Time Management?

Why Bother?

I was once in Geneva, sitting by the lake, watching the famous fountain in what any passerby would assume was a very relaxed situation. However, in my mind were a thousand and one tasks I had to get through, for which there was a clear and hard consequence for not completing. These tasks had one by one accumulated, and the number had become what I felt was insurmountable to the extent that my mind made a simple mathematical calculation and said, it will not be possible to complete all of these in the time I have, therefore you cannot succeed. At that point, when success was not possible, why should I bother continuing? So I just sat by the lake quite peacefully looking at the ducks and the water, and feeling quite honestly, helpless. When the Sun began to set, reality hit home even more; I would now need to face the consequences when I speak to all those people I am accountable to. I thought about what had gone wrong. I was not managing my time properly. I was not focussed enough, not getting through tasks diligently or aggressively enough, and was facing the resultant situation. Gathering my belongings to get to the airport, I was still not focussed on the specific tasks, I was focussed on the root problem; my time management. It needed to improve, and fast. I would explain to my bosses and apologise, but the deeper issue needed to b e addressed nevertheless, otherwise it would keep cropping up. I went to the airport book shop, and purchased a book on time management, the Harvard Business School best-seller; a compilation of numerous leadership gurus tips on managing time. It was quite practical, explaining how to prioritise e-mails, and a number of other tips, and to be honest, it resulted in some more focus, and I was able to address the issue with some degree of success. However, over the years, my understanding of time management, became a little more rounded and continues to do so. There are some fundamentals that we should know regarding the inherent nature of time, which will help us not to manage time, but to respect it, and manage ourselves more consciously.

 

A Misunderstood Concept

The phrase “Time Management” was coined long ago, and is a completely accepted term by most people. It is also consistently understood. However, if we pick at the topic a little more, the branding doesn’t hold so strongly. Time is defined as “the indefinite continued progress of existence.” Management is defined as the “process of dealing with controlling things or people.” If not understood properly, the term can easily be interpreted to mean “controlling the continued progress of existence.” About a year ago I had a stint of work that led me to be in Japan, the US, and the UK all in one week. It was somewhat overwhelming, and I asked a very elevated spiritual practitioner how one should go about managing time. He smiled and replied, “Well, there are 24 hours in the day.” Whilst he spoke only those few words, they had immense implications.  Krishna says in the Bhagavat Gita, which comprise the Supreme Lord’s direct instructions to His friend and disciple Arjuna, who stands before a huge battle, that He is Time. The Supreme Lord says that He is Time! He also says that He is beyond the control of any material factors. So by this definition, it is impossible to control time. From a spiritual perspective, the term Time Management in a material sense, is in itself an oxymoron, or a contradiction. If we understand this well, we will become more pragmatic in the field of managing our activities, and will always remind ourselves of what we really can control, and what we cannot. This will lead to a far more mature dealing with time, a respect for time, and above everything, a more conscious and grounded experience with time.

 

Behind the Scenes

Once we understand that the “time” part of the time “time management” equation is fixed, beyond our control, we should understand that the “management” aspect should be regarded as management of the self, or our actions. In one sense, we could argue that we do not have so much direct control over these as sometimes factors beyond our control dictate what we do i.e. some urgent client prompted meetings, time out for certain appointments, personal factors, and so on. So even our actions, whilst majority of the time they should be under our control if we are disciplined and circumstances permit, they aren’t necessarily under our direct control. Whilst external factors can dictate our actions, external factors will seldom dictate or mandate our thoughts. For example, we daydream. We may be daydreaming in a meeting. Your boss cannot get into your mind and force you to stop daydreaming. He or she may be able to mandate you to be in the office, but they certainly cannot check and mandate your thoughts. They cannot mandate our desires. Thoughts or contemplation lead to desires, and desires lead to action. The timeframe for this isn’t necessarily immediate, and may vary drastically, but on the whole we will find it is true. We may remember a person very deeply. This may make us want to talk to them. We will then find a way to talk to them, and then we will be in touch with them. So thoughts and desires, we can control if we are disciplined. If we are disciplined in our thoughts, the corresponding desires will be encouraged, and eventually the right actions will emerge. Time continues to go by, but because our thinking is conscious, considerate of wider factors, considerate and with a willingness to serve others, our actions will follow this in a way that becomes more independent of circumstance because it becomes to do with the consciousness, the mentality, and then there is satisfaction. Determination, attentiveness, diligence can also be desired. To desire to be efficient and diligent in meeting deadlines can also be cultivated and meditated upon at the right times, and if we imbibe this into our minds, we will be far more likely to have this attitude manifest in our work-life realities in the all-powerful and pervasive domain of time.