There’s no telling how much time, energy and money is wasted on things that don’t really matter later in life.

Of course these things have their place and their importance at the right time, but I think we tend to let some of these empty things get in the way of the bigger picture.

What are these empty time-wasters that I’m talking about? It could be most anything really that is being put in front of spiritual matters, family time, emotional connections, helping others, being a better person or any other lasting effort.

Instead of placing an emphasis on the outfit I’m going to wear on my dinner out, I should think more about how I can connect with my husband or find a need I can meet there.

Instead of spending thirty extra minutes figuring out what’s fancy enough but not too fancy for Longhorn’s, I could be spending that time with my significant other.

I came to this realization over the weekend. I can never remember a time that I regretted not spending more time in front of the mirror, but I can think of times I wished I had spent longer with friends and family.

This thought led to plenty more ideas of what really matters. I once had a professor that had us write a personal manifesto of our goals. This made me really think about what I wanted in my life. Usually my goals would include physical, quantifiable things, but none of those made me truly happy.

Once I started realizing that relationships and the difference I could make around me was more important, the manifesto was easy to write.

I am trying to keep remembering that idea and stop myself from expending too much time and energy on something I won’t care about in a year or even a month.

This isn’t something that I have been particularly good at so far, but I’m sure any time I think about it will help me down the road.

Joy Haynes is a staff writer for the Hartselle Enquirer.