3 Activities Where It’s Best to Take Your Time
“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while you could miss it.”
—Ferris Bueller
“You can microwave a Pop-Tart. That just blew me away that you could do that. How long does it take to toast a Pop-Tart? A minute and a half if you want it dark?! People don’t have that kind of time? Listen, if you need to zap-fry your Pop-Tarts before you head out the door, you might want to loosen up your schedule.”
—Brian Regan
Life is pretty fast paced for most people I know. People do almost anything to get ahead, from checking email while driving to cheating sleep a few hours. Whatever your own view is, I hope you agree there are some things that are not worth rushing. Here are three instances where I love to ignore the time:
Personal care in the bathroom
photo by saintbob
It takes a while to shave my head, so I can tell you I’m often tempted to glance at a clock. Of course, every time I do, I inadvertently rush myself and end up with a small cut.
It made me realize that one should always shave in peace. Shaving is a commitment: once you start, you cannot stop early. After the first stroke, time does not matter. Your complete focus should be on doing a good job.
I soon realized this can apply to virtually any bathroom activity. Whether you are flossing or showering, take your time.
In fact, I wonder why we even need clocks in bathrooms.
Reading for fun
photo by moriza
I really wanted to be a speed-reader in high school. I had heard Presidents Jimmy Carter and John F. Kennedy were speed readers and that inspired me. I wanted to get ahead of the game and read more.
But after reading a few books about speed-reading and practicing the techniques, I didn’t feel any better off. I started to see it was quality and not quantity that mattered. It is better to focus on a handful of excellent books and understand them entirely. I was inspired by my high school teachers and college professors who seemed to read slower than average. I realized that speed reading might be helpful, but it is certainly not necessary to live a happy and productive life.
Reading is a joy that should be enjoyed at your own pace. Furthermore, it appears most claims about speed reading are exaggerated. Many people who read very fast have about a 50 percent comprehension rate, not something I’d aspire to. There’s no need to worry if you feel like you read slow—for more details, see this excellent Slate article.
Meal time
photo by moriza
The thing I hated most about school meal time was the set hours. In high school we had 50 minutes to eat, at the same time every day. In college there was a range of time, but it never fully suited my schedule. As a consequence, I was often rushed.
Now I let my body do the talking. I eat when I’m hungry, and that might change from day to day. And when I eat, I take my time.
Not only do I enjoy food more, but I’ve also helped myself out biologically by chewing food longer. I never fully appreciated chewing until high school biology when we learned about digestion. The main thing I remember is that chewing is the first step in digestion. Things that don’t get digested cause a variety of problems, most notably indigestion and flatulence.
How much should you chew? My teacher recommended we chew 20 times, though it was not enjoyable to count. It’s also not necessary—I can’t imagine my ancestors thousands of years ago wasting time on counting food. Just chew thoroughly and you’ll get a good sense. After all, eating is natural. You wouldn’t tell a cow or a rabbit how long to chew food. You can find your natural pace too. For some other interesting facts, read more about chewing at the world’s healthiest foods.
When you take it slow and easy? What is your advice to people who don’t?
Share this post:
Previous post: How to Make Any Food 99 Percent Fat-Free, and Why Nutrition Labels Make My Head Explode
Next post: The Game of Free Food: Why We Should Just Say No
Other posts you may enjoy reading:
10 Responses to “3 Activities Where It’s Best to Take Your Time”
Taking your time is one of the ideas lost in these current times.
One thing I take a slow time with is creating team proposals for groups. When I take my time and develop agendas and proposals I am much prouder of the product I send – and I find that my clients are satisfied.
When you are doing great work time should lost, once you become hypnotized by your project time is no longer a factor. THat is when amazing things happen.
By michael cardus on Aug 11, 2008
The comments wouldn’t be quite complete without a reference to the Woody Allen joke. He said he took a speed reading course and then read War and Peace. When asked what it was about, he said, “It’s about Russia.”
