“It's always NOW, and it will always be now.”
- Bill Harris
Issue #516 – Monday, February 23, 2026
Have you ever looked at your calendar and thought,
Where did the day go?
It’s not that you had some big crisis or unexpected emergency…
…but still, you felt like you were busy all day long and went to bed feeling behind schedule.
I hear this all the time from our community.
Smart, capable, motivated people who aren’t lazy or disorganized… yet they feel constantly rushed. Like time is slipping through their fingers.
If you’ve felt that way lately, today’s Mind Power essay from Mind Power Managing Editor Ryan Standifird is going to feel like a deep exhale.
Ryan dives into something called “time poverty” and what he shares may completely change how you think about your schedule, your stress and even your sense of fulfillment.
You see, it’s not always about having more free hours in the day.
It’s all about how your nervous system is experiencing the hours you already have.
Ryan breaks down the science in such a clear, practical way… and more importantly, he offers simple shifts you can start making today to build up your “time wealth.”
This is one of those essays that gently nudges you to slow down… in the best possible way.
You’re going to love this.
Cheers,
MaryEllen Tribby
Centerpointe CEO
P.S.
Can tapping into the power of gamma brainwaves change your life?
Scroll down the Check it Out section below to learn about how you can harness the potential of this powerful brainwave state.
Why You Feel Starved for Time
(& How to Build Real Time Wealth)
By Ryan Standifird
Have you ever had a day where you had a good amount of “free time”…
…but you still went to bed that night feeling exhausted, behind, and unfulfilled?
It’s not that you had any emergencies to take care of or big fires to put out that day. But maybe it was filled with a long list of errands, appointments, and playing catch-up.
That free time doesn’t seem so free anymore, does it?
If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. And it’s not because you’re bad at managing your schedule.
You’re likely experiencing time poverty.
What Is Time Poverty (Really)?
Time poverty is the subjective feeling that you have too much to do and not enough time to do it. And here’s the surprising part:
It often has very little to do with how many hours you actually have.
In fact, recent research shows that even when people gain extra “free time,” they still feel just as rushed, stressed, and depleted as before.
Why?
Because time poverty isn’t simply about quantity.
It’s about quality, control, and continuity.
Researchers are finding that how you spend your time has a major impact on how you feel about the amount of time that you have.
For example, one study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology saw that two different people can have the same number of free hours in their day but still experience wildly different levels of well-being.
And even if you suddenly gain a couple of extra hours in the day, it may not solve your problem.
Why More Free Time Doesn’t Necessarily Fix Time Poverty
Recent large-scale studies of time poverty, time management and well-being have found that that:
2-5 hours of pleasurable free time per day is associated with the highest well-being.
Too little free time lowers happiness… but so does too much if that time feels empty or fragmented.
In other words, scrolling, multitasking, and half-paying attention don’t replenish you.
They drain you.
Researchers found that when free time is spent on immersive activities, meaningful hobbies, or genuine connection, the negative effects of “too much” free time disappear.
In essence: time that doesn’t engage you doesn’t nourish you.
And time that is constantly interrupted, rushed, or reluctantly done leads to more stress and less happiness.
The Hidden Drivers of Time Poverty
Are you feeling time-poor? Here are some of the most common predictors of time poverty:
1. Time Fragmentation
Your day is chopped into tiny pieces by notifications, emails, texts, and context switching.
Even when you’re “unplugged,” your attention is still being pulled by other responsibilities, worries about the future or rumination on the past.
As a result, your brain never gets a chance to fully settle or focus.
2. Time Intensity
You do everything quickly. You race to eat your meals. You speed as you drive to appointments and run errands. You make quick decisions without pausing to think things through.
High-speed living like this keeps your nervous system locked into its “sympathetic mode,” the same stress response designed for short-term survival.
3. Low Sense of Control
When your schedule feels dictated by demands rather than choices, time starts to feel oppressive rather than spacious.
If your to-do list for the day is filled with “have-to’s” instead of “want-to’s,” it can lead to a sense that you are not in control of your own life.
4. Low Engagement
If you spend your day just going through the motions, feeling unengaged, like you wish you were somewhere else, then that becomes an experience tied to time poverty.
On the flip side, when we can mindfully engage with our activities, then suddenly that time becomes meaningful, fulfilling and “time wealthy.”
The Brain Science Behind Time Wealth
From a neuroscience perspective, time poverty isn’t just psychological. It’s physiological.
