Time Archives - Page 7 of 7 - Scott's Thinking

Spend Time With Wonderful People

Posted on May 8, 2020

Time is shorter than we think. I have let time drift by at times, but I do try to make better use of it now. I spend time with wonderful people as much as I can now. I try to schedule them in as much as my schedule allows.

On Thursday morning, I spent that time with my wonderful wife and three wonderful children. We were out of the house by 07:40 and went on an epic walk to, and through, Richmond Park. (Ditto on Friday!)

It was so lovely to spend that time with each of them. We all really enjoyed it. It started at 10C and was gorgeously sunny. The weather continued to get better from there. We chatted with each other about various things while we ran, walked and went up hills and down.

We shared old memories and made new ones. Then we played on a very large fallen tree that had about 15 mid-sized new growth trees growing out of it. Amazing and fascinating.

We saw young deer and old deer. There were very few people out at that time too, which was lovely. No airplanes flying overhead and not many cars on the couple of roads we did have to walk on or near.

You probably have some wonderful people in your life. If you are in lockdown with them, spend some quality time together doing something different. If not, call them, FaceTime, Zoom, Skype etc.

The most enjoyable and memorable part of life is when you spend time with wonderful people.

Action Time

Do Something Memorable In The Next 24 Hours

Posted on May 7, 2020

It can be crazy and off the wall or simple and subdued. However you decide to express yourself, do something memorable in the next 24 hours.

With all this news about Covid-19, I think there might be a slightly elevated awareness of our own immortality. This could be a good thing.

Every day is a new opportunity to make the path of your life more exciting, more memorable and more meaningful. We have this opportunity every day. Sometimes it is in our minds. However, we do not always start the day with intent to make it memorable.

The day may become memorable by chance. This type of surprise can be wonderful! Though, this method is a little bit hit and miss. What memorable things could you do today? Write a wonderful letter to a loved one? Call someone that you’ve been meaning to call? Attempt to discuss a more challenging topic with someone in your lockdown Group? Or take a fun picture?

There are 100’s of things you could imagine doing, even while respecting lockdown rules. Don’t allow a day to go by without making some aspect of it memorable.

Do something memorable in the next 24 hours and you will have one more thing to put on your favourite memories list. In five years from now, you’ll be glad you did!

Action Goals, Results & New Thinking Time

Focus For The Next 4 Months

Posted on May 3, 2020

One third of the year has come and gone. If you’re like me, lots has happened and lots hasn’t. I have to focus for the next 4 months to catch up on a few things. Amazingly, four months have already zoomed past and it hardly feels like the year really got started.

We’ve had a bit of an interruption on our little planet, of course.

Now that things are settling down a little though, don’t let that interruption be your reason for not achieving your goals. You must take stock of the last four months. Celebrate your successes! Similarly, consider those items not completed.

Assess these incomplete goals and decide if you took on too much, they weren’t realistic or they’re not that important to you. Redouble you’re efforts and focus for the next 4 months, if those goals are still relevant. Be brutal and dismiss them if they are not. They must be a “Heck yes!” or a firm “No”.

I have a lot of interests. Of course, this can make it difficult to say no to various things. However, I must do it. I try to think ahead and consider whether the ‘distraction goals’ will be worth remembering in six or 12 months. Look back on your life and you’ll recognise what important goals look like.

Now is the time to focus for the next 4 months. Pounce on those goals!

Progress Time

Time Pressure Is Good

Posted on April 25, 2020

How amazingly productive would we be if every day at work was like the day before we would go on holiday for two weeks? Time pressure is good!

What about exams? The last few days before an exam can often seem incredibly productive and focused.

There is something about a deadline which gets our attention and focus. For some reason, if there isn’t a deadline, we can putter around and prevaricate a little more than necessary. Not everyone is like this of course. And not everyone has the same deadline challenges.

Some people are structured and methodical at work and ensure projects are progressed well ahead or on schedule. That same person could be the type that nearly misses every plane they are booked on.

