Einstein’s equation E=mc2 dictates that matter and energy are inter-convertible and applies well to matters that are astronomically large, or matters that are microscopically small. On a more human scale though, in all human endeavors, we find that we are endowed with only finite amounts of time, dollars, energy, and emotion (TDEE). These are the four biggest assets you have, the four most precious commodities which you can apply to build a career, a life, and a legacy.

Realizing that TDEE are inter-convertible just like mass and energy, it is important to be judicious in their use, always expending the one appropriate for the situation at hand, dispensing it in the right quantity, never wasting any of them, and finding means to extend your reserves of each of these.

• Every one of us have all four, just in varying amounts and proportions. A high school student has ample energy but little money. A millionaire has ample money, but little time.

• For some, the inter-convertibility is easy, for others, it is harder. A person with no higher education is usually less able to convert time to money. A person with a lot of money can usually create more time for themselves if they choose to. However, a 70 year old billionaire might not be able to expend physical energy as easily as a teen. Know for your situation how much of each you have, and how easy it is for you to convert any one of the four to another.

• It is important to assess what amount of each is demanded by our current situation in life. Children, parents, relatives, bosses, friends, work, hobbies, chores, vacations, all place demands on our TDEE. Young children might place a bigger demand on time than older ones, but a cancer stricken spouse might have bigger emotional needs.

• Most people create household money budgets. Some even create schedules for their own time and as a family. Very few actually create a comprehensive budget plan that encompasses all four, time, dollars, energy and emotion.

• Realize that some demands on your TDEE are mandatory, others are convertible. If you have a lot of money, and your kids demand a lot of time, you can create more time by hiring a nanny, but there is a basic level of support and interaction that must be had with your own children, you cannot build a relationship by proxy. Likewise, if you lack fitness and fitness knowledge, but have ample time, you can read up, learn, and apply the knowledge to your fitness goals, but if you have less time and more money, hire a professional health coach, a personal trainer, or even a personal chef if you are that wealthy. However, there is a minimum commitment of time to health that you cannot pay someone else to do for you, and no amount of emotional support from a spouse reduces your own time needed to go work out. After all, money can buy you good healthcare and extend your life, but not even a billionaire can avoid death.

• You can increase your reserves of TDEE by rigorous effort. An education and intelligent hard work give you more dollars. Taking care of your health gives you more energy. Eliminating (unnecessary) distractions or outsourcing lower value tasks give you more time. Meditation, spiritual practice, and giving unconditional love give you bigger emotional reserves.

• Money is the easiest one to trade to other forms, but emotional needs are the hardest to fix with money.

So assess all the demands on your TDEE. Decide your necessary and desired commitments to each judiciously. Be prudent about where you can trade and your ability to inter-convert TDEE. Create a comprehensive TDEE budget. Defend attacks on it zealously but accept interesting deviations. Continuously increase your TDEE reserves in each of the four areas, not just one of them.