Will We Forget How COVID-19 Made Us Rich?
By: Dave Smurthwaite
Tags: Life Lessons, Wellness, Health, Time Management, Covid 19

I read recently that we will sleep for twenty-six years of our life.

At first glance, this seemed like a staggering number. By twenty-six, I had graduated from college, gotten married, and we had our first child, Noah.

Even eerier than spending one-third of life drooling on my pillow was the realization that, barring any major medical complications, I’d be fully conscious for the other two-thirds.

That meant fifty-two years. Fifty-two years of early morning runs, work meetings, bean and cheese burritos, pointless television shows, and a myriad of other everyday activities.

Even if I were awake, how much of this time would I actually remember? Neurologists don’t know for sure but from forty years of personal experience, I already know the answer: very little.

It’s a cruel trick. For one-third of our life we’re unconscious, the other two-thirds we’ll quickly forget.

At the end of it all, when it is time for my final exam before the Almighty, what stories will I have to tell? What will I have really learned?

The Great Equalizer

“Time is the great equalizer. Each day has only 24 hours — nobody has any more than anyone else.” — Tina Seelig Ph.D.

Every day offers us 24 hours to do with them what we will. This is as true for the richest man in the world (Jeff Bezos) as it is for the beggar on the street corner.

Before the COVID-19 crisis, most of our waking hours were spoken for. We would wake up, eat breakfast, go to work or school, and so on.

Our time made sense, even if there was often barely enough of it to get everything done.

What COVID-19 has taught me is how much of our time is prioritized by money. Over the course of the average life, we’ll spend the majority of our waking hours (roughly 13 years) working.

Understandably, this is because we have more control over money than we do time. Money is measurable, reliable (usually), and even negotiable. We make a buck and we spend a buck. We lose a buck, we figure out how to make another.

Time, on the other hand, is abstract and fleeting. It can fly by or be never-ending depending on the moment.

“Time is a… river of passing events, and strong is its current; no sooner is a thing brought to sight than it is swept by and another takes its place, and this too will be swept away.” — Marcus Aurelius

Once distracted by money, it’s easy to get swept up in the current of time for years, even decades.

The Issue with Money as our Life Currency

If you search online for “main drivers in life,” you’ll find everyone has their own magic number. Tony Robbins says we have six primary needs while other life coaches claim there are as many as seven or eight.

Seeing as I enjoy simple math, I’ve identified three: time, purpose, and money.

Graphic by author

Now, for all the academics, it’s important that we define each element:

Time : the indefinite continued progress of existence and events in the past, present, and future regarded as a whole.

the indefinite continued progress of existence and events in the past, present, and future regarded as a whole. Purpose : the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists.

the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists. Money: a current medium of exchange in the form of coins and banknotes.

Does one of these seem insignificant compared to the others?

“Time” and “purpose” deal in the currency of existence and meaning, while “money” can be wadded up and crammed into the tiny pocket of your blue jeans.

And yet, for most of us, money has become our primary life currency for all the reasons mentioned above.

The problem is that, in the end, money is worth pennies on the dollar when compared with purpose and time.

Will we remember? I fear not.

“Get correct views of life, and learn to see the world in its true light. It will enable you to live pleasantly, to do good, and, when summoned away, to leave without regret.” — Robert E. Lee

One of the surprising findings that have come from the COVID-19 crisis has been a renewed focus on the quality of time.

Over the past two months, I’ve had multiple friends and family comment on how “good it has been” to spend quality time together as a family. Even in circumstances where money is tight or now unsure, people have expressed gratitude for the chance to “make up” on lost moments with family.

That does not mean that it hasn’t been difficult living on top of one another. It does, however, point to a sad truth we see played out in our personal lives as well as the most cliché TV dramas:

Nobody lies on their death bed wishing they’d had more dimes but most of wish we’d had more time.

One of the greatest fears I have personally is that, once we’ve “recovered” from COVID-19, I’ll forget about this truth. In an effort to “catch up” or “keep up” in the post-COVID era, I’ll scramble after money instead of clutching onto time.

Soon enough, commutes will fill my mornings and afternoons, sporting events will fill the weekends, and nights will be spent wrestling over kids’ homework or freelance projects.

If and when that happens, what will I have really learned in life?

That time is precious (but only a priority in times of pandemics).