A to Z Well-being (personal philosophy): Time

Time (n) – The indefinite continued progress of existence and events in

       the past, present, and future regarded as a whole.

           Time and money are the two things everyone wants more of. The distribution of wealth will never be equal, but time is the one commodity that everyone has the same daily allotment of, and probably the most squandered resource of all and how we use it is up to us.  While catching up on posts on “The Art of Manliness” (a blog, as a reader, I strongly recommend to men, young and young at heart), I recently read a pamphlet from 1910 called "How to Live on 24 Hours a Day".  I think it's a stretch to call it a philosophical text, but it will certainly give you pause to think about how you use your time away from the house, and upon your return.  

            Take my case: I’m to bed between 10 and 10:30 pm; awake at 5:30 am and spend the next 60 to 90 minutes in my morning routine (exercise, bathing, dressing eating, etc,) to be at work 8-4, commuting 45 minutes each way, sometimes wait for my wife to catch up (about 15 mins after work) and head home for the evening.  My wife and I used to drive to work every day.  It used to be our time to talk about nothing at all.  At the end of my day, I would take the reverse route, getting ramped up because I was trapped in rush hour traffic, coming and going.  If my wife got held up when I came to pick her up, I would get wound up even more.  The worst part was paying $80 a month to leave my car parked outside 40 hours a week (I could have done that without leaving my own driveway), discounting the extra cost of gas and maintenance.  

            We've changed the way we do things.  Today, I still spend about 45 minutes going to and from work each day. Now it’s on the bus.  It gives me time to think on various topics, or spend time strengthening relationships with my neighbours on the same commute and, more importantly, it gives me time to separate work from home life; either gear up for the work day or decompress.  Things have improved dramatically.  Now, I get home, free of stress and able to spend time with my kids before supper, help them with their language studies or school projects and am at the table for supper ready to discuss their day.  That 45 minutes, each way, is the equivalent of a gained day during my work week from using ‘wasted time’.  I found it has even caused the time the television is turned on to be pushed back later in the evening, and often, only to get the full media coverage of something I saw on social media.  I'm spending more time researching, thinking and ruminating topics I want to be clearer on.

Don’t get me wrong, I think there is a time and place when you need to plug in and stop thinking for a short period of time.  For me, it’s like those Magic Eye pictures; when I remove my focus on a problem, the solution reveals itself.   Whatever works for you, the key is to not allow it to become distraction; set a time limit and stick to it. Sometimes, all it takes is doing a mindless chore, like shovelling snow or washing supper dishes  

          I now take every opportunity, when there is a lull at work or home to study something.  Whether studying methods of improving work processes, working on courses required by my employer, or even following, and further researching, a topic of interest, in print or digital.  I used to listen to music or the radio, now it seems I always have a podcast playing, of whatever topic I happen to find interesting at the time.  And I am amazed how often other people around the office start work-related conversation then wander off topic and start socializing; only to complain about being short on time to get projects completed.  I admit I'm no saint when it comes to social conversation around the office, but I could pack a weeks’ worth of my socializing into the time some people spend socializing daily.

            I even had a friend tell me the best advice he ever got about time management as a university student – treat it like a job; show up at 8 and work until 4, regardless of the classes scheduled.  Wish I had had someone tell me that when I was a student 20 years ago.

            The opposite is also true.  In my job, work ebbs and flows.  At year end, there is barely enough for one person to keep active, let alone busy.  At the height of our production, however, there is almost too much for two people to handle.  Breaks are scheduled for a reason; to allow you the time to regroup and refresh - take them!  They will help you keep your work stress at a manageable level and able to leave it behind at the end of the day, so you can enjoy your time with your family.

           Complaining about petty things because you have nothing to occupy your mind is a thief of time and effort.  Make use of your 'wasted time' (commuting, standing in line, or waiting on some task), to maximize your life: think on things; listen to a podcast you've downloaded; practice a skill in order to get your next promotion, prepare an application to a job you desire. Develop temporal leverage.  Separate the stress of one aspect of your life from another; it will make it easier to deal with in small pieces.  Filling the voids in your schedule is like filling potholes in the road; it makes it a whole lot easier to get where you want.

How will you spend your time today?