips from the physical realm?

If you're starting to feel the weight of time debt (regret for a wasted life), I have good news.  It's not too late!  Start freeing up your time now and get started on your path to freedom.  Start building that Internet Business that you've always wanted to do.  Don't spend weeks and months on planning how you're going to do it.  Just start with a basic goal.  Now get your website, start a blog, make a product!  Just take action!  Form the more complex parts of the business plan as you go.  If you don't go in this order, you will find yourself planning your internet venture right into the ground.  It's extremely easy to get caught in that perpetual learning cycle.  Avoid this one pitfall and you're already ahead of 98% of the rest.  

Now, to free up your time.  Eliminate distractions!  I was reading a post by Keith Goodrum on one very effective way to eliminate distractions.  In fact, it was his post that inspired me to expand upon the importance of time.  His suggestion is to unsubscribe from all of the time wasting emails from other people's lists that have accumulated over time.  Just looking at these emails can tempt you to take your eye off the ball, and before you know it, the day is blown.  I've been guilty of this myself.  I've thinned out my own inbox to only the blog announcements of the blogs I enjoy, and a couple of the big name "gurus" just so that I can study their email strategies, headlines and copywriting styles. Secondly, stop watching the TV!!!  The TV set is the single most dangerous time vampire you could ever face.  Getting lulled into that mindless trance will steal hours away from your quality business building time.  You already sleep at night.  Why sleep your day away too?  Watching TV is no different, only that your eyes are open and that you are vaguely conscious of your surroundings.

I've been following Keith's blog for a couple of weeks now, and I can tell that Keith has already developed a pretty cool blog.  He has even started a TGIF Book Review, a video review of a selected book from his library to share with his readers. Go check him out and see if you won't add him to your "quality list" as well!