Why Not Assume You Have the Time You Need?

Most of the people with whom I work worry about not having enough time.

Correction...every person I coach worries about not having enough time to complete their writing project.

This made me wonder...is it really true that no one has enough time or do we just use time pressure to motivate us into action?

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As scholar of narrative, I pay very close attention to how people "story" themselves and their lives.

There is a narrative of time scarcity that flies around like a bat loose in a barn. Everybody below screaming, Time scarcity!  Time scarcity!"

When you think about how much time it took to write a book just 30 years ago before laptops and personal computers, then you wonder...can it really be true? Is time missing?

I'm encouraging people (myself included) to consider the possibility that we actually have all the time we need.  Assume that we are in the perfect place in our projects and everything is on schedule. Then START!

Stoic Theory of Time

The stoic philosophers thought a great deal about time. They did not see time as something real but rather "incorporeal" and always relative to something else.

They understood its flexibility. Their model allowed them to consider that an entire year as the present.

Fascinating!

The point of all this is that time can be warped. You can think of five minutes that felt like an eternity (physical pain often) and a summer vacation that went by in a flash. 

Given time's incorporeal nature and warping ability, why not assume that whatever we have is enough?

So let's all take a deep breath, sit down and start.