What Do Bill Gates and the Poorest of the Poor Have in Common?

Bill Gates, one of the world's richest and the poorest of the poor? Simple...we all have 24 HOURS. But why the great discrepancy? The difference? OPPORTUNITY. And the will to make something out of that opportunity and time. So what does this tell us? It's how we make our minutes count that spell the difference. Do we dwell on productive, meaningful endeavors? Or we allow ourselves to be consumed by counterproductive, less purposeful situations? I am not saying that it is always work, work, work - all work and no play makes jack a dull boy. Man needs a break to recharge. What is counterproductive is dwelling too much and too long on things that will do us no good - pastimes that do not even really have an impact or benefit on our lives but more of purely instant gratification, or grieving too long on a sad situation like divorce. It is how we make our time meaningful. I remember one doctor who, during conventions, instead of seeing the sights of the convention's host city as some doctors are bound to do, will take every learning opportunity and dutifully attend as many lectures. Now he is the top pediatrician in that hospital. Not all have been blessed with opportunities. Take advantage of opportunity to better ourselves. The fact that you can read this means you are in the upper bracket of the world's literate people with access to a computer, which thus offers a whole lot of opportunities. Never stop on learning something new. Learn to adjust with the times. It's stopping to learn new things that will stunt our mental and emotional growth and thwart learning experiences. Don't let the fear of mistakes and failures deter you from the quest to achieve. Some of the most meaningful lessons we learned with mistakes and failures. The key is calculated risk and learning from them. While focusing on something very specific and cultivating this growth is good, for some it is not bad to diversify, not putting all your eggs in one basket so to speak. Some of the most successful businessmen diversify into many business interests. The key is leveraging and delegation, working smart not just hard. Maximize the potential of your time, even play can be productive - sports, hobbies, mingling with friends to widen your connection and learning worthwhile things from them and with them. This does not mean sacrificing sleep though. Never sacrifice sleep for even sleep is productive. It sharpens the mind and rejuvenates the body. Have a goal and something to look forward to every single day, whether it is for yourself or for the betterment of someone around you. Twenty-four hours. Will you waste time on counterproductive things? Or make the most of your time? It is what you make of your time that will spell the difference between a Bill Gates and leading a less productive or meaningful life.