Most people feel that time is this celestial jerk that is bearing down on them stomping out any fun that they have with a giant Galactus foot keeping your demise punctual and painful. We are always racing against time, but there are some plusses to having a time limit that we take for granted. I would like to take the time as an advocate for the perceived opposition and give time a voice; let’s talk about the strengths that come from the clock.
Time limits you. This I personally don’t find too terrible. Imagine this situation: you need to finish a project but have a limited amount of time to complete it. Most wish that they had “all the time in the world” in order to finish. But, what if you actually had all the time in the world? I would bet you that you wouldn’t actually get the project done. Giving yourself extra time means that you can allow for more distractions. I’m not the biggest fan of playing “just one more level” with myself. I never get things done going about compromising with myself. I will sit there forever and never get a single project done. It’s almost paradoxical: without enough time, we don’t feel like we can finish and, with enough time, we don’t have the motivation to finish.
I would like to advocate Parkinson’s Law. It simply states, “Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.” This explains why it takes “hours” to complete a paper, when, in reality, you spent maybe an hour working on the paper and hours on The Chive, Facebook, and, of course, this fabulous site. When it comes down to it, we all brag about how we completed a project that was supposed to take weeks to finish in a few panic- and caffeine-induced hours. That’s because we can do it in that amount of time; we just aren’t motivated enough to do it until the crunch hours. It’s that ticking in the back of your head as you step on a pressure plate in Zelda and hear the tempo of the clicks getting closer and faster. In short, time is there supporting you to finish by lighting a fire underneath you until completion.
How do you use this to your aid? Limit yourself! Turn off the system, get out of Facebook, and give yourself the time. No excuses. I know that sounds like a parent telling you to turn off the Gameboy, but think about this: you only have so much time on this earth. I am reminded of the samurai’s sense of purpose: while on your death bed, what will you ponder in terms of your life’s accomplishments? What would bring satisfaction to your soul to reflect? What do you want to look back on and see that you have made?
Questions, comments, concerns? Email them to me at justin@pixelatedgeek.com and follow me on Twitter @Justin_Dean.