3 Hours is All You Need to Achieve Success

{ ⏰ } – To control your day, you need to know how to maximize your time

If you have goals or dreams, you may have thought about when will they come true? The truth is, you are the one who decides when to make it a reality by making full use of your time, instead of wasting it.

You will never have enough time

The most precious thing in the world is not money, fame, or other materialistic things. It is time. Time will always move forward and it can’t be restored. What differentiates people who succeed and people who don’t is how they use their time.

Everyone receives the same amount of time

We are not talking about age, because it is not measurable. We are going to look at how many hours we have every day. Whether you’re wealthy or not, young or old, we all have 24 hours a day.

But how much time do we actually have? Let’s break it down. Typically, people would spend their time this way:

  • 8 hours of sleep
  • 8 hours of work
  • 8 hours of free time

Sleeping and working are something that we can’t escape from. We might be able to reduce the amount of sleep or work hours that we have, but it won’t be feasible in the long run. You will live an unhealthy lifestyle if you do or you might lose your job.

So, with 16 hours gone — what should we do with the remaining 8 hours?

Count the small things

Even if we have 8 hours, we may need to use that free time to do other essential stuff such as:

  • 1,5 hours to go to the office
  • 1,5 hours to go back home
  • 1 hour to eat and take showers
  • 1 hour to hangout / socialize

…and with that, give or take, we are left with only 3 hours from a typical day. Surprised? These 3 hours is where you make a difference. Let it sink.

Time will always move forward.

You only have 3 hours for yourself

What will you do with the only ‘free time’ that you have? Most people would binge-watch Netflix or Televisionscrolling through social media like TikTok or Instagram, or maybe play games. Hey, it’s your time and you own it, so I am not judging you for doing so — after all, we’ve all been there.

But, are you sure you will not regret wasting your time?

Make a 3-hour plan

If you have your goals and dreams, you would have already known how you should spend your ‘free time’. If you want to be a writer, start writing and publishing. If you want to learn how to draw, start drawing. If you want to get healthier, go exercise, or learn how to cook healthy food.

By planning what to do for your free time, you won’t waste time scraping for inspirations here and there, browsing for tutorials, and so on. In these 3 hours, you should already have a plan of what to do and start doing it. Of course, you can use some of the time to make a plan, but keep it short.

You Only Need to Focus for 1 Hour

If you think 3 hours is too much, then you can also be productive for at least 1 hour. Even just 1 hour is a big improvement if you do it every day.

“If you start out with $100 at the beginning of the year and you were able to increase what you have by 1% every single day, at the end of the year, you would have $3,778.34 = $100 * (1 + 1%) ^ 365. That is 37.78x what you had at the beginning of the year. Get that 1% every single day!”

—Zappos

So imagine if you use this 1 hour to improve yourself by 1%. In a year, you will be 37.78 times better than you were last year. It is better to have small improvements consistently instead of a drastic improvement once in a year. And by being consistent, you will have a productive lifestyle which makes you feel bad if you are wasting your time.

It’s Okay to Slow Down

It is okay. Don’t be too hard on yourself, but don’t be too soft either. If you want to play games or hang out with your friends, take some time off that 3 hours — occasionally! Don’t make it a habit. Balancing between enjoying life and staying productive is also important.

It’s okay to enjoy life.

So, What Will You Do Now?

In the end, it’s all on you. Will you make full use of the only 3 hours’ time you have today after you read this article? You are the one who is in control of your time and your future.

Have a plan of what to do in those 3 hours. Don’t waste that precious free time to browse for inspiration, invest in those 3 hours to take action. Out of the 24 hours we have in a day, 3 hours are all we need to achieve success.


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Briandito Priambodo Avatar

Briandito Priambodo / Product Designer @ Wego

Briandito is a designer, developer, and writer. Currently building products in Singapore and writing for his new project TheTinyWisdom.com.

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