I used to be more casual with getting to the airport, but now I like to get there early. There is still the underlying pressure to pack, get in a cab and go. However, I prefer to have that packing pressure three to five days before the flight. It’s not perfect, but I am definitely getting better. Progress is also good.

And getting this daily blog written every day? Well, I’ve been getting better. Without the accountability of time, imagine how we might all drift through the days and years.

Having a time pressure is good.

Time

Keeping A Schedule

Posted on April 8, 2020

Depending on how the new normal has impacted you, there could be some challenges in keeping a schedule. You may be far busier than usual, at one end of the spectrum, or drifting through the day with little to do, at the other end.

Either way, it is important to be keeping a schedule. People generally perform better, feel calmer and are more productive if they keep to a regular schedule. Now schedules can shift a little as life changes but it is good to keep some habits in place as much as possible.

Getting to bed at a good time and getting up at a consistent time, with a decent amount of sleep in between (7-8 hours), is a good start. The rest of your day, you can plan out in the evening before going to bed. Then the trick is to get the things done that are on your list or calendar, in the time allocated for each item. Do this and you will increase your productivity, sense of control and your confidence.

Set a schedule for your top priorities and you will be well ahead of the game. The smaller bits and less important items will get done around the edges, some other time or never. That is ok.

The last couple of weeks I have been feeling a little rudderless as all the scheduling seemed to disappear from my life. It was fun to drift along and spend time with my family, read, write and eat. However, I noticed my increasing desire to get back to a schedule. It certainly has helped me be more productive and feel more in control of my day again.

If you are not keeping a schedule: Start. If you are keeping one, make sure it is working well for you.

Action Gratitude Reframe your thoughts Time

Bonus Day Is Here!!

Posted on February 28, 2020

Who doesn’t love the bonus day? It’s full of excitement and expectation. Of course there is a little anxiousness mixed in as it might not turn out quite how you would have liked it too.

Money is one thing, but to have a whole extra day this year is something we are all able to enjoy. Talk about equality. We all get the same 1440 extra minutes on the 29th February 2020. Will you do something special? Will you simply enjoy the time?

If time is money, how much is this one extra day in your life worth to you?

Spend your time deliberately.

Whatever you do with your extra day, enjoy it! There is no return policy.

Action Think About It Time

A Stitch In Time

Posted on February 16, 2020

A favourite saying of mine is, “A stitch in time, saves nine”. I liked proverbs, and useful little sayings, when I was younger and I like them even more now.

Through the years I have seen how often they can be usefully applied. This one is easy to remember so it’s great for kids. My children know this proverb all too well. I only ever need to say the first half anymore and they know what I am talking about.

It is such a great saying with a visual thrown in. I can imagine someone sitting and fixing a coat or shirt with one stitch now, to save having to do nine stitches later when there is a bigger problem. You save time, it is likely to look better with one stitch rather than nine, you save resources (eight fewer stitches) and you feel better for nipping it in the bud too!

I often use this in a pre-mortem way. I like to see what stitch I can do now, which might save me time, resources, etc. later. For example, “If I can leave earlier, say by 06:00, I can drop the post in the post box, get to the gym, pick up the groceries on the way back and still be heading to the client meeting by 08:15”.

Of course, you can certainly see the benefit when you do a post-mortem on something too. Here’s an example. “Oh, if I had only left home when I said I would, then I wouldn’t be in this traffic jam, I could have made it to the gym, but now I’ll have to go at the end of the day, miss time with the kids and shower twice. At least I got the essential groceries, though I’ll have to go back out again later for the rest.”

Another common example is missing a payment for something like a class, your car, mobile bill, rent or a mortgage. It is always a much bigger deal trying to undo the damage, than if we had just sorted it correctly in the first place. With a little better forward planning we can achieve this ideal habit. The stress it saves will be significant.

You can find opportunities to use this proverb with just about anything: Health and fitness, finances (savings and taxes), relationships, career, etc.