But seriously, I couldn’t agree more about reading at your own pace, especially when you are reading for pleasure. The operative word being pleasure. Here is some other reading advice that I took to heart. If you really don’t like what you are reading, then put it down and read something else. There is too much out there for people to be wasting their time not enjoying their “pleasure” reading.
By Paul on Aug 11, 2008
I often wish I wouldn’t read so fast, but I’m just as glad I miss some of the details that authors find necessary.
I read Catcher in the Rye for the first time while commuting and had no idea what the book was supposed to be about when I finished.
The thing is, it’s not really possible to purposely slow yourself down. When I’m engaged in a book, I find I read it just as fast to find out what happens next.
By Joon on Aug 11, 2008
Michael Cardus:
I especially lose track of time when I’m reading a good book. And you’re absolutely right–good work should feel the same way.
Paul:
That Woddy Allen joke is great–I’m going to remember that one. And fun is the operative word. If you’re reading merely for information, skimming is often suitable. Though I would consider this research rather than reading.
Joon:
Sounds like you’re a naturally fast reader. Yes, I have never tried to consciously slow down, but I usually like to take breaks as a natural part of the process. In a sense, that’s why I prefer movies at home since I can pause and discuss parts.
By Presh Talwalkar on Aug 11, 2008
I think that a naturally fast reader, while reading something they enjoy, can read at high speed with near perfect comprehension. I think the less interest you have in the subject matter the slower you must read to actually comprehend what you are reading.
By Pat on Aug 12, 2008
Pat:
For me I never could speed up effectively. I need to read technical things very slowly as well. But I seem to retain knowledge well–I still remember game theory lectures with crystal clarity.
Sounds like you too are one of those fast readers that I’m jealous of
By Presh Talwalkar on Aug 12, 2008
I have noticed that my speed and comprehension in pleasure reading has gone down while the same metrics in in research reading have improved from shifting my attention to different material over long periods of time (for the last 5 years I did much less pleasure reading and more research reading). Our brains are relatively plastic and adapt over time to efficiently handle the most common situations that we throw them in.
A much more interesting example of this is a stroke victim that can’t walk anymore (muscles for walking are controlled by the stroke-damaged part of the brain). Some of these middle aged stroke victims learned to crawl and eventually walk again. MRI exams identified that the control area in the brain for these activities has been remapped to another undamaged part of their brains. I find this fascinating – and it shows that we should be careful about how we spend out time. If you focus too much on one thing I truly think your other abilities can diminish. When you do something that is somewhat dumb you still get better at it each time. Soon it becomes the favoured approach because you know it so well. This is what Munger describes as “to a man with a hammer, everything looks like a nail” You only have one mental tool in your toolbox and you try to apply it to every problem, even when it is not the best approach to the problem or situation. For this reason, i think it is important to seek diverse experiences and varied company.
By Pat on Aug 13, 2008
Pat:
Well said. I have heard the brain can recover partially from strokes–this is fascinating. We ought to take advantage of the time we have when we have it. Being open minded is a great asset.
By Presh Talwalkar on Aug 13, 2008
Take your time with any joyful event. Especially if it is the first time. Slow down and enjoy Weddings; birthdays; having people over for dinner; first dates; consuming fine things, well-made food, beer, wine, cookies and anything made with chocolate; and — of course — sex.
Hurry only for those things that have little joy, such as filling out your taxes; being chased by angry bears or mobs; taking medicine; dealing with sales people and — of course — eating broccoli (just don’t forget to chew. Broccoli is a dangerous vegetable and should be properly masticated).
By Ken on Aug 22, 2008
Ken:
I was agreeing with everything you said right up until you got to broccoli–I find myself enjoying that too. It has an amazing ability to soak up flavors when well cooked in a good sauce. I find Chinese restaurants do a good job of this.
I love your overall point–we spend too much time on things we don’t like or aren’t important in the grand scheme. It’s time to shift our actions towards our natural priorities.
By Presh Talwalkar on Aug 22, 2008