Too Much Time On Your Hands? Not Likely!

Dr. F. here, asking: What would you do with an extra hour in each day? That’s the question my business partner, Dr. Doug Gertner, asks his seminar participants. I think it’s a great question, and one that people are often excited to answer. In fact, most people could easily generate a veritable catalog of things they would do with an extra hour in a day. (I, myself, would choose the company of a good book almost every time). But, think about this, if you had an extra hour each day, that’s 7 extra hours a week, 28 extra hours a month, 336 extra hours a year! That’s a lot of extra time! NOW what would you do?

Although, at Emu, we teach people detailed skills for managing their work–life balance so they have that extra time, I think one of the simplest things you can do to make more time in your life is to avoid the “technology trap,” or what Dr. Gertner refers to as “technological ADD.” We all do it—telling yourself you’re working, all the while checking your email or Facebook account every 30 seconds. Thinking, “this report (insert your own job-appropriate noun here) will only take a few minutes, so I’ll go see what’s on sale at Zappos.com and THEN I’ll start on it.” Before you know it, half your day is gone and all you have to show for it is…well…nothing (except maybe a higher credit card bill).

I read something interesting recently. According to Dr. David Greenfield, a psychologist who specializes in internet addiction, we are addicted to checking email and social networking websites mainly because it stimulates the part of the brain that releases dopamine when we feel “rewarded.” And email or networking sites reward us unpredictably, meaning most of the time they give us nothing exciting, but every once in a while, we get something that really gives us a charge—a coupon, or a friend request, for example. And that’s enough to keep us coming back.

So, how do you cope with this? Is it really an addiction? No, not really. (Well, for some people it may be.) But most people simply need to learn the skills of managing time better. Emu offers seminars to teach people these skills. But, for now, try focusing on your “technological ADD,” and remember that there’s really no such thing as multi-tasking. So, logout of that email and focus on the job at hand—and the more long-term reward that comes from being able to say “job well done”!