I’m not sure if it is a function of age or the age in which we live, but time seems to slip by very quickly. Where did the day go? Where did the year go? And as careful as we are with other resources in our life, like money, food, possessions, etc., we are sometimes sloppy with how we use our primary resource, Time.

This got me thinking about how I use time. I have observed for myself that age increases my awareness that time is not infinite, at least for me in this life. On my last day looking back at all the hours in my life, will I be satisfied with how I used that time? Would I wish that I had spent less time frivolously? Less TV or games? More composing and playing music? More time with friends, family?

So then, almost in an instant, the Faces of Time presented themselves. I like organization and quantification, and this provides me with a lens by which to view my use of time. It provides a frame of reference to have a balanced approach to time. And in some cases the lines between the Faces are blurry. These are not necessarily in order of priority.

1. Giving Time

This is time spent in the service of others. For me, this involves volunteer work with community development organizations and music groups, as well as being the occasional ear for someone in need (apparently, I am a good listener). For others, it might be church groups, PTA, etc. Parenting is a giant block of giving time, in my opinion.

2. Creative Time

There is an innate need for most humans to take ideas and manifest them. It may take the form of writing, music, building, creating art, or honing sports skills. It is something that creates personal satisfaction. This can also overlap with many of the other faces.

3. Selling Time

Most of us sell our time in one way or another to make a living, whether it’s a set number of hours weekly for a set salary, or a freelancer who gets paid by the hour or job.

4. Sharing Time

To me, Sharing Time is Giving Time that cuts both ways. We share ourselves with others and they share back. This can be time spent with family, gatherings of friends, or even a part of one of the other faces, such as collaborating on a project at work or while volunteering.

5. Nourishing Time

We need to eat, sleep, wash (hopefully!), exercise, meditate. We read, listen to music, enjoy art. All these things keep us healthy in body, mind and spirit.

6. Maintenance Time

This is sort of the outer version of Personal Time. The things around us, our homes, cars, possessions, etc., all need to be cared for, and that takes time.

7. Wasting Time

It may include watching TV, playing video games, mindless surfing. This isn’t necessarily bad. It provides some distraction from the more driven parts of life. “Down Time” some may call it. For me, being aware of how much time I spend wasting is a good barometer of how I am doing. More wasted time usually indicates an imbalance somewhere else.

Teresa Martin wrote a moving article in CapeEyes about the application of technology in two areas of her life. We so often (myself most especially included) tend to put technology as an end in and of itself. Teresa discusses the implications of technology application on human quality of life.

What does that mean? I recently upgraded my computer. Funny, after the anticipation of a “new toy”, there is, for me anyway, a bit of a letdown. It does everything I was doing before, just faster and with less, um, interruptions (crashing!). Once the newness wears off I simply go back to doing what I was doing before, albeit more efficiently (hopefully). Yea, faster is good, but it isn’t the end all.

A couple of years ago I got a new acoustic guitar. For decades I had played a cheap no-name acoustic that had deteriorating action and peeling paint. The new guitar was at first “new and shiny”, and there were oohs and aahs as I played it and shared it with my pals. Then it became integrated as just another tool, and facilitated a change in my playing that has been nothing short of profound.

In both cases, it wasn’t the technology that was the end, it was what the enabling of human possibility.

Back in ancient times (you know, BiP, before iPod), one technique we used to scope out the interests of new acquaintances was to scour the books and music on their shelves (or lack thereof, as the case may be). I knew anyone who had John McLaughlin’s Extrapolation, or Frank Herbert’s Dune was no doubt going to be a pal.

But in a relatively short period of time, that window into the souls of others has rapidly become invisible. Music libraries are stored on iPods and other devices. And now, with the iPad, Kindle and Nook, even books and magazines are fading from the material, observable world to the more private, digital world.

When was the last time you asked someone, “Hey, can I take a look at your iTunes library?

In some cases, social media fills a portion of this gap. Those who partake can share glimpses into themselves, intentional or not, that can provide some insight to what commonalities we may share. But there is, at this point in the digital revolution, a gap where many have adopted digital media as their preferred method of storing content, but have yet to embrace social media. A visit to their home may reveal some CDs lined up neatly in an unused corner of the room, a layer of dust betraying their long time neglect and obsolescence. What insight does this provide the curious media snooper?

I do not pose an answer here, perhaps this only serves to articulate the question. Years ago, an acquaintance who has since become a very good friend would ask when he saw me, “What did you have for dinner last night?” At the time I took this for either inappropriate curiosity or some evil test of my mental capacity (what did I have for dinner last night?). I realize now, it was a question very much like “what’s in your iTunes library?” It was an attempt to gain insight into who I was as a person.

So perhaps a new etiquette will emerge, one where when meeting new folks we will by default hand over our PDDs (Portable Digital Devices) so they can review each other’s media libraries, and learn more about what common interests we share. Maybe there should be a app for that?

