Infinite.
The opposite of finite. Having no boundaries or limitations.
Sounds lovely as a personal quality when I’m looking at my to-do list or weekly agenda.
But its just not reality.
Instead, we humans are bridled with limited resources. We then exchange those resources for other elements of life.
Take time for instance. We all start with 24 hours. The beginning of the trade-offs is right here with time. Some of us must spend more time on sleeping than others. The rest then helps the physical body accomplish tasks later but those of us needing more energy will have fewer hours for those tasks. Some of us spend our time exercising which adds to our overall health. But we may not have time for other hobbies after spending time exercising. Many of us trade in the bulk of those hours at a job in exchange for money to buy shelter, clothes and food for ourselves and possibly a family. We could certainly forego this decision, but then how would we survive? Not very easily, for sure.
Each acquisition presents a choice: how will we use this resource for which we’ve traded time? How will we use our health, energy, money?
From this point the choices branch out with as many options as there are activities or items.
Think of all the things money can be traded for…products, services…would you rather spend your money for a housecleaning service and save the time you would’ve spent on those chores? Or would you rather work fewer hours to be home with your family earlier in the evening possibly to attend little league games…even if it means taking a cut in pay and having to clean your own house.
But then, would you have to choose between wearing a particular clothing brand or eating out at a certain frequency?
Maybe you’d rather clean your own house and wear clothes through several seasons so that you can spend more on travel.
Or it could be that you absolutely love to cook and would rather spend money at the grocery store than dining out. Or you live within walking distance of your workplace so you don’t have to spend money on a vehicle. Or you love the scenery of living in a small rural town and must have a vehicle to get around.
The beauty I’ve been enjoying about this line of thinking is that none of these scenarios have a “right” or “wrong”. The internal judge can sit this one out.
We each get to be in charge of how we spend our lives. Its exciting, and liberating. As if an adventure is waiting around the next corner. All dependent on how creative we can be with the trade-offs we each make.
And therein lies the crux of “Choosing”. Margin doesn’t just happen by accident.
Choosing Margin makes room for what matters most.