Investing in the 50,000 Most Important Hours
Over the course of a 45-year career, the average person will spend about 117,000 hours working (with an average 50-hour work week), 131,000 hours sleeping (average 8 hours of sleep per night), and 65,000 hours taking care of personal responsibility (average of 4 hours a day). This scenario would leave the average person with a little more than 50,000 hours to use however he or she wants.
Most us….
- Squeeze more work in
- Sleep less than we need
- Pour time into busy distractions
- Invest in “getting by” rather than “getting better”
To help invest in the 50,000 “left over” hours more wisely and effectively, I’d like you to consider the following questions:
1. How do you define success for a life of purpose, meaning, and fulfillment?
2. If you knew 100% that this was your final year to live, how and what would you do with your final 365 days?
3. What are the most important relationships to you (personally and professionally)? List them out and share one practical way you can invest time with each.
We all have deep and concerning responsibilities. I’m not suggesting you forgo work or radically change your life, I am suggesting you seriously (if need be) re-adjust your priorities for your 50,000 hours.
There is a scripture verse in the book of James 4:4 that says, “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” This isn’t depressing to me, it is impressing because I feel it’s encouragement to make my one and only life count.
I have a leader friend who always says to me, “Steve, make your vapor count.”
Here’s to your 50,000 hours!
—Steve
As a master storyteller, Steve has unparalleled ability to communicate dynamic business and leadership truths through stories, anecdotes and humor. Harness the power of the “number one” predictor of professional success, impact, leadership, high performance and sustainable relationships in business and life. Steve’s highest rated keynote presentation.
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“The purpose of Leadership Quest is to help professionals develop their personal leadership, vision and emotional intelligence. Everyday I strive to help leaders and teams achieve their desired goals in sales productivity, leadership, time maximization, and life-balance. ”
About the Author
Steve Gutzler is the President of Leadership Quest, a Seattle-based leadership development company. Steve is a dynamic, highly-sought-after speaker who has delivered more than 2,500 presentations to a list of clients including Microsoft, Starbucks, the Seattle Seahawks, Pandora Radio, Boeing, Cisco, Starwood Corporation, the Ritz Carlton group, and the U.S. Social Security Administration. He recently was voted #1 by the readership of Huffington Post as the Most Inspirational Leader on Social Media.
A published author on leadership and emotional intelligence, Steve resides near Seattle with his wife Julie where they enjoy time with their three adult children and six grandchildren.
