The essence of time management is not “managing time,” but “managing attention.”
My Interpretation (Wisdom)
Everyone has the same amount of time; attention is what is truly scarce. Many people think time management means “how to fill a calendar,” but skilled practitioners do the opposite: they subtract, saving attention for what matters most and outsourcing or automating the rest.
Attention > time > money is my core judgment about resource priority. True financial freedom is not how much money is in your account, but being able to choose how you spend your time. So instead of learning a pile of time-management techniques, first work out: what deserves your attention? Once you understand that, time management is just execution.
Strategy and Methods (Knowledge)
Attention > Time > Money
- Situation: The underlying logic for any resource-allocation decision.
- Method: Focus on your zone of genius—the work you are best at and that creates the most value. Outsource or automate the rest. Investing in tools and services to “buy time” is the best-value investment.
- Example: Build a system that keeps generating income, making time a resource that can be sold repeatedly.
- Source: Raymond’s core values.
Time-Management Matrix
- Situation: Prioritize everyday work and determine what to do and what not to do.
- Method: Classify tasks in four quadrants by urgency and importance. The key insight is to proactively plan “important but not urgent” work and give it dedicated time.
- Example: Real time management is not filling the calendar; it is designing pause points to adjust one’s pace. Record progress and mood, and keep reflecting and adjusting.
- Source: Eisenhower Matrix, with Raymond’s addition of the “pause point” concept.
WORK Model
- Situation: Write a personal user manual to improve team collaboration.
- Method: Who (who I am) → Operating style → Rules (collaboration rules) → Keep in touch (communication methods).
- Example: Treat yourself as a product and clarify your positioning and value. Writing a personal user manual can reduce misunderstandings and inefficient communication.
- Source: Raymond’s original framework.
Portfolio Work and Theme Days
- Situation: Replace multitasking with theme days so different areas of work each get focused time.
- Method: Allocate time among different areas of work and give each day a distinct theme, letting work and life nourish each other.
- Example: Break through the limits of conventional time management. Retirement today does not mean stopping work; it means living in the present. Work and life are no longer opposites but mutually supportive.
- Source: Charles Handy; Raymond’s practical interpretation.
Related Content (Information)
Course Scripts
- 03 | Redefining financial freedom: attention is the most valuable resource
- 27 | How to write a useful personal user manual
- 37 | How to determine what is urgent and important
- 38 | How to use a calendar and to-do list correctly
- 53 | How to make life project-based: portfolio work and theme days
Articles and Newsletters
- 2023-09-30: How to assess someone’s time-management skills: pause points and calendar use
- 2023-08-02: How to become good at time management: don’t rely on willpower; two methods anyone can learn
- 2023-11-13: Seven techniques from ten years of writing: maintain a writing habit and avoid procrastination
- 2020-09-29: Beyond to-do lists and polyphasic sleep: truly effective and smart time management
- 2020-10-03: Pursuing extreme productivity is like pornography: a lifehacker story gone dark
- 2020-08-22: How do lifehackers break the time system? Those who say you should manage time are liars
- 2020-10-15: How to improve willingness to work and resist distractions: one formula
- 2023-12-24: My task-management workflow: using Notion Calendar to integrate Google Calendar and task management
- 2025-10-22: Replace Spotlight and Alfred: ten useful Raycast tips everyone should know
- 2023-09-11: Portfolio work is not about work–life balance, but integration
- 2021-02-18: The highest-productivity work methods: lessons from interviewing over 100 entrepreneurs—organizing work, focus, goals, and faster completion
- 2025-09-19: Notion 3.0 upgrade: AI Agent arrives, database permissions, offline mode, map view, and release notes
- 2023-10-03: How to escape a poor mindset: my biggest regret from university and two years of costly lessons
- 2023-09-25: What remains when you remove your job title? How to design distinctive labels and keywords for yourself
- 2023-08-22: The most effective learning method is deconstruction: what the learning pyramid leaves out and examples of the Feynman technique
- 2023-01-30: How a professional instructor optimizes workflows so organizations can invite them comfortably and efficiently — interview with Zheng Guanzhong, Digital Life Atlas #07
- 2026-05-11: Issue 180: The meaning of an AI double, Esor livestream, Notion all-day workshop — Raymond Weekly
- 2023-07-15: Saw a great reflection this morning _7011428802205277
- 2023-10-03: How to build a sound modern view of wealth: five actions and my real financial experience
- 2025-06-24: Things no one taught me back then, now I’ve put them into a course for you
- 2022-01-01: Rain Island Hostel seven-person room review: a perfect space and four days and three nights of nomadic work in Keelung
- 2021-09-29: Not just an online course, but the beginning of changing online learning
- 2021-07-08: The design story of Notion synced blocks
- 2021-07-01: Setapp for Mac: one subscription gives access to 200 useful apps
- 2021-03-22: Interview with Lin Feiyang: from intern to vice president; how a post-90s professional used old-school methods to innovate and break through
- 2021-03-15: iOS Shortcuts tutorial: quickly save fragmented content to Notes with one tap
- 2021-03-01: Couple’s startup diary: is a dream meant to push you or record success and failure?
- 2021-02-21: Couple’s startup diary: if you could make one wish that would certainly come true, what would it be?
- 2021-02-05: Google Nest Audio review: should you buy two for stereo? A smart speaker worth NT$3,000
- 2021-01-30: Digital Life Atlas #02: freelance work, a media business, and graduate school; forced rest is key
- 2021-01-29: Digital Life Atlas #01: plastic-free city living and a simple life without company afternoon-tea perks
- 2021-01-17: Company of One #3: how to negotiate a good partnership and work efficiently from home
- 2020-12-05: Live podcast event recap: moving the recording studio to a café for the first in-person recording meetup
- 2020-10-29: What is a product? Good products are like curation: five principles for setting boundaries
- 2020-09-25: Can the Dedao FLOW reader replace Kindle? A three-month hands-on review
- 2020-09-21: Week Four: It turns out we are loved not because we are perfect, but because…
- 2020-09-13: Weekend Meeting #9: Why do people need stories and challenges? Season two’s community goal and the Lighthouse Project
Social Posts
(To be tagged using the Facebook post curation tool.)
Data
- Eisenhower Matrix — four quadrants of urgency and importance.
- Charles Handy — portfolio work.
- 🔖 “When you’re young, you are more sensitive to money and less aware of time.”