SO — not only have I got a terrific new way to think of time (relationship with, rather than dominatrix over), I’ve got great new links and smart comments from new-to-me Charlie and Cairene, who both said it perfectly for me. (Reading more than one of your posts st a time can lead to brain explosion — I’ll turn it over to sleep to percolate.)

Thanks, too, for posts that make interesting commenters come out to play!

Thank you.

stephs last blog post..What I Know For Sure

Language is so much of what shapes our approach to things. I’ve been wrassling with words like “organization” and “productivity” and “efficient” and “effective” and “management” – none of which really gets at what I want for myself or the people who come to me for help.

I got as far as there is no such thing as time management, there is only self-management – but there’s that word “management” again…

I got as far as “discipline” does NOT equal punishment, force, or push push push. Discipline is about learning and teaching (in the original sense of the word) yourself how you work best.

But there’s still something missing that’s been nagging at me until reading your post this morning.

You are so perfectly spot-on with the word “relationship.” It really does come down to #7, “Your relationship with time is a reflection of your relationship with yourself.”

On some level, I knew this already having learned it in other areas of my life (like money – I no longer manage it, I have a relationship with it). So, thanks for reminding me, for bringing it to the surface and helping me clarify something that has felt so blurry and vaguely unsatisfying.

Were I to write the Heatmap post over again, I’d do it way differently, and I’d especially highlight that it’s about working when you can and doing other things when you can’t. Too often we push push push trying to get the square into the circle hole…when if we just turned the sorter over, we’d have a much easier time. And we’d be okay with ourselves.

When people ask me how to become more productive, they think I’ll say something like hack out their computer or create really big lists of things to do. When I say “do one really important thing during the times you work work best every day”, they look at me like I’m crazy. What about the rest of it?

It’s about rest, not *the rest*. Strike when the forge is hot, and walk away when it’s not.

And yes, I forget this everyday. Until I figure out why I’m frustrated and then renogotiate with myself.

All of this is a really long way of saying perfect post. I hope people who hate time management take the time to hear this message, just like I hope people who hate productivity hear what else you’re saying. It’s high time for some reconceptualizing and renogotiating of productivity and time management.

I also make sure I take the time to realise what I FEEL like doing.

I’m much more productive, need less “time-out” and am happy when I don’t “push” and do “flow”.

Juliet

I so totally agree with everything you say it is amazing. How can anyone not have time to do exercise, have a cup of tea, eat lunch (without working at the same time), read a novel, go on vacation, etc etc.

JoVEs last blog post..post-Rhinebeck productivity

Which was good and stuff was happening and all was well, but some time late last week (coming up on day 50) I realized I was getting very crispy around the edges.

So this weekend I did pretty much nothin’. Tiny little bit of stuff on Saturday because I truly felt like it. Otherwise, nothin’.

Feeling less crispy this week. Did I set the world on fire with my awesome productivity today? Hm, not so much. But I did get tons of new ideas and new ways to look at things, so it’s all good.

Jennifer Loudens last blog post..Comfort During Fearful Times: Give the Mind Something to Chew On

Time management? I’m not a dam robot. That’s why we have computers. Clocks manage time.

I’m more concerned about qaulity engagement than time mgmt.

I have a life to live. To be more produtive, get rid all the bullsh!t and you will have all the time you need.