The 74-minute Hour Does Not Exist
Published on February 09, 2015
Here is a question that begs asking. "How much of your work day feels rushed and out of control?" If you are in the majority your answer is "most of it". Here is something we hear said in public over and over and no doubt hear ourselves voice this silently as well. "There are just not enough hours in the day". The truth is that there are plenty of hours in the day. It comes down to what we do with them and how rational or irrational our expectations of the day are. One of the side effects that come from a workday out of control is stress. Stress can be crippling, crushing and paralyzing. It can lead to rushed decisions, unnecessary mistakes and losing our cool to interact effectively with others not to mention the impact on our health. The feeling of running behind all day long can also be exhausting. "I'm not going to get this done, I'm behind here and now how am I going to be able to finish that"? Here is something you can do. Stop working this way. We really do have a choice of how much we pile on and how far behind we will be at days end. A change I made a long time ago paid off for me once again. I was to deliver a keynote address at a hotel downtown for 9am. The drive with morning traffic is about an hour. I left my house a full hour and 45 minutes prior to when I was to be there. With what was going on in traffic today, I ended up walking in the door with just 10 minutes to spare. Just enough time to meet briefly with the company heads, set up my presentation, grab a coffee and begin. If I had not padded my time 120 people would have been left sitting wondering what was going on for over 35 minutes. I would have rushed in late. Likely have been stressed out. Rushed the presentation. Lost focus. In short it would not have been ideal. Would I have greatly disappointed the client? Yes. Would I have dealt with great stress? Yes. Would I have had my mood altered for most of the balance of the day for appearing so unprofessional? Probably. Would the client likely recommend me to other departments or organizations? Not!! I don't want this to come off as some smug know it all statement that I am constantly in complete control. The truth is that quite sometime ago I just got tired of always feeling behind. I got tired of showing up late or last minute when traffic was snarled or too much snow would fall or one of my kids would spit up on my suit on the way out the door. Giving yourself adequate time to complete your tasks, drive to your meetings and finish your assignments can truly make more of a difference in your life than you can know. To your clients and co-workers and family you will appear calm and confident and control. Here is why. Because you will be. If you are tired like I was of running on the hamster wheel with no break in sight do this. Set the goal to take one or two things off your list each day and complete the ones left in good time, in a good mood and with the confidence of knowing its possible. You can keep trying to jam it all in but here is what I have found out. The 74 minute hour does not exist. Have an excellent day.
Be well,
Randy Taylor
