Time and motion

I can calculate the motion of heavenly bodies, but not the madness of people.

- Isaac Newton -

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Sometimes seconds count - seconds make up minutes, hours, days and years after all - and making them matter is something we should all be working towards and bringing to reality.

I used to do a job in which seconds mattered a great deal and with that in mind performed time and motion studies on the many elements involved to determine inefficiencies in processes which could be improved upon; the ultimate goal was greater productivity and cost reduction however there were many more benefits to be found from the individual to the unit and team level, and all the way through to the very upper echelon...of course, it's one thing to identify, evaluate and strategize to improve those inefficiencies and quite another to actually do it.

Many areas of improvement were found throughout this continual process and many gains were made bringing a momentous improvement to the effectiveness of the entire operation even despite those who were reluctant, slow or adamantly against effecting the changes.

I've recently had cause to think about time wasting and how it impacts upon an individual's life; it made me think back to those time and motion studies I performed, the evaluation, planning and implementation phase and how effective it actually was - very effective - and how the same principle can (and should) be applied to a person's life, at least in my opinion.

I've watched someone spending time like an endless resource, which we know it is not. This is not a situation in which I simply don't approve of the way that person is spending their time, that's not for me to judge, just that the person's time-inefficiencies are having an adverse effect and, with life being finite, I don't believe it's a good plan to waste it so carelessly.

Life, the time we have, is a precious commodity but one so many people spend foolishly, frivolously and without care to extract the best outcomes from it.

Is it fair to say that most people want a happy, fulfilled, engaged, enjoyable, passionate, successful life? Yeah, I think so...then why do people waste so much of their time and life? Would people feel so free to waste it if a deadline was put on life? Ten years, five...one year...maybe one month...would they waste time so easily if there was only days left in it? I think not.

I work towards extracting something valuable from my time no matter what I'm doing even when I'm not really doing much at all; a Sunday afternoon reading session for instance.

For me, it's all about presence, that means being present in the moment, not distracted - that's how I get the most from my time. When at work...present. At home watching a movie...present. When out socialising...present. Hiking, hunting, camping or off-roading...present. You get the idea; it's a simple concept and one that lets me extract the most from the moments. This doesn't mean I ignore everything else and don't or can't shift that focus when needed, that happens of course, but it means I'm more efficient at what I'm doing and considering that everything I do is my life, I think that's a valid way to proceed.

I still perform time and motion studies in my professional life but in my personal life it's more a habit of presence and focus and, of course, knowing where to invest the most valuable commodity I possess; time. I don't always get it right but having a focus on it, a habit of presence, eliminating or minimising negativity, and seeking value, means I get it right most times and I see that as an investment in my life and time well spent.

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Now, I'm going to propose you give me some of your time, but only if it's of personal value to you to do so; I don't want you to waste any of it, time is too precious to do that.

Do you have methods and strategies in place to focus your life on a time well spent ethos or are you one of those people whose happy to let time pass by under-spent and valued? Do you determine where time and life inefficiencies exist and evaluate and strategize on how they can be minimised? Would you value your time and life more if you knew exactly when it would end and would you prefer to know or not? If you've got the time, and you'd like to, comment below on these things or anything you'd like, I'd like to hear from you. If you don't have, or want to spend, the time then I'll understand and applaud your choice to spend your most valuable commodity in better ways.