Time Wasters: 5 Habits to Stop Doing Right Now

We all waste time. It’s inevitable.

We waste time chasing women who don’t want us. We waste time on lowly jobs that aren’t going anywhere. We even waste time running away from reality, checking the latest news on our Facebook feed and keeping up with people we’ll never meet again.

But sometimes eliminating a few bad habits can have a strong effect. Sometimes, it’s not so much what you do that counts—it’s what you don’t do.

So with that in mind, here’s my top five habits to stop doing right now.

1. Stop Scattered Focus

Nothing in the world is more dangerous than a scattered mind. We live in the age of the smart phone—everything is right there, when you need it. But nobody has enough focus to actually use what’s available to them. We’re hamsters on a wheel, chasing dopamine hits.

Stop scattering your focus. The key to getting anything done in life is sustained attention on a high priority goal. Find the single most important thing in your life, and start focusing on that. Stop focusing on everything else. It’s all inconsequential and doesn’t matter anyway.

This whole list could really be summed up by this single point. So often in life we get distracted with what’s unnecessary. We get distracted by trivialities and stupid thoughts. We get distracted by other people and by marketers trying to grab our attention. So guard your focus like your life depends on it (because it very well may).

2. Stop Chasing Women

Some women in your life will constantly want your validation. You won’t be able to go a single hour without them blowing up your phone and demanding your constant attention. While it can be validating to have these people chase you, don’t indulge. They’re wasting your time.

Half of getting good with women is simply screening them for sexual availability. Decide quickly if you want a girl to be your friend, or if you want to sleep with her. If she doesn’t want to be either, then ignore her. If she leads you on, then ignore her.

Learn to spot the signs that a girl is interested. It will save you years of heartache and wasted time. When you simply become the center of your own Universe, not in a solipsistic way, you’ll find that women will start chasing you. Don’t waste your time on them—focus on your purpose, and become the man you were meant to be.

3. Stop Checking Notifications

The Attention Economy is very real. Everyone, from marketers to businesses and other people, are competing for your attention. They want your eyeballs on them so they can siphon those sweet, sweet resources away from you and into their pockets. Don’t let them do this—you fought hard for your resources.

Attention is the same thing as brain juice, and brain juice is power. When you give away your attention you give away your power—so stop giving away your attention to trivial things. Stop checking email every five minutes. Stop checking texts every five minutes. Stop mindlessly scrolling through Facebook feed.

This is where prolonged and sustained discipline comes in. You must have a purpose in life, and constantly ask yourself: “Am I striving towards this purpose?” Chances are if you’re scrolling through an endless wave of algorithmically pre-determined Instagram feed, the answer is no.

4. Stop Eating Junk

Your mind is your body, and your body is your mind. When you take care of the body, it will take care of your mind. When you neglect it however, your mind will suffer. Do not make the mistake of thinking that they’re separate—as I discuss in Body of an Alpha, they’re one in the same.

When your body is strong, your mind is strong. When you build physical strength, you build mental strength. When you feed your body good food, you nourish your soul and your mind. Eat plenty of grass fed meats, complex carbohydrates, and leafy green vegetables. Follow a healthy diet.

Do not buy into the myth that fats are bad—the right kind can be great for you. Consider intermittent fasting, for example. I do intermittent fasting every single day, and I’ve accomplished more than most people have in their entire lifetimes.

If you tend to get hungry easily, consider combining intermittent fasting with a stimulant like adderall or modafinil (if you don’t know what that is, read my guide on how to ). Just a cup of coffee and a nice smart drug in the morning, and you’ll be laser focused for the next 8 hours.

5. Stop Overworking

While it’s certainly trendy to constantly talk about “the hustle,” the truth is that if you’re working 16 hour days, something is wrong. A man must spend time with his friends and family. He must spend time cultivating interesting hobbies. Anything else and you’re cheating yourself.

Learn to work on the 20% of things which will yield you 80% of the results. This is otherwise known as the Pareto Distribution. Most of the things in life don’t matter—that’s the 80%. There’s a handful of things that do matter, though. Learn to identify those things, and double down on them.

In the words of successful internet marketer Tai Lopez: “Double down on what’s working.” This is the key to success. Stop working hard and start working smart. When you work hard, you make someone else rich. When you work smart, you make yourself rich. Don’t be stupid—make yourself rich first, then help others.

The Bottom Line

We only have so much time—it’s the ultimate resource. You can always earn more money, acquire more women, and/or gain more resources. You cannot however, gain more time. Once your time is gone, it’s gone—forever. Never to be seen again, and never to be reclaimed.

Use your time wisely. Stop wasting it on frivolities and start spending it like an investor would. Don’t look at your time like it’s an endless sea of potential, because it isn’t. Start looking at your time as if it’s the most precious resource in the world, because it is.

Learn to eliminate these habits from your life, before they claim your soul. We are living in a modern war zone, but because no bullets are being fired, people don’t see it. Nobody dies of a gunshot wound in the good old USA anymore. They do die of broken souls and bank accounts, though.

Take the time to examine your life, and see what’s really eating at you. What are you wasting time on? I guarantee you’re wasting time on at least one of these things. For most of you, it’s probably all of them. No worries. Now you know. So eliminate them, slowly, day by day—and come back and thank me later.