I've been thinking about 'time' today.
I observed myself doing something that I normally do; when I drive into any car park, I search for the nearest space to the place I'm going, and I try and park there.
So I pulled into one space and then saw a car pulling away from a nearer space and thought, "Oooh quick, get in there". I went to put the car into gear, and then I thought "No, you don't have to save time, chill out" and I didn't move the car another 20 feet closer to the shops.
I sat for a minute and thought about why I'd wanted to get the car to the closest possible point...and I realised that I do certain things, and in fact, I also don't do certain things because time is a factor.
So, I try to do things quickly, I try and shave miliseconds off various tasks when I'm doing them. I work out ways to do things the quickest way possible. I often won't start a task if I think it's going to take too long. That's not a defined time for a task, it's often just an arbitrary feeling! I get stressed if I think it's taking too long. Whatever that means! Another arbitrary feeling.
A classic from over the weekend was when I had cut up the rhubarb for our crumble. It needed washing and then putting into the pan. I chose the big colander so as to make as few trips between the chopping board, sink, and pan, as possible. I would normally have tried to do it in 2 goes. As I was packing in as much rhubarb as possible to the colander, I had a similar moment to the one I had in the car park this morning. "Why do I need to do this so quickly? Chill out!" so I put half as much rhubarb in the colander, and washed and drained it in 4 goes.
It seems almost trivial now, as I'm writing it, but it was quite a leap forward for me!
I think I'm going to have a different relationship with time, over the next few weeks and months. I'm looking forward to seeing how it changes.
I observed myself doing something that I normally do; when I drive into any car park, I search for the nearest space to the place I'm going, and I try and park there.
So I pulled into one space and then saw a car pulling away from a nearer space and thought, "Oooh quick, get in there". I went to put the car into gear, and then I thought "No, you don't have to save time, chill out" and I didn't move the car another 20 feet closer to the shops.
I sat for a minute and thought about why I'd wanted to get the car to the closest possible point...and I realised that I do certain things, and in fact, I also don't do certain things because time is a factor.
So, I try to do things quickly, I try and shave miliseconds off various tasks when I'm doing them. I work out ways to do things the quickest way possible. I often won't start a task if I think it's going to take too long. That's not a defined time for a task, it's often just an arbitrary feeling! I get stressed if I think it's taking too long. Whatever that means! Another arbitrary feeling.
A classic from over the weekend was when I had cut up the rhubarb for our crumble. It needed washing and then putting into the pan. I chose the big colander so as to make as few trips between the chopping board, sink, and pan, as possible. I would normally have tried to do it in 2 goes. As I was packing in as much rhubarb as possible to the colander, I had a similar moment to the one I had in the car park this morning. "Why do I need to do this so quickly? Chill out!" so I put half as much rhubarb in the colander, and washed and drained it in 4 goes.
It seems almost trivial now, as I'm writing it, but it was quite a leap forward for me!
I think I'm going to have a different relationship with time, over the next few weeks and months. I'm looking forward to seeing how it changes.
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