The Time Waster's Giddy

Is it true that those who keep time and effectively manage it are successful in life? Sometimes, I yearn to be occupied in an activity with a deeper sense of engagement so that the time invested has meaningful returns as opposed to feeling like I am what I undertook offers little to no substantial value. 

Unfortunately, we have been programmed to believe that if it does not have a monetary reward then it is not worth pursuing. It's a common misconception though borders on being realistic. Nonetheless, an activity should not come with overwhelming fatigue to the extent you start feeling like burnout is a badge of honour. Weariness can sometimes be misconstrued as a sign of dedication, yet it deprives you of certain tenets. It may be at your own volition or external forces given the circumstances that you are in. When you are personally motivated, you don't feel used because it is purposeful, but when it's external, you may question why you are into what you are doing if at all it does not align with the expected outcome. What's usually the consolation at the end of the day is "Anything for money."

At times, you may engage in very challenging and debilitating endeavours that have no ready answers or results. The ones that occupy your mind and push you to find a solution. You consume a considerable amount of time doing research and getting to the bottom of an issue. In such a case, there are two things involved. You can either give up and stop or be relentless and be successful. When you give up, like a wounded lion you tap out. The converse is that when you solve the problem at hand after struggle, you get excited and like the Greek legend Archimedes start jumping up and down because it is a "Eureka" moment. It's a fleeting rush of victory, one to be cherished, though it is short-lived.

One of the drawbacks I normally have is that of being a timekeeper. No matter how hard I try to keep time and be nudged on what I have planned for the day, I always seem to fall short. The difference between success and mediocrity is the effective use of time on tasks that are going to help you grow and shape the kind of future you envision. The unfortunate bit in life is that there is an avalanche and flurry of constantly evolving details that bombard us daily because the world is constantly transitioning with new needs. 

Why don't I seem to get it right? I normally ask myself. If one day I get my acts in order I will be jubilant like a defender who has just scored the winning goal to help the team lift the coveted trophy that was at stake. The kind of abundant joy and exhilaration, so immense. It is usually an emotional moment for the team and those involved in the game including the fans who also shed tears of pure happiness because they have secured another silverware addition to their gleaming cabinets to represent their successful streak in the sport. By the way, why are trophies called silverware? Yet the boots and gloves given to players have the moniker "golden"?

Sportsmen spend a huge chunk of their time training to be physically fit for the various games they engage in. They engage in star-encumbered preparations. The number of hours that one takes to horn a skill is usually not commensurate with the time one takes to display that you are a professional who deserves all the flowers. The point where you go to the arena and everyone is shouting your name and waiting with bated breath for you to race, engage in a tussle and the list is endless of what athletes can be able to do. Other than turning up to grace an occasion, you also need to be mentally prepared to win. Because those you are competing with are also equally good. The strategy you will put in place will be the one that assists you to become the best of the best.

Sometimes, I wish I was as prepared as an athlete who is taking on a race at the Olympic finals. Where notable contenders have been sieved out and only the best are given a chance to showcase to the world what material they are made up of. They have withered all the tribulations and finally, they get to show their prowess. One of the problems I usually struggle with is the issue of distractions. They are a big deal and as much as I try to remain focused, I sometimes end up unable to achieve that which I intended to deliver on. As opposed to being the Olympian on the world stage whose only worry is how to win a medal, my worry stems from how I will make good use of the time on my sleeves to be able to achieve what I have always aspired to do. 

Like everyone else, I have 24 hours that should have been used to move from level one to two. They say it's the time you put into a task that matters. Some individuals are naturally gifted and they are in the outliers category. What they do does not require so much time in terms of preparation. They jump into the activity and deliver with so much finesse and ease of execution. They are the S I unit of reference. They easily attract the cameras and the lens glare. Their opinions are sort because of what they bring to the table. They add value and what they do is appreciated. Then there is us. The majority remain unfettered and unbridled.

As opposed to those who manage their time well, I don't manage mine the way I would have wanted to. I have a lot of time-wasters including but not limited to multitasking, interruptions and screen time. I can spend hours on end watching or reading content created by individuals online. The screen can be my phone or my laptop because they are the gadgets that I constantly interact with when am lonely. I think I spend a minimum of 12 a day behind a screen on a normal weekday. Being a work-from-home chap, I have to deliver 8 hours to the employer. Then there are another four hours that I spend intermittently on the phone and laptop. 

