An involuntary experiment in time constraints
By Jake on June 8th, 2009
I was awoken the other morning at 4am to the sound of rushing water. As I searched the house for the source, I found the sound coming from inside the laundry room wall opposite the garage. As I ventured into the garage, I found a flooded area as water poured out from under the wall. I investigated further in the backyard only to find that my dogs had pulled the hose (connected to the faucet) out and broke a pipe inside the wall. Needless to say it wasn’t the best way to wake up on a Saturday.
As usual, I had plans to get a lot of work done before my family woke up at 8. I like to get a good 3-4 hours in before the natives awake. I knew that I needed to get my water problem handled ASAP, but i still wrestled with the idea of getting a little work done prior (confessions of a work-a-holic, i know). I knew I needed to put my family and home first. So, I called the city and they had my water turned off by 4:45. I showed some grace by waiting til 6 to call the plumber. Meanwhile, I swept water out of the garage and used the wet vac for the rest. The plumber arrived at 6:30 and had everything fixed and running by 7:30. All before my family awoke at a quarter to eight.
Despite all that went on I managed to get quite a bit of design work done on a new project. It seems with the time constraints that I was more focused and decisive and therefore, more productive. I spent a lot of time working on it in my head and then executed swiftly when I had time to sit down to the computer.
It was a productive morning after all. I put my family and home as the priority and also learned some lessons about work in the process. It taught me that I don’t always need as much time as I think. I encourage you to give yourself some time constraints when tackling a project, you may find your performance increases. That being said, I don’t recommend breaking a water pipe in your house to do that. Try something a bit less destructive. I’d love to hear stories of what you do.
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5 Responses to 'An involuntary experiment in time constraints'
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John Moorhead said:
Well said Jake! I think in today’s work environment, especially one where many work from home, the balance between family and work is blurred. Great insight into productivity, time and family.
on 8 Jun 09 at 5:58 pm
Phil Thornton said:
I make myself concentrate on the project I am going to approach first while in the shower every morning. It amazes me how much more quickly, and like you said, decisively I work on that project “post shower”.
on 9 Jun 09 at 11:01 am
Robert said:
I’ve always found that when I have too much time, I tend to goof off a bit more and don’t always narrow down things as well as I can do when I have more constraints.
Time constraints are definitely a productivity booster.
on 10 Jun 09 at 1:52 pm
Jake said:
The shower is a great place to think, I do the same. I believe there area a few other good places to do preliminary thinking… i think one is even referred to as ‘the thinker’
on 10 Jun 09 at 1:56 pm
The Importance of Time Management in Website Development | Internet Marketing said:
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on 19 Jun 09 at 10:25 am