We are about to turn our clocks ahead (on Sunday, March 11th to be exact).
The optimist says, “Finally, longer stretches of sunlight!”
The pessimist says, “We lose an hour of time.”
Everything we do takes time. Yet do we really give ourselves the time to do what we need
to do in a given day? Many of us have embraced the mechanics of Outlook
calendars to plan our lives. The simplicity of planning our schedules and, oh, those
pop-up reminders (!) appear to relieve us from the stress of the day. Yet, they really don’t.
The myth of electronic calendar tools is that they create efficiency. Yes, you are expertly planning, but you are
not leaving time for the free flow of life – for interaction and collaboration
with others. No time is factored in to debrief oneself after a meeting, solve a
problem or, most importantly, create a solution.
For the last couple of decades, we have been told that the
means of modernization and technology would give us more free time to stop and smell
the roses, yet, as I talk to many of my colleagues, it seems that the future we
live in now is racing by us at the speed of light – and we are all caught up in
it. (Ever wonder why this is an exceptionally bad flu season? Human immunity is
outpaced.)
Electronic calendars control how and when we do things. They
are not assisting us in our productivity.
Recently, I worked on a collaborative project with
colleagues from different areas of a company. The project had several moving
parts. While each of us went around the room sharing our updates and next steps
forward for the implementation of the project, there appeared to be a gap of
time for completion. One of the team
members asked me how long it would take to meet with the other members of the
team who were responsible for implementing the project. I thought for a few
moments about his question, and realized I could not answer it with a
calculation of minutes or hours. In
today’s work environment, we have become so accustomed to electronic calendars,
that we don’t factor in the time to work with others and have discussions.
Many people focus on the completion of their individual
tasks, yet do not think to build in the time to interface and collaborate with
others to complete a project. Because of this, we rush to meet a last minute deadline.
Yes, scheduling tools can help you be more productive, but be
sure to revisit your calendar often to:
1) Build in time for a break---to think on your own or, collaboratively,
with others.
2) Try different planning tools to slow down the chaotic
race for completion.
3) Build thoughtful meetings around agendas with a little
wiggle room to complete goals.
