Overcoming your "time set point"
“I have got to get this done by first quarter moon.” (Image by Aline Dassel from Pixabay)
Parkinson's law is the well-established idea that the time it takes to do a task expands to fit the time allotted for it.
We must be aware of this potential pitfall if we want to get more work done in a shorter period of time.
However, this is awfully tricky to do. Because of the way our brains automate our habits to make us more efficient, we will just do what we’ve always done. Without conscious intervention, nothing changes. We have a set point that we return to when we’re not actively pushing against it. To make the shift to do things differently and overcome this set point requires us to see what we don’t see, a skill that usually requires the help of a trusted teacher or coach.
That said, here are a few of my best ideas for implementing common time-management advice and getting through work faster.
Use timers and stopwatches. If you want to be more aware of how long things are taking, use the clock. You may not realize until you use a stopwatch that it’s taking you forty-five minutes to fold the laundry. You may not realize until you set a timer that you can do the same work in twenty minutes.
Our perceptions of time and speed are highly subjective. Watch a highly competent restaurant employee and you will see someone who moves very quickly without appearing to hurry, the same way a concert pianist can play a complex Beethoven sonata and make it look easy. It’s possible for you to carry out a task much faster than you think you can, without even feeling as though you’re moving fast. The flip side of that is that you can also move much more slowly without realizing it. Timers and stopwatches allow you to track and manage the time you spend on activities.
Practice. If you want to be able to complete school papers in a fraction of the time it currently takes you, learn to touch type at 90 words per minute. This investment of effort, though it may take weeks or months, will pay off down the road.
The more we do something, the more ingrained the habits become. We can make that work for us instead of against us by investing in building habits that we choose, practicing and refining desired skills. When our movements and patterns of behavior are streamlined, we are physically faster.
Create deliberate conflicts. One of my best moves, shared by a lot of successful people, is to wake up very early in the morning to write. Not only is it quiet and peaceful before dawn, free from distractions, it encourages me to make the most of a time when I’d rather be sleeping. I say to myself, “Well, I didn’t get up this early only to waste time on the Internet,” and rededicate myself to the task at hand. Before I know it, the work is done, and I can go take a nap if I want to!
Similarly, I do a lot of highly efficient work when I’m spending time with my nieces and nephews, most of whom live far away. If I have to get something done, I am able to make quick decisions and carry out tasks at a record-setting pace so that I can put my work away and play with the kids.
Be intentional about breaks. When we need a break and we haven’t taken one, we slow down and get distracted or even demoralized. Our brains will find a way to get the diversion we are seeking, which reduces the quality of the work we’re doing and increases the time it takes without actually giving us the satisfaction and salutary effects of true rest.
When the quality of our work begins to decline and we feel a hint of fatigue, we must take a break. A minute, ten minutes, an hour, a whole weekend -- the exact length of our break should be just as carefully managed as the time we’re spending on the work. We can then return to the task at hand with renewed energy and capacity.
Trick yourself. “You had the power all along, dear!” Why does your kindergarten through twelfth grade education take thirteen years? Why does college take four? It doesn’t have to. And a school day of seven-and-a-half hours doesn’t have to take that long, and you can accomplish the work of a forty-hour work week in a fraction of that time. This is where, as Tim Ferriss suggests, we can actually exploit Parkinson’s law for our benefit.
For instance, many homeschoolers have discovered that they can get through their academic work in two to three hours (the time many kids are spending on just their homework, never mind actually sitting in class). If you believe that this is possible, you can begin to make it a reality, perhaps by using a combination of the methods above. If you say to yourself, “I gotta be done by noon!”, you can trick yourself into making it happen by starting earlier than is comfortable for you and booking an appointment at 1 PM (two ways of creating a deliberate conflict). You can use a timer to consciously limit your time on each assignment and regulate your breaks. You can also work on your skills by practicing typing, note-taking, reading, and math facts in order to get faster and smoother.
Ask for help. This underrated shortcut can save tons of time, perhaps even rendering some of your tasks unnecessary. Plus, it can bring a sense of companionship or even collaboration to otherwise solitary work, which makes the work more fun; it will feel like it’s going faster. Maybe it is!
I still have many challenges with time, but I have learned to deploy and enjoy the benefits of the time-taming tactics I’ve described here. Even more satisfying is the powerful impact that these tools and methods have on my students and employees when implemented strategically.
How might it change your life to play with time this way?