There are times that I wake up in the middle of the night and have lost sleep, instead of waiting for sleep to naturally come back by being at peace, I pick up my phone and start scrolling through online content to be abreast with what is happening in the world. I am not a fan of TikTok because I know its addictive nature. Most love it because it has content created to suit your pastime. On my part, I normally visit Google Chrome to read a variety of generalist stories because it is a sea that has attention-grabbing stories to read well curated for my personality. The thumbnails on Google Chrome are my first stop point for information. Damn, the way the headlines are creatively crafted means they are thirst traps and irresistible click baits and like a magnet they draw my attention to what Google thinks I need to read. The crawlers or algorithms on my timeline or social feed have been cleverly programmed to bring my way stories that easily grab my attention and provoke my curiosity to explore further. I hate the way the digital crawlers keep my cache and cookies and then determine the kind of content that resonates well with what I have been sifting through online. They spark interest in certain articles that am interested in and encourage me to click. The Internet has mind control in it, they ransact your brain and you have no control over it.  Before long, there is another link I need to click and once I am through, I look for another link that I can quickly skim through to find the kind of story that promises an intriguing read. 

The unfortunate bit about the stories is that I quickly forget about them after a short period. It's this kind of transient memory that I struggle with. The use-it-lose-it quality. I never seem to store information long enough in my mind. On the flip side, it helps with the issue of new information uptake because the brain does not have to store content long enough. Some parts of my brain end up forever locked. Content will be stored as a cache and then vanish over time even if I don't clear what's in my mind. While there are times I find juicy information that can be used to engage in banter with other individuals, most of the time they just benefit individuals who wrote them because they are interested in traffic to their website. As long as they can be able to use the platform as an avenue to attract folks, they can gain from endorsements, ads and sponsors who are interested in individuals because the target has always been humans.

Hasta La Vista, Baby.

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When you are uneasy

We usually underestimate the value that trust plays in life. It is based on trust that a system will work how it was supposed to deliver results. Unfortunately, the world is full of very many individuals who are not straightforward and they have hidden agendas at the back of their minds. I have been a victim of being conned by individuals I had trust in. 

I remember a few years ago when I had just joined the job market, I was inducted into what is called due diligence which one needs to do before trusting a party that you are dealing with. Sometimes we normally take for granted the issue of due diligence because we don't know about it or if we know, we probably assume or exercise it. Fortunately, the government has come up with many mechanisms aimed at safeguarding us against individuals who are after reaping from where they did not sow.

As much as there are measures have been put in place to rid the system of those trying to be deviant and engage in criminal behaviour, the fact remains that systems and measures put in place will still have faults. There are existential loopholes in virtually every other system that has been built and it is those who actively use it are the ones who can be able to detect the leakages that are in it.

A couple of weeks ago I was engaging a certain aunt of mine regarding the products that they used to supply and she told me about things that companies do to be in business that are against the moral and ethical principles as much as they may be lawful. For instance, when you go to a supermarket, there is a high likelihood you will pick the product that is on the shelf displayed on the front row. The product may have stayed longer in the stores and to avoid the inventory still having it in the records, it may even be given a discount to make a sale on it. As a customer, you will be excited to buy it yet the supermarket wants to get rid of the product because there is a need to bring in new products.

In such a case, as long as you do not check the expiry date of the product, you may end up buying what the supermarket wanted to get rid of. On your part, because you have no idea of what you are buying, you will assume that the product is legit.

We all trust that what we are buying is usually going to live up to the standards that we have accorded them. Yet, as much as we trust, others are having their fingers crossed that you will not find out what has taken place in terms of the behind-the-scenes machinations they might engage in. As much as we have individuals who check to ensure that products meet the minimum standard, the fact remains that compliance is usually done only on a subset or sample and not the whole population. 

The issue of trust brings in trustworthiness which has to do with reliability, credibility and the dependability that a certain individual will keep their end of the promise. I have met a sly individual, those who trick and exploit your kindness for weakness. They take advantage of your situation because they have superior information over you. 

Few of us can walk the talk when placed in a situation that requires that. Most of us are into talking the talk and when put to task, we fail to show cause when subjected to situations that require proof.

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