Wowza, have the past two weeks been confronting for me.
I have been completing a time log for 10 out of 14 days.
The idea is to see where you are spending/investing/wasting your time in order to get more productive.
It’s not meant to be judgemental although I’ve gotten myself in such a tizzy judging my time entries.
I’ve also noticed the difference between the personality types as I’ve listened to some of my colleagues talking about productivity versus self-care.
My “Driver” colleagues go “push push push”. More productivity. More Tasks. Get more done. Pay someone to do a lesser costing job so you can do tasks that add more value.
My “Counsellor” colleagues say “rest rest rest”. Look after yourself. Be kind to yourself. Nurture yourself. You’ll burn out if you don’t.
In my opinion, both have merit. We do need to “drive” ourselves and push to get things done and we also need to look after ourselves.
It’s been interesting for me to see my reaction when I log time with Ross to sit and talk (which happens to be my Love Language – Quality Time & Conversation) and enjoy dinner with him or sitting together on the lounge of an evening and the feelings of guilt, frustration and fear that surface, in anticipation that someone will analyse my time log and judge me to be wasting time.
Wowza!
I have identified some areas I could improve my productivity however the biggest aha for me has been the realisation that I am still fearful of other’s judgement (so I judge myself first).
How do you think you’d go if you committed to documenting your time from the time you wake to the time you go to sleep at 15 minute intervals for 2 solid weeks?
If you’re keen to do it, you can either record the times and the activities on paper or digital thingy or you can determine the categories and record the category entry in a spreadsheet that has 7 days of columns and 15 minute intervals for rows.
My time log finishes on the weekend. I’ll let you know what further insights I have next week. Let me know how you go if you decide to do it.
Where do you sit on the Push Push Push Rest Rest Rest continuum?
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