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Sometimes we are so busy playing the notes of our lives, we forget the important pauses. We feel we do not have enough time to pause. When asked, 95% of adults say they do not have enough time in their life.1 But what is time? Why does it speed up when we are engaged in pleasurable activities, but slows to a snail's pace when we are bored? Physicist Albert Einstein, in his Theory of Relativity, proved that time does not exist on its own.2 Humorist Garrison Keillor suggested that Einstein's Theory of Relativity means that time slows down when you're with your relatives! If time is relative, how do we get more enjoyment out of the way we perceive time? How do we not feel so deprived of time or suffer from what cardiologists Meyer Friedman and Ray Rosenman called "hurry sickness?" Society is moving at a faster and faster pace. While we have more "labor saving" devices such as email and fax machines to make our lives easier, our lives have paradoxically gotten more pressured and complicated.3 These are some suggestions from Rechstaffen1 for making your perception of time more enjoyable, at work and at home: Notice Simple Pleasures - At work, it could be using a computer, or mastering a machine. Let yourself be present with it. Make Unpleasant Calls or Tasks the First Priority of the Day - It gets them out of the way and you will enjoy the rest of the day more. Say "NO" to Too Many Simultaneous Requests - Multi-tasking means multi-mistakes. Respect your own boundaries and do your work well, and other people will likely respect those boundaries as well. Do only one thing at a time, and give it your full attention. Pause - After You Finish One Task Before Beginning Another. Plan - Set aside regular time for planning - no interruptions. This gives your time both purpose and direction. Arrive at Work, Meetings, or Appointments Early - You can compose yourself before others arrive. Actively Engage in Personal Contact in the Office - This is helpful if you tend to overwork. Write a note of thanks to a co-worker who does you a favor. Throw a small party for someone. Spend time at work with someone you barely know. Don't talk about business. Create Time Boundaries - There is work time and home time. If there is an unusual project or deadline looming, it is OK to occasionally take work home, like an unexpected guest. However, don't make it a matter of habit or work can quickly become an unwelcome guest. It can interfere with the quality of family life, and personal rejuvenation can begin to take a back burner. Build Yourself, Not Just Your Career - Spend time getting to know yourself! Do you like sports, art, gardening, reading, cooking, fixing things? Learn what you like outside of work, so that when the day comes that you are not working, you will be able to enjoy your "free time." Vacations - Never, never take work on vacation with you. Plan a day of transition at home before you go back to work We can't really create time. But we can change some habits that "steal time." The result? Playing fewer notes and adding more pauses creates better work, family and health.
Holly Gardner Socolow, MHS, is Manager of Employee Assistance
Services for Life Management Associates. |
Arthur
Rubenstein was once asked by an ardent admirer: How do you handle the notes as
well as you do?
The pianist answered, "I handle the notes no better
than many others, but the pauses
- ah! that is where the art resides."