(picture originally uploaded to Flickr by Ben Sutherland)
I was not born with inherent time management skills. My wife, on the other hand, gets more done in a couple of hours than I think any normal human being can get done in 48 hours.
I already know what some of you are thinking: Time management is something you can learn. It only takes discipline. It’s not so much time management as it is time stewardship. If you were to only read this book or follow these easy steps…
I’ve done all of that. I’ve read the books, I’ve tried the strategies, I’ve downloaded the programs… Most of the time I still feel like I’m continually running.
Lest you either feel sorry for me or want to give me a quick boot in the rear, let me say that I have come to a conclusion of my own: I don’t have to be ultra efficient. I wasn’t meant to be.
This morning I read a post by Don Miller that sums it up more beautifully than I could.
Hop on over to his blog and read the post. It’s entitled “If It Were’nt For God You’d Be More Efficient.” It’s short! Here’s a clip from it:
We buy billions of dollars in books that help us be more efficient, we praise the profit margin, and all the while, God is trying to slow us down, trying to remind us of what matters and what doesn’t, trying to stop our human progress, stop our creation of false Gods.
I’m not saying time management is bad. But being the perfect time manager is not the ultimate goal. Yes, we need to steward our time wisely, but we don’t always have to get more done.
What are ways that you’ve built into your life to allow the Holy Spirit to jump in and interrupt your efficiency?
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(picture originally uploaded to Flickr by Ben Sutherland)
Love it! I have typically been addicted to managing time. It has served me well in many ways, but I'm ALWAYS looking for that next great idea that will help me be more efficient. Even today, I wrote on my TASK LIST to "ask ________ about what he uses to manage time/projects"… Sad, huh? I constantly walk in that tension between "doing the best with the time you have" and "slowing down so you don' t miss life".
Posted by Mike Burns | March 22, 2010, 6:16 pmHa! I think it's a constant struggle for most of us.
Posted by henryjz | March 23, 2010, 4:19 pmI'm one of those people that needs a full 8 hours, usually more like 9, of sleep to function. I hate that about myself, but constant attempts have changed nothing. I'm also the type of person with the tendency to take on too much too quickly. These two parts of my personality are at odds with each other. But maybe, that creates the necessary balance. Thanks for the fresh perspective! And HS can interrupt anytime He wants, as long as He gives me at least two weeks advance notice so I can adjust my schedule
Posted by Pastor Jared | March 29, 2010, 5:48 pmHa! I know what you mean.
Posted by henryjz | March 31, 2010, 1:42 am