“He had no ‘time of his own’ (except in his bed-cell), and yet he was becoming master of his time; he began to know just what he could do with it.”
J.R.R. Tolkien, Leaf by Niggle
Many of the greatest traps of our day appear in the guise of simple math. One of them concerns time management.
If I just become more efficient—i.e., ‘produce’ more in less time, then I can both ‘get more done,’ AND have more free time. Simple math, right? Well, perhaps.
There is of course an undeniable truth here: greater efficiency means producing more in the same or even less time. This much is obvious. The trap comes in our assumption that therefore greater efficiency is the fundamental principle in time management. But here we should look deeper and begin with the end. What is our time really for? And in view of this, what really makes time be productive? Or free?
Large topic. I want to suggest that while productivity and efficiency are important and worth careful consideration, the more fundamental angle in how we look at our day is whether all our time is deeply imbued with what is meaningful-in-itself. Another way of expressing this—though certainly not a new one—is whether true leisure gives meaning to our time, including and even especially our work time. Here we encounter the possibility of there being a kind of ‘freedom’ in all our time.
Josef Pieper’s assertion that leisure is the basis of culture implies more than the primacy of leisure. It means that work and amusement are only authentic and fulfilling to the extent they are formed from the inside by activities meaningful-in-themselves. At issue here is a whole understanding of human flourishing as consisting in moral character and centered in richly contemplative activities—even if for most of us the latter explicitly occupy but a small corner of our day.
I am suggesting that the most important kind of time-management is to examine our daily routine with this question: how does what has first importance give form and feel to all segments of my day?
And I’ll make a wager about a paradox of productivity. Yes, people focusing most on productivity, getting more done, and efficiency, can indeed have ‘success’ in the narrow lane on which they focus. And they might keep making new discoveries and new methods of pushing their success further.
But there is productivity, and there is productivity. The satisfied, peaceful—dare I even say ‘leisurely’ in the root sense—laborer will have a productivity that is real and different. The difference is hard to quantify but is nonetheless profound. Sure there will always be distractions, stress, deadlines, and failures. But how do we quantify a day of fruitful work, a profoundly human day, with everything in its place exercised in the glow of what matters most?
In J.R.R. Tolkien’s Leaf by Niggle, a masterful short story, the main character struggles with being constantly interrupted and pressed for time. Through an unforeseen agency he gets some assistance in addressing his challenge. Eventually he comes to be something of a ‘master of his time.’ And then lo, “He got through quite a lot in a day, now; he finished small things off neatly.”
Whether he would have won an award for efficiency, I will not wager. But this much is clear: in the work of such a man is a freedom beyond earthly measuring. ~ ~ ~
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Quite a read! I retired from my full-time position over five years ago and from my part-time one only 18 months ago. I read Pieper’s book between those two events, which reminded me of the phrase: “A Man of Leisure”. I often heard that phrase while listening to grownups talk, and they spoke of retirement in terms similar to yours & Pieper’s: What is the quality use of my time when I stop working? Unfortunately for many today, retirement all too often excludes true leisure and means simply the cessation of work and extra time to golf. I’m far from perfect at it, but I’m trying daily to make quality use of my days. Thanks for posting this.
I volunteer as an Extraordinary Eucharistic Minister at a local Catholic hospital. There are usually 3 of us on the day I serve; yesterday, there was only me. Of the other 2, one was away on a trip and one had a cold. There were 60 patients on the Communion list. We usually divide it up evenly, so I assigned myself a third of the list, randomly distributed among the 6 wards. When I returned from my rounds, the coordinator remarked, “Surely, you visited many more than just a third!” I responded, “I pray with my patients, ask them how their day is going, find out if we can help them with anything. I might be their only visitor that day. I didn’t think I was a Pez dispenser.”
Unfortunately, the Spiritual Care Service is like all other departments and is monitored monthly with numbers and statistics, judged by the administration for its productivity and compared with all the other hospitals in the system. Efficiency. Productivity. Sadly, this mindset has infiltrated into even the most sacred precincts where it has nothing of true value to offer,
I think it is marvellous Gary that you do this vital, very personal work. I agree – you are not a Pez dispenser! Yes, you could have seen all 60 and given them communion but we are designed for interaction, encouragement and for the personal moments we share. You are as changed and encouraged by time with them as they are with you and God knew exactly who needed your presence yesterday anyway. Bless you.
John, I have signed up for the online chat about this topic and Tolkien’s work and that itself was God’s work in my life this week as I have been contemplating what my time and days look like. The reminder to ensure that my leisure is meaningful and rich in itself as an activity is much appreciated and timely. Thank you and I am praying for you and the team, as always.
I am one of those people who feels some level of angst if I am not doing something that needs to be done around the house and yard (fortunately reading fits within the mold of doing something as well). But there are two places or situations where I seemingly can be doing absolutely nothing and feel no angst. In fact the reward is the sheer pleasure of enjoying each precise moment of doing nothing. Or is it nothing? Because in fact I am doing extraordinary stuff. One, is sitting on a beach and literally soaking it all in, enjoying every single break of the waves, the smell of the surf, the laughter of children, the hot sun, the horizon. Well, you get the picture. The second is perhaps the opposite of the shoreline where there is constant action. It is sitting as still and as quiet as can be for hours on end, perhaps an entire day, in a deer stand. Darkness slowly ebbs and you wonder if you can actually see as day begins to break; every sound registers, every break of a twig, the light casting different shadows through the course of the day; and finally the daylight trades its place with the return of darkness at the end of the day. There are no other times where each moment is noticed. Perhaps the most productive time I ever spend.
Well, I missed Leaf by Niggle, Dr. Cuddeback. The Belloc is yet to come.
And I noticed that you’re not quite number 1 in the domain of most video lectures available on ICC, but your total hours logged in front of the camera are certainly still respectable all the more.
Happy Thanksgiving to all y’all out in Virginia. No more turkey jokes, please. Thank you.
Pax.