Axiom 79: Make Your Free Time Count

"You can always find a distraction if you're looking for one." 

-Tom Kite

"The key is in not spending time, but in investing it." 

-Stephen R. Covey

Time is the most precious commodity we have. Often we waste time like it is an infinite resource only to regret doing so later in life. Examine for a moment how it is that you spend your free time. Are you using your free time wisely? Or are you simply wasting your precious life away?  

Everyone needs a little non-productive free time now and then. However, it is when these non-productive activities take over the entirety of your free time that the danger lies.

What will you have to show for your personal life? (Assuming your are blessed enough to live to an advanced age). Are the only things you'll be able to tell your grandchildren things like; When I was younger I spent four hours a night on facebook, I went to the bar every night for happy hour, I was a great Call of Duty player, I watched every home baseball game on TV for 20 years straight, etc.

Or would you want to instead tell your grandchildren things like; When I was younger I brewed my own beer at home, I traveled to all the great regional restaurants, I learned how to build furniture, I painted landscapes of places I visited, etc.

There is a difference the quality of free time activities. Don't waste away what little time you have. If you do then your only identity will be your career and the shallow way you spend your free time.    

Axiom 78: You're More of a Lemming than You Think

"A sect or party is an elegant incognito devised to save a man from the vexation of thinking." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

No matter how hard you try you are a victim of group think. Your view of the world and your actions are shaped by just a few of these groups: 

• Your geographic location (house, street, neighborhood, city, metropolitan area, state, region, country)
• Your education
• Your religion
• Your political party
• Your race
• Your gender
• Your physical appearance
• Your income
• Your employer
• Your job function
• Your hobbies  

When you think about yourself in the context of the groups above you start to realize how much you really think like the people around you. It is no secret that marketing companies can predict your behavior based on the groups you belong to.

If you are starting to feel a little bit like a lemming it's okay. Just make sure that the groups you belong to represent the kind of person you want to be. If they don't then you need to have a plan on how to change to the group that reflects who you are as a person. Granted, we cannot change our race or gender, but every other group is fair game. 

Axiom 77: Always go the Extra Mile

"Do more than is required. What is the distance between someone who achieves their goals consistently and those who spend their lives and careers merely following? The extra mile." 

-Gary Ryan Blair

"There are no traffic jams along the extra mile." -Roger Staubach 

Successful people do more than what is required. Sometimes this extra effort is appreciated and sometimes it goes totally unnoticed. Either way it never hurts to go the extra mile. 

When going the extra mile gets you noticed it can pay huge dividends. It can open doors that would have otherwise never opened. We often get caught up in doing these grueling tasks never thinking twice about going the extra mile. However, we don't realize how going just a little bit further could change our world.

Go the extra mile every time if you think its worth it. If you are not sure go the extra mile until you find out. You have nothing to lose except a little time and effort.