Every day we're given 86,400 seconds by the time bank. Everyone gets the same. No more. No less. I've learned a number of lessons in my life, but by far the most important is to use every ounce of time effectively.

I wrote about this in 2015, after being rushed to hospital in an ambulance after a suspected heart attack:

I’ll never forget that moment. The pain still radiating outwards, though thankfully dulled by the drugs, I wrote messages, one each for my wife and my children. I told them that I hoped to be home soon and, above all, I loved them very, very much.

All I could think of was everything I still wanted to achieve, the things I still wanted to do in life. Time had been slipping through my fingers and now I might be out of credit.

Don't waste the time you're given. As Benjamin Franklin put it: "Lost time is never found again."

Every week, I meet with my accountability partners – Laura and Ben – and agree a strategy for the week. Sharing my goals for the week with them holds me accountable. It ensures I don't waste time.