When your brain is constantly switching tasks, processing unwanted information, and anticipating what’s next, it burns enormous metabolic energy. This creates mental fatigue and the perception of time slipping away.
By contrast, deep engagement in an activity you enjoy naturally shifts brain activity toward gamma or alpha brainwave patterns associated with flow states.
Even a few minutes of mindful meditation (with Holosync) can lead to theta and delta patterns.
These states reduce stress hormones, improve cognitive efficiency, and create the felt sense of spaciousness.
This is mindfulness, pure and simple. Presence.
It’s one reason long-time meditators often report feeling like they have “more time” even when their schedules are full.
Their nervous systems are no longer interpreting life as a series of micro-threats and can instead embrace the moment.
Time Wealth Is a State, Not a Schedule
Here’s the thing to remember about time wealth:
Time wealth isn’t about having more time. It’s about experiencing your time differently.
And that’s something you can cultivate.
So here are three research-backed ways to increase your time wealth without adding a single hour to your day.
Three Ways to Increase Your Time Wealth
1. Become Aware of How You Are Spending Your Time
Most people try to fix time poverty by adding tools, apps, planners, and productivity systems.
But research suggests the fastest gains come from subtraction.
So try this:
Start with a simple daily audit for one week:
What are you doing?
How long does it last?
How do you feel afterward?
Pay special attention to activities that:
Fragment your attention
Feel compulsive
Leave you more tired than before
By becoming aware of the activities you engage in and how they affect you, you can start to understand where your time poverty is coming from.
2. Create One Daily Block of Undisturbed Time
Studies on flow and immersion consistently show that uninterrupted time blocks increase both performance and well-being.
This doesn’t need to be long.
Start with 30 to 60 minutes where:
Notifications are off
You focus on one meaningful activity
There is no rushing to the next thing
This could be reading, creative expression, exercise, or a relaxing Holosync meditation.
The key is continuity.
When your brain isn’t bracing for interruption, it relaxes. And when it relaxes, time expands.
3. Train Your Awareness to Engage the Present Moment
This is where meditation becomes a game-changer.
Time poverty is not just a cognitive belief. It’s all-too-often the result of a stress-conditioned nervous system.
And that means you can combat its ill effects through a regular meditation practice.
Meditation reduces baseline stress, lowers time urgency, and increases present-moment awareness. Over time, this gives your brain more bandwidth to take control of the present moment.
People who meditate regularly report:
Less rushing
Greater patience
A stronger sense of having “enough time”
Not because their schedules changed, but because their in-the-moment awareness did.
The Bigger Picture
Researchers are clear that time poverty is a growing problem in our busy technology-heavy lives that are more connected than ever.
But you can begin reclaiming your time today, from the inside out.
Because the deepest form of wealth isn’t measured in dollars or hours.
It’s measured in presence.
When your mind is no longer racing ahead or stuck replaying the past, time stops feeling like something you’re losing.
And it starts feeling like something you’re living.
Check It Out!
Gamma Life Expansion Deluxe Suite
Unleash Your Brain’s True Potential
The Gamma Life Expansion Deluxe Suite features four powerful Holosync soundtracks that give you the full range of benefits of the gamma brainwave state, as well as a special Metta Bhavana Experience so you can learn and integrate this ancient practice into your life!
These potent tools give you on-demand access to the most beneficial gamma brainwaves, providing your life with an instant boost when it comes to clarity, emotional mastery, creativity, and gratitude.
Wise Words
“Time wealth isn’t about having more time. It’s about experiencing your time differently.” - Ryan Standifird
This Really Happened
"The rest of my Day 4 yesterday was interesting. I noticed when I went to do a few things in town on the Main Street, I was more relaxed and parked further away from the bank than I usually would; but what I really noticed is that I was looking up more than usual like my confidence is coming back and it’s been a long while since I’ve felt confident. I really almost forgot what the word meant and haven’t liked using the word for several years."
~Carmen J.
Holosync 5-Day Challenge Participant
Everything Is Better in the MyHolosync App!
Did you see these huge updates to the MyHolosync App?
Now you can:
Access all of your purchased Holosync suites in the app.
Listen to our new podcast Brains ‘R’ Us
Access new app-exclusive meditations & Holosync Radio stations
Listen to Our Brains ‘R’ Us Podcast
How to Eat an Elephant
By Ryan Standifird
Releases Wednesday, February 25, 2026
Listen anywhere you get your podcasts.
We Want to Hear From You!
Do you feel time rich, or time poor?
Post your story on our Facebook Page.
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but who will be forever grateful.
