What does it mean to pay yourself first?

If you’re familiar with financial advisors’ advice, you’ll recognize the pay yourself first message.

The idea behind paying yourself first is that you should save a certain amount of money from your income before paying any bills or debts and before spending your money on anything else.

The advisors say pay yourself first because data shows that when you do so, there’s a much greater chance that you’ll save money for the long term and still be able to get by with the money you have leftover.

Now I understand that there are always exceptions to the rule and that there are people that struggle to make ends meet and cannot pay themselves first.

But why am I writing about paying yourself first?

Good question.

Because the pay yourself mentality can also apply to time.

If you don’t allocate time in your day to accomplish projects or tasks that are important to you, then the likelihood of you getting them done is very slim.

Paying yourself first with time is about you intentionally setting aside time instead of taking whatever time might be leftover in your day.

Why is it important to take time out of your day for yourself?

Because if you don’t, sooner or later, you’ll begin to feel as though you’ve lost control of your life and that you’re no longer living for yourself and only answering to the demands and whims of others on your time. And this lack of control of your time will eventually lead to frustration and unhappiness.

So, beginning tomorrow, find a way to identify time on your calendar and pay yourself first. Start with a few minutes and see how you feel. Even though time, unlike money, can’t be saved for use in the future, you’ll find that when you pay yourself first, you’ll begin to experience a richness of time.

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