Perceptions of time and reality. How bad are things really?
Time is a funny thing and so is our perception of reality. Why do I say this? Because even though it is exactly the same for everyone when measured technically it appears to be immensely different, in everyone’s perceptions.
Image: m_bartosch / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Why Certain Actions Seem to Take Longer and Others Shorter
Over the years we have learned to enjoy and dislike certain tasks. For example I can compare house chores such as cleaning the dishes, taking out the rubbish, washing my clothes to FEEL much longer than much more enjoyable tasks such as watching a great comedy series on the television, going for a fitness workout or even eating a delicious meal.
The trick is that our brains are actually quite smart. They try at all costs to avoid pain and increase pleasure. So every time you think about a particular task your mind will actually set a perceived time value for that action item, even before you start doing it. If it is something you enjoy your mind will tend to shorten the time perception, meaning that you will most likely end up doing that action longer than you originally intended. And inversely, if you dislike taking out the rubbish, your mind will make you feel like it is a chore that takes literally hours to stop you from taking that action.
The only ‘time’ this never happens is if you’ve never heard of or performed that action before. Why is this? Because you have no current associations with it. This is just like putting your hand on a hot stove for the first time, you don’t equate pleasure of pain with it, so there’s no time association. Another trick the mind likes to use is to make us experience the actual time taking during the action to be different. eg. Putting your hand on a hot stove can feel like 5-10 minutes even though it is for a second. This creates a major pain association to help aid in your protection or survival.
So What’s the Trick, How can I use this to my Advantage?
Awareness is the key to this little paradox. The more awareness you bring to an action or problem the more control you have over it, especially the way it influences your emotions and time reality. If you hate taking out the rubbish, or doing the dishes, then measure it next time. If it takes you only 2-5 minutes to take out the trash then write it down.
eg. Daily Chores
* Taking out trash – 2 minutes
* Dishes – 10 minutes
* Cleaning my room – 5 minutes.
Total Time: 15 minutes
Then you can change your perception or association to this task by telling yourself every day, it’s only 15 minutes. It’s only a fraction of my time, not an eternity. You can then change your associations to these tasks by making them fun and more enjoyable. Simple things such as setting a speed record for yourself, thereby reducing your time spent on chores or playing music you love while performing these actions. If you bring enough awareness to the problem/task and overlay it with enough positive associations you will learn how to use this little paradox to your benefit every day.
The last bit of advice I can give you is to watch out for the time you have spent on enjoyable but little priority items. Such as watching hours of television, spending incredible amounts of time online for non-productive social conversation, or even spending hours doubting yourself. Write everything down, bring more awareness to it and you will start to utlise your life in the best ways possible.
Stay tuned for my next article about prioritizing actions in your life based on urgency and importance.
Kase Cheah
If you enjoyed this article, here’s a great book I found on Amazon I think you would really love. It’s called “Getting Things Done” by David Allen. It’s is especially for those of you who seem to constantly feel over-burdened with a mountain of tasks and who feel they have much too little time to do them all. With an excellent 4.5/5 star rating and typically ranging from $8-15 dollars, it is a must have in anyone’s arsenal for a busy lifestyle.
What other’s are saying about this book:
“It’s been indispensable for my personal productivity. It teaches you to do a few things well and does so in a relatively clear manner.”
“David’s method offers a practical yet elegant solution to staying on top of things.”
“If you are a procrastinator you NEED to read this book, it will explain to why you have had so much stress in your life.”
See below to check it out!
“By doing activities we like makes our mind will tend to shorten the time perception. So meaning, it is all in our mind. This is a worth reading article.”