Think about what needs a little stitch now, to help things go smoother or stop things from getting worse. Keep your eye out today for one or two ways you could use this proverb to your advantage. Then use the stitch and pocket the other eight. Good job.

Goals, Results & New Thinking Reframe your thoughts Time

New Beginnings

Posted on January 31, 2020

Setting off in a new direction can be both exciting and intimidating. The future could bring untold opportunity or challenges.

Regardless of what is to come, or how the change has come about, or whether you wanted the change or not, the best thing you can do is to take a deep breath, stand tall, smile and go forward, with an open mind and the confidence that things tend to work out well for those looking for things to work out well.

We can focus on the past, the “what could have been’s“, the plans you had, etc., but that is over now and new paths are to be forged. Allow yourself 5 minutes to mourn your loss, and not more, because every minute of life is too precious to dwell on unavailable paths.

Reframe your thoughts Time

Measuring Time

Posted on January 25, 2020

How you measure or calculate time will give a useful indication of your respect for time and whether it will be your ally or adversary.

Do you measure time to get somewhere based on your best ever journey? Worst? Median journey time? Do you include the time it takes to put on your shoes and coat, walk to the car, get the sat-nav ready with the address, find parking, walk to the location, pass security, wait for and ride the lift/elevator and be in a queue at the reception desk? Or do you just measure A to B time and then wonder why you are often several minutes late.

When you sign up for a course that is three hours long every Thursday for four weeks, do you think that it is just 12 hours of your time committed? Or do you realise, and factor in, that it is maybe 17-20 hours more (pre course prep, travel each week – both ways, review notes, prep for test, arrive early and chats at the end), making it about 30 hours in total of time allocation?

And when you add the course into your life for four weeks, do you also subtract out about 30 hours of something that is already there? You will have to sacrifice something in order to allow space for the course. You may sacrifice time with friends, time eating, time at work, time with your family, time with tv or other (social?) media, or time sleeping – which, to be fairly realistic, this is usually the first casualty of more.

People tend not to give as much thought to what they will be removing from their life as they do to what they will be adding in to their life. This one little observation is, I believe, one of the key reasons many people can’t stick to a New Years resolution. It’s unsustainable to add almost 7 hours a week to your schedule without subtracting 7 hours as well. After several weeks of trying to cram the usual activities, plus something more, into a 24 hour period, and a seven day week, usually we start to get sleep deprived, exhausted or ill, and we try to revert back to how it was without the more.

So next time you are looking for something new to add into your life, prime yourself for success: make sure you remove something which requires a similar amount of time (but not sleep). You’ll feel better for it, keep your commitment for a longer time and maybe find that the other activity wasn’t really bringing enough joy to your life to keep it in there anyway.

If you found this post, about time, to be usefully thought provoking, I suggest you also have a look at The Thrill of Being Early.

Financial Think About It

Investment Returns v Time

Posted on January 18, 2020

I find it fascinating that there are so many different ways to calculate financial returns. Some people look at returns differently.

From gross yield to infinite returns, IRR, ROCE, ROE, ROI etc.

ROI, or Return On Investment, comes up often, especially in property conversations, which is something we spend a fair bit of time having.

But very few people discuss ROTI, or Return On Time Invested.

You might consider time when you start a new job and wonder, is this worth my time. Your salary and benefits would be your return on your time invested at a job. Though, if you were told the job would be 35 hours a week and you regularly work 70 hours, your ROTI would be half what you thought it would be.

If you are an entrepreneur, your ROTI can be a little discouraging in the first couple of years as you might work very long hours while planting the seeds for your business, and not getting much back in return.

As you don’t know how much time you’ll have in this life, before it’s all over, and you can’t get any more of it, you are best to allocate or spend every minute wisely.

By the way, your returns don’t have to be measured strictly in financial terms when measuring ROTI. The returns you get might be the joy of spending great moments with your family, spouse, kids, parents, friends, etc.

So when you consider your financial return on investment, also consider your ROTI. What you may have to give up in time, to achieve certain returns, may not make the investment worthwhile.