2. Demand On Your Time

To achieve success for your dream, you got to pay the price of time. For you to serve in a ministry in church, you have to give up some time to serve. To get a degree in your studies, it will demand time from you from other things. Many times, you will hear people say “I don’t have time to learn. I don’t have time to do this and that.” But time, can be defined as a current of events. So time management is simply event management. If you can manage the event in your life well, you can manage time well.

One of the things you must learn to do is to wake up early. Be an early riser. I have the opportunity to meet with people who are high achievers and rich. You may be thinking what do we talk about or what questions I ask them. What is the secret to their success or what shares to invest in? No, I ask them what time they wake up everyday. And you be surprised by their answers. All of them will tell me five o’clock in the morning. What time will you hit the office? They will tell me they hit the office at 7 o’clock in the morning. You be thinking that the millionaires and billionaires, those who are rich, will be taking it easy in life. Those who are rich, take life easy, wake up late, enjoy life… these are the ones whose parents are rich, who gave the inheritance to them. But those who really grow their wealth from nothing, they are very hardworking people.

When you get into office early at 7 o’clock, you have two hours before work starts at 9am. You have two hours head start. You can pray. You have the time to think and plan what you want to do for the day. From 9 o’clock to 6 o’clock, you can zoom in on your work, have meetings, and leave for home to be with your family on time. You don’t have to worry what else you have to do for you did all your planning and you won’t miss out a thing. People who work hard are usually successful. God will reward you because you are willing to be a diligent person.

There was an article titled “Sleep Less, Live Longer”. The subtitle read “Increased Death Rate Associated with Sleeping 8 hours or more”. This is the content of the article:

“Although it is a common belief that 8 hours of sleep is required for optimal health, a six years study of more than 1 million adults, ages 30 to 102 years old has shown that people who get six to seven hours a night have a lower death rate. Individuals who sleep eight hours or more, or less than four hours a night were shown to have increased death rate compared to those who sleep six to seven hours.”

This means there got to be balance. Don’t sleep too little and don’t sleep too much.  Researchers are from California, San Diego, School of Medicines and the American Cancer of Society. They collaborated on this study which appeared in February 15, 2002 issue of the Archives General of Psychiatricts, a journal of the American Medical Association. Although the data indicates the highest mortality rate with duration sleep, the study could not explain the causes or the reasons for this association. But the study can safely say that individuals who average 6.5 hours of sleep a night is enough from a health standpoint and there is no reason to sleep longer. So if you say you need 8 hours of sleep or 12 hours of sleep, you better reconsider.

If you are a late sleeper and you sleep at 12 midnight, you are able to wake up at 6 or 6.30am in the morning. If you are able to do this, it means you will have a head start compared to the rest of the people who are in your office. Wake up early, plan your day and soon you will find yourself becoming more productive.

Time is the only commodity that you have and it can’t be replaced. You lost your wallet, you buy a new one but not with time. It cannot be replaced again when you lost time. So we must use our time very wisely. If we can work hard and ask God to number our days, then you will see yourself becoming more and more productive. You are then on your way to success or promotion.

3. Demand On Your Money

Success is going to place a demand on your money. It may cost nothing to dream but acting on your dream may be pretty pricey. When you have a dream to study, it will cost you money. When you have a dream to go for mission trip, it cost you money. But I learn one thing. If God is the one who gives you the vision, He will be the one to give you the provision. How you manage your finances will be how much God can pave your ways. Luke 16:11 says “therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?” We have more desires within than we can gratify. Every month, we can set aside our tithes, our savings, and live within the means we have. Have disciplines to lay aside money all the time into your savings. The day will come when you accumulate enough wealth, you can then spend money whenever you want to spend and on anything. Don’t just live for the present but live for your future. If you want more, then you need to learn how to handle the little that God has given to you.