We’ve been together a very long time, since 1988. I still have the receipt. I brought you home and we immediately fell in love, you wiled me with your intoxicating ways, with your seemingly endless possibilities, and your charming system beep.

We’ve both grown over the years. Me to middle age, you from System 6 to OS 10.6. Our waistlines have grown, too. 32 to 38 for me, 20 MB to 500 GB for you.

We are so much a part of each other’s lives now. How many hours are we together each day? We work together, play together and you are my window to the world.

Thanks br1dotcom/Flickr

But honey, I am afraid it’s over. No, I don’t want you out of my life, I’ve come to rely on you too heavily. But, I think at this point we need to be just friends. Our time together needs to be professional and purposeful.

Yes, I’ll miss the long nights of surfing YouTube together, or reading guilty pleasure news tidbits that are little more than checkout rag gossip.

I hope you understand that I need to experience the real world again. Like those days before we met, when interacting meant doing so with the world, not with a mouse. It meant taking time to sit and chat and walk in the woods, play guitar and sometimes just do nothing at all. You have a way of insinuating yourself on these times.

I hope you don’t take it personally. This isn’t goodbye. I just, you know, need some space.

As a long-time Mac addict I am a fan of 52 Tiger, not only for the technical info I glean from the posts, but for the humanist approach of the author, I had to laugh out loud when I read in his article, Pomodoro and Omnifocus, “Anyone who knows me realizes that I have a significant problem with concentrating on anything. As in medically significant.” Hmm, doesn’t that sound familiar.

The article was about the Pomodoro Technique,  which basically uses bursts of activity with small rests between. Curious, as I was thinking about this the other day in relation to what I call the Carnivore Mind. As I learn more about ADHD and what it means to have this kind of brain I do my best to observe my own behavior and that of others, especially when it comes to getting things done.

Herbivores (why don’t we call them vegetarians in the animal kingdom?) are pretty much foraging for food most of the time. Slow and steady, grazing here, move on to another more fertile area.

Carnivores, on the other hand, have much more concentrated bursts of food gathering. The hunt, the kill, then usually a long period of rest to digest what they have just eaten.

As someone with a very active, though sometimes chaotic mind, I can relate to that. There are times when I have strong bursts of mental activity and sometimes amaze myself at what gets accomplished, the ideas that spew forth, and the clarity of vision that ensues. But these periods are not sustainable for me.  I’ve learned that in planning how I use my time that I don’t schedule multiple periods of sustained high-level mental activity back-to-back. Processing time is required to digest the most recent mental “kill”.

So I’ve downloaded the free book on the Pomodoro Technique, which advocates small bursts on concentrated activity interspersed with rest. Their recommendations are for 25-minute work sessions followed by five-minute breaks, and then a longer break after four sessions. I’ll play around with that and report back.

Do you have a Carnivore Mind?

A new little project for relief from distraction.

A Minute…

I came across this site over the weekend, Simple Desks. I was immediately enamored by the clean, almost Zen-like workspaces. My desk looked like the typical computer nerd workstation- piles of paper and other junk strewn about, some of which had been there for months. As someone who needs every advantage to focus and get things done, I was inspired by the sparse environments of Simple Desks. I thought, if I remove all the clutter and only have around me the absolute essentials, then perhaps that will improve focus.

So I spent a couple of hours, first making space elsewhere to put the crap that was going to come off my desk, then to work on simplifying the space itself. Piles of paper? Scan what was needed and toss. Notes scribbled about? Record on the computer or in my new, thin, flat-lying notebook (how many people do you know who spend twenty minutes picking out a notebook?). Stamps, paper clips? Off to the credenza beside my desk. How often to I really send mail or work with paper anymore? Same with stapler, tape dispenser, even the pen cup. I only need one pen.

What it came down to was there was almost nothing I used on a daily basis besides the computer workstation itself and my phone. So that’s about it. Computer, keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, pen, notepad, and a small tray of things off to the right.

Too bad there wasn't a "before" shot

I should have taken a before shot, but this is the end result. It isn’t pretty enough for Simple Desks, but it is pretty sweet for me, and I’m looking forward to working with it. The key will be to maintain it. My current plan is to have a few minutes of clean up at the end of each day. We’ll see how that works!

Last winter at the age of 51 I was diagnosed with ADHD. I don’t have the hyperactive kind, I don’t bounce off the walls. But it does impact many areas of my life, including focus on projects immediately in front of me, as well as focus on long term goals. This has explained so much about the successes and failures I have had in life.

ADHD is often maligned, and usually misunderstood. Upon diagnosis I read several of the books on the subject to better educate myself with what I was dealing with. I decided that I didn’t want to be quiet about it, that I didn’t want to hide it like a shameful blemish on my being. There is a mechanism to it, and some would argue even a positive purpose. So I want to talk about it and give support to others who share this condition with me. Many of my close friends have it, and it drives them and makes them who they are.

So going forward I’ll be talking about ADHD, sharing some observations, articles I have found by others, and hopefully shedding some light and hope for those who share this special working of the brain.