One thing we all struggle with is how do we get the most out of our day—in business and in life we are constantly seeking the low hanging fruit.  What is the thing that will give us the most bang for our buck?  How can I best use our time---a quote that I often requote is this----money is a renewable resource---time is not.  That quote can have massive impact not only on our businesses but, our personal life.  We work hard so that our family—our significant others and kids can have a better life but, often we work---make money and often prioritize family below our business successes.  Its sad but, true and I am guilty of this same thing. This summer I took some time off from the world----I didn’t check my email---I didn’t take many calls----I checked out---I did yoga and meditated.  I lost some clients---my wife got mad at me but, I think I earned a new perspective on living and operating my business.  Below are some of the ideas. First------Man lives by time. Inventing the future has been his favorite game of escape. We think that changes in ourselves can come about in time, that order in ourselves can be built up little by little, added to day by day. But time doesn’t bring order or peace, so we must stop thinking in terms of gradualness. This means that there is no tomorrow for us to be peaceful in. We have to be orderly on the instant. We have to be present---in the moment; not looking forward to what we want or looking backward and either reveling in our successes or beating ourselves up about what we did wrong.  A friend of mine once told me that to be present with a friend is a gift------a present and a gift are the same thing---that stuck with me. It is only when we are present that the mind is free because it is no longer desiring anything; it is no longer seeking; it is no longer pursuing a goal, an ideal—which are all the projections of a conditioned mind. And if you ever come to that understanding, in which there can be no self-deception, then you will find that there is a possibility of the coming into being of that extraordinary thing called creativity. II. Inventing the future is another way of saying “setting goals.” Success, especially in the West, then it becomes about achieving those goals. We accumulate accomplishments and call it success. Success means something very different to me, and I think being a great father will be about effectively communicating this different definition of success to my kids. Success is about building a set of daily practices, it is about growth without goals.  Continuous, habitual practice(s) trumps achievement-based success.  This is why I often say that the guy or girl that has hustle will always do better than the person with talent.  I think “accomplishments” are traps. Accomplishments, by their very definition, exist only in the past or future—which are not even real things. Pride is the worst of the seven sins and it is closely related to past and future accomplishments.  I personally, am full of pride –I am full of ego and I am working hard on getting rid of some of those traits that have served me so well in the past but, may not serve me well in the future. III. Most of the things we do and believe result from stories that we tell ourselves. The modern secular world looks down on religious traditions for their faith in unempirical stories, but we tell ourselves stories in the same way. “Most millionaires sincerely believe in the existence of money and limited liability companies.” To be fair, many of these stories have indeed led to human security and luxury—a better world. Some stories, though, are silly and destructive. The story that we are told in America is that achievement—money, power, awards—equals success. I had this idea deeply imbued at a young age. We are desire-fulfilling machines: the mind literally IS desire. My desires–and therefore my actions–were shaped by these stories, like the story of achievement. Now I try to ask, what stories are we telling ou