Automation = Your Value of Time
I preach automation. ALL THE TIME! Automate your tasks. Do not do things manually if you do not have to. Keep using your brain for higher level functions and thinking. However, I have come to realize something. Automation is not necessarily about doing things better, repeatedly.
Automation is about how I value my time. And for me, it changes as I get older and have life experiences.
Time is the only currency you spend where you never know your remaining balance. Think about that.
Who I am
Dale Bingham, father of 3 girls, husband of a wife that puts up with me, CEO of Soteria Software, loud and obnoxious (just ask my wife), hard working, entrepreneur, graduate of University of Maryland 2x (GO TERPS!), Jeep owner, and computer geek galore.
I was born in 1973 and am the epitomy of a Gemini Gen Xer that still listens to grunge today. That is me. Through and through.
I am also very good at my job. I love what I do. I am extremely ambitious. And I try to do a lot of things while I am awake as I work to get to my full potential. I work a lot, and I work from my home office. I hate commuting and worked my butt off to put myself in this position to do this.
With that said, let me share why I value my time so much that I automate as much as I can.
Biggest Event that Triggered a Different Valuation
The biggest one I had: my parent passing away. When my mom passed in 2011, I had a totally different sense of what was important. Almost immediately. And where, what, and with whom I wanted to spend my time.
Who did I value the most: my family and friends so close they are family.
So what did I need to prioritize to make sure that I could spend the right time with them. Make sure we make memories that are impactful, and not just buying them things or putting an iPad in front of them to keep them busy.
What that means for me: still having family dinners even when busy to chat and see what is going on. Chatting in car rides as we drive around (unless it is with my oldest then it is blasting the radio!). Making sure I text or talk to my wife more often specifically to make sure we know what is going on. Small things that are continuous.
As well as big family get togethers my wife and I host 2x a year at our house with 30+ people. Just to make sure we know what is going on in each others lives. With family and those friends that are just like family as well.
This includes planning big trips as a family, even if a little more $$$ than they should be, to imprint memories we will talk about for decades. And inviting friends to come with us as we can. I just started this in 2024 and will keep that trend going until I no longer breathe.
I even automate cutting my grass, doing lawn care, cleaning my house, and other tasks I can “automate” by paying others to do them better than I can. And their business runs because I am automating my time. And helping other small businesses grow and survive. While I work on my business to give me more money and time to spend with family. And invest both in them.
My other Big Events Changing how I Value my Time
My second big more recent event: finally starting my company in 2021. Soteria Software. With one of my very good friends-like-family mentioned above.
As the CEO of a growing company I am constantly juggling priorities, issues, money, and time accordingly. Working on having a life balance. And to me, that work life balance does not always mean 50/50. Concentrate where I need it when I need it, remembering what is important and what takes up my time. And remember to exercise, eat, relax and sleep correctly — things I still struggle with prioritizing today but am working on.
Others include family and friends fighting cancer and having their time cut short. Having grandparents pass. Having friends and family move away and making time to connect and stay in touch when it is not super easy.
Yours may be quite different. However, we are all human. And we will have some things in common regardless of where we live, our age, who we vote for, and what we look like. Think on the ones that changed you. Or be ready for them when they happen.
What I Do Differently
Along with assessing how I track my time and what is important in general, there are specific things I do personally to track this.
I keep a journal on my desk I use a lot. I have a bunch of them from trade show handouts so I can do that. And I keep notes as I go to document important things I need to do, I actually do, decisions made, etc. And I go back to review them every so often to gauge how I did. Then adjust.
I also write down major thoughts and ideas to do the next day or week in that. And I time slot things important to me on my Outlook / Google calendar. Even things like picking up kids from school. Taking doctor appointments. Working out to stay healthy and de-stress. Reading whatever book I am working on.
And I take down time when I need to in order to recharge. Call it “chilling out”. Call it self care. Call it what you want. Down time is whatever you need it to be for you. Remember to do that as well. And do not feel guilty about doing it. If you do not take care of you, you cannot properly take care of those around you that need you.
Action Steps For You
I will not tell you what to do. I will offer suggestions, and you figure out what does or does not work. And then add your own and adjust.
Ask yourself these questions. And answer truthfully. If you are in a serious relationship, personal / business / otherwise, ask as a couple or with your team:
- What do you do in a normal day? week? month?
- What is the most important thing to you? Now and in the near and distant future?
- What can you put on auto-pilot or automate? Or even get rid of if not important to you?
- And how much time or money does it take to get that going ASAP?
- How can you prioritize and layout what you need to do?
- When you need to do it? And in what order?
If you got alllllll the way down to this, I hope you take something from it to apply. And realize what is important now while you can before life changing events force you to.
Even if you did not, I did. So that is therapeutic to me at least at a minimum!
