Can anyone manage time?

Time is very subjective. For instance, a working professional is constantly chasing a deadline – that’s time for him. A house wife is waiting for the next episode of a serial – the wait is time for her. For a kid – time is always revolving around games. Everyone wants time. But for what? Everyone wants time to do what they want and be satisfied. ‘Oh! I have absolutely no time’ is a common expression, isn’t it? What are they actually complaining of? Did ‘time’ decide to give them a slip? Or, was it a mismanagement of activities? We all know time waits for no one - yet time is always the villain.

My son is supposed to watch television in the morning only when he finish his breakfast. However, by the time he manages to gulp everything down, it is time for school. You can imagine the cacophony one has to undergo, when a four year old misses his favourite ‘Looney tunes’ show. Well, there is no point discussing ‘time management’ with him but just urge him to focus on what he’s doing and finish it faster. Chew the food faster and refrain from pestering his kid sister, for instance. The point here is no one can manage time but everyone can manage the activities, tasks they undertake. Does it mean one has to multi-task and be efficient in doing it? Not really. One will be giving too little attention to too many things while multi tasking and more importantly - fail to do anything well. Like how my son missed his favourite show.

Time is subjective and is measured mostly in terms of satisfaction. A working professional will be satisfied only when his tasks for the day is complete – and to his satisfaction. What one should hence do to ‘manage time’ and to generate satisfaction is to identify the tasks that will create the most value and focus on those. By prioritizing value over the number of tasks; focusing on the things that really matter, one will increase the quality of work and obviously the value one extend. Am worried my son will find more value in watching television than the breakfast he is served.

Remember, time = satisfaction. No wonder then it’s said that a busy person is one who finds time for everything.

'Uncertain' lessons

I’ve been a victim of uncertain times. And, as a person notorious for snap decisions – my social medium is filled with posts reflecting uncertainty. It’s after all an established phenomenon that when the future is uncertain, functioning in the present becomes challenging. Obviously, I need to vent my frustration somehow. The good thing is that my network has friends who understand my situation and instill confidence. Then there is this quest towards optimism that enables me to assimilate positive thoughts. The last couple of days have been continuous learning despite the overwhelming negativity.

So, here’s the learning. According to ‘Human Motivation,’ a book by David McClelland, a Harvard psychology professor, Everyone is driven by three things – a) achievement (the desire to compete against increasingly challenging goals), b) affiliation (the desire to be liked/loved) and c) Power - the desire for influence and respect for yourself and the desire to empower others; to offer them influence and respect. The author states that people will remain motivated and engaged if they have the opportunity to do the above.

So, what am I doing? Am trying my best to engage myself with whatever work I have, get connected and try and influence those who need to be…From an organization perspective, employers should realize that people become political when uncertainty spreads, which could be unfavourable especially during challenging times.