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It’s About Time Ruth Wong |
Don’t let that free 5
minutes go to wasteHere we are already into the second month of 2004. Are any of you feeling behind already? Do you wish you had more time in your day?
This column addresses some bits of time that almost everyone lets go to waste, those "pockets of time," those five, 10, 15 minutes here and there that we let slip by, wasted.
It may be time spent waiting on hold on the telephone, or waiting for an appointment, or waiting for someone to get ready.
It's easy to look upon small amounts of time as worthless and to think, "It's only five minutes -- that's not enough time to do anything."
I like to compare pockets of time to the loose change that men carry in their pockets. Their pocket change may be just a few coins totaling 50 cents, or perhaps a dollar or more.
That's not much -- not enough to buy lunch or even a latte, but does anyone ever say, "It's only 50 cents -- that's not worth much, so I'll just throw it away"? No way! Although it may be just 50 cents, it's still MONEY, and valuable.
It's the same with pockets of time. Although it may be just five, 10 or 15 minutes, it's still TIME, and valuable, and can be put to use.
The key is to have identified small tasks that we can do in those pockets of time.
Beginning this year, I've kept a running list in a steno book of tasks that can be done in 15 minutes or less. On my list are those little things that, when left undone, clutter my mind and schedule. I've also listed half-hour and one-hour tasks whose steps can be done in pockets of time.
Some things that can be done in pockets of time include calling for an appointment, balancing a bank statement, bagging newspapers for recycling and putting away groceries left on the kitchen counter.
A larger task like purging the Rolodex can be done in pockets of time. I've been using spare minutes to purge my Rolodex an alphabet section at a time. Since there are 26 A-to-Z sections and 29 days this month, if I purge one letter section per day, I'll have my Rolodex purged and organized by the end of the month! All in pockets of time!
Now, I'm not advocating that we utilize EVERY pocket of time. Not at all. There are some times, for example, when I'm waiting at a doctor's office that I just want to relax and browse the magazines in the waiting area. Other times, if I need to send a note to a friend, I'll bring a note card and write it there.
Your assignment is to begin a running list of small tasks you can do in 15 minutes or less. And then, try to utilize at least one pocket of time each day.
Just think: If we can reclaim just 15 minutes each day, over the course of a year, that amounts more than 91 hours of time ordinarily wasted, nearly four days, that we've put to good use!
Happy pocketing your time! See you in two weeks!
"It's About Time," by Ruth Wong, owner of Organization Plus, runs the fourth Friday of each month. Contact her at "It's About Time," care of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, Honolulu 96813; or e-mail features@starbulletin.com
