Time is one of the most important aspects of competitive advantage. Innovating new ways to use time and to deploy time as a strategy has often led to success in the market and on the battlefield. FedEx has become one of the largest corporations in the
world by expediting the packages that we send and receive. Overnight delivery is a term we associate with FedEx. The United States
Postal Service (USPS) left a wide open gap in the market by being more hum drum
about the time it takes to send and receive packages. The Postal Service did not realize the
increased priority that people were placing on time! This created an incredible opportunity that
was fulfilled by both FedEx and United Parcel Service; and of course, email, text messaging and cellphones all helped to erode the once iconic place that the US Post Office held. In today’s market place,
someone will always jump into an opportunity and fulfill it. Products and services can always be: better,
faster and cheaper. Faster is one of the
three prime factors that can confer a competitive advantage. Time is money and
money is time. Speed and more speed will always be worth money to many people.
How many opportunities do you think are still out there in
respect to time? If you could think
about it differently, do you think you might find a great opportunity? I believe there are hundreds if not millions
of opportunities still waiting for the wise entrepreneur in the area of
time. Time is the most important item
that anyone has and yet while we measure the Gross National Product (GNP) in
terms of products and services, there are no measures for “GNT” or Gross
National Time. We measure Per Capital Income but there are no measures of PCT
(Per Capita Time). PCT could tell us how
well as a nation we are doing in respect to managing time. Time is one of our most valuable assets but we
can continue to act like it is of less importance than capital or products.
How much per capital time do you have each week left over
after all your “chores” and work is done?
Are you a rich person or a poor person in regards to time? Do you have
more time than you need or do you have less?
How could you find more time in your life for the things you really want
to do?
"Time is the most important item that anyone has and yet while we measure the Gross National Product (GNP) in terms of products and services, there are no measures for “GNT” or Gross National Time."
ReplyDeleteI don't know. I think the economic measure of productivity does measure time, as at least on of its component variables. Productivity is output per unit time. Increased capital and infrastructure investment allows the average worker to pump out more "stuff" per hour of labor expended.
How much capital time do I have each week left over? Enough I guess. I don't feel pressed by lack of time to do the things I want to do. I do sort of resent the time I spend sleeping, and have looked for ways to cut down on that "waste". Yet I enjoy spending time on things I realize are not really productive (watching entertainment, playing games). I get to feel "rich" in time if I can afford to indulge myself in these ways.
Hi Bruce, I wonder about sleep. I hear some people who say as they get older they sleep less. I seem to enjoy it even more. It is one thing I do not want to be more productive on. But work time on non-essential tasks or work that is fruitless would be good to reduce. It would be interesting to track individual productivity re time but probably just a concept that is not too practical.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy going to sleep when I am tired, and enjoy waking up refreshed. But many people say they enjoy being asleep itself, which I find puzzling. I enjoy some dreams, but I have no experience of the deliciousness of dreamless repose. I was reading a Hindu track some months ago in which the author "proved" that we are all really god by noting that even the most miserable person returns to our true nature, primeval bliss, every day, through sleep. I just don't get it.
ReplyDeleteYou sleep less on the weekend. I sleep the same amount. But I know some people who sleep extra on the weekend because they enjoy doing so so much. Or maybe they are just catching up on sleep deprivation they have gone through during the work week.