Randy Pausch was a Computer Science professor at Carnegie Mellon University who created the Alice programming software and gave one of the most famous talks in the world (The Last Lecture). He delivered this time management talk while battling terminal pancreatic cancer, so when he says “time is more precious than money,” you REALLY listen.
Randy Pausch was known for his Last Lecture and his ability to turn his own fight with cancer into life lessons about time, dreams, and what really matters.
You can always hustle to make more money, but once a minute is gone, it’s gone forever. That’s why Randy said to treat time like your wallet—don’t go spending it on junk.
Do the hardest, most annoying task first. It’s like eating that one veggie on your plate you hate so you can enjoy the rest of the meal in peace.
If you don’t guard your time, someone else will happily waste it for you. Randy’s approach: politely decline and remind people you’re not their “last fallback.” (Note to self: stop agreeing to “quick favors” that turn into full projects.)
“Good judgment comes from experience, and experience comes from bad judgment.” In other words, mistakes are tuition fees for the school of life. Might as well get your money’s worth.
Before adding something to the to-do list, ask why it even matters. If the reason sounds weak (like “because I’ve always done it”), then it probably doesn’t deserve space on the list.