I never know where I will find ideas or take inspiration from for my blog posts. Inspiration for this one came from an unlikely source, Taylor Swift. More specifically it was from something she said on her recent appearance on the New Heights podcast with Jason Kelce and her boyfriend Travis Kelce. She was speaking to how she ignores most about what is written about her for her own mental health and to avoid the rabbit hole time suck of social media. It immediately struck me that what she said applies to all of us, not just in relation to social media, but the choices we each make about what and who we give our attention to. For me, I connected it to how I view and curate my time spent with professional connections and event, and that choices matter.
In my experience there’s one lesson that separates successful people from those who burn out chasing every opportunity: understanding that your time and energy are luxury commodities, not renewable resources you can squander without consequence.
Most business owners operate under the dangerous assumption that their availability is infinite. They say yes to every meeting, every networking event, every “quick coffee” with someone who might someday become a client. This mindset is bankruptcy waiting to happen, except instead of losing money, you’re hemorrhaging something far more valuable, your time.
Think about how you approach purchasing a vehicle. You research meticulously, compare options, consider the long-term value, and make deliberate choices about where that investment goes. Yet when it comes to your hours and mental bandwidth, you hand them out like free samples at Costco.
Here’s the uncomfortable truth that most people won’t tell you: not everyone can afford your time and energy. This isn’t about being elitist or dismissive. It’s about recognizing economic reality. When you give your premium attention to low-value activities or relationships that drain more than they contribute, you’re essentially subsidizing other people’s success at the expense of your own.
I’ve seen countless professionals and so many attorneys damage promising careers because they couldn’t distinguish between investment-worthy opportunities and time sinks disguised as networking. The ability to recognize who deserves access to your best thinking, effort, and time becomes a competitive advantage that compounds over years.
The second reality check is equally important: not everyone is invested in you. This sounds harsh, but it’s liberating once you accept it. Many people in your professional circle are perfectly content to extract value from your generosity without reciprocating. They’ll gladly absorb your insights, connections, and energy while offering nothing substantial in return.
Professional relationships should operate on principles of mutual benefit, not charity. When you start viewing your time through this lens, you naturally gravitate toward people and opportunities that offer genuine partnership rather than one-sided extraction.
The mathematics of attention are unforgiving. Wherever you invest your energy, that becomes your day. This isn’t metaphorical—it’s literal resource allocation. Every hour spent on low-impact activities is an hour not available for high-value work that moves your business and career forward. Every conversation that leaves you drained is energy unavailable for strategic thinking, creative problem-solving, or connecting with people who do provide value.
I’ve seen brilliant legal minds trapped in cycles of reactive busy work because they never learned to treat their cognitive resources as the premium assets they are. They respond to every email immediately, take every call, and wonder why they never have time for the deep work that creates real value.
The solution requires a fundamental shift in perspective. Start viewing your calendar like a luxury retailer views shelf space. Every appointment should earn its place through clear value creation. Every commitment should align with your strategic objectives. Every relationship should contribute to your long-term success, not just consume your immediate availability.
This approach feels uncomfortable at first because we’re conditioned to equate busyness with importance and availability with professionalism. But sustainable success requires the discipline to protect your most valuable resources from casual depletion.
The entrepreneurs who build lasting enterprises understand that exclusivity creates value. When your time becomes harder to access, people naturally value it more highly. When you reserve your best energy for your most important work, the quality of your output improves dramatically.
Your time and energy aren’t democratic resources to be distributed equally among all requesters. They’re luxury assets that deserve careful curation, strategic deployment, and protection from those who would consume them without appreciation or reciprocation.
The moment you start treating them as such is the moment your business—and your life—begins operating at a completely different level.
