Two years ago I began conducting research on individuals’ experiences with time expenditure awareness. Specifically, I was interested to learn about the subjectivity involved in how each of us experiences and thinks about time.
Without getting too carried away talking about my research, I facilitated a time journaling process where the participants spent a period of time tracking everything they did and writing about their experiences keeping track of their time. Both before and after this time journaling stage, I interviewed the participants to explore their time values and time awareness.
One theme that arose through my research is the concept of time as a commodity. Common vocabulary such as “spending,” “saving,” “wasting,” and “investing” time arose in my research as a part of this theme.
In this way, we perceive time as a resource, and what we do with it as having value.
But that value is what gives us a subjective experience when regarding time.
Think about it, what is one thing that someone close to you does that you think is a complete waste of time?
What is something you love to do that someone close to you thinks is a waste of time?
What about things you do that you think are a waste of time?
You can be honest here, I’m not asking you to share this with anyone or formally declare it. But I think in some ways we are all wonderful time wasters, if for no other reason than that we’ve come to see time as something that can be wasted.
What makes something a waste of time for you?
Is it something that eats up time you could be spending on something else you see as more valuable?
Is it something that doesn’t produce any direct benefit or result?
Is it something that puts you in a bad mood?
Is it something that is boring or tedious to complete?
Is it something that you do without even realizing you’re doing it until after the fact? (I’ve been thinking about habits quite a bit lately and I plan to share some thoughts on this soon.)
The idea that we can see something as a waste of time means that we can also see something as taking up time that is being well-spent.
These are two subcategories within my research theme of time as a commodity. Time wasted and time well-spent. If we see time as a resource, we see it as something that gives value to the things we spend it on.
If we spend it on something we don’t really want to be valuing to the quantity at which we are, we may then feel this time is wasted.
If we spend time on something we see as valuable, and the amount of time we spend on it aligns with that level of value, we perceive it as time well-spent.
Even if spending time with a friend, or watching TV, or working is initially something we value, if suddenly we are spending obscene amounts of time on this, we may surpass the line of time well-spent. We may not have the energy to engage with this activity for this extended commitment, and so our engagement doesn’t feel as meaningful or valuable. Or, it may become frustrating because we want to spend some of that time on something else, but can’t because we’re already spending it on this other thing.
The experiences we have of time well-spent and wasted are unique to each of us. Sometimes our definitions and values shift and something that used to feel like a waste of time suddenly takes on new meaning, making it shift to time well-spent. Other times, something that used to feel really worth our time becomes something that feels like a complete waste.
This dichotomy isn’t nearly as clear cut as I make it sound. It can be difficult to break down our activities, behaviors, and experiences into categories of commodities.
But I think there is importance in this discussion because it provides insight into the values that influence how we define our time expenditures. This insight can give us a fuller understanding of why we experience things differently than other people, and why we experience some things positively and others with more frustration or guilt.
I think culturally and socially we learn to make these distinctions (even if they aren’t consciously decided upon) as a part of our executive decision-making capacities. This is a way to make sense of our world, to infuse purpose in our pursuit of goals, and provide meaning to our behaviors and choices.