Time Munchers

Many of us have a challenging relationship with time, and I find as I get closer to a deadline or a goal, I focus in on:

⏱ Is there enough time?

⏱ How can I find more time?

⏱ What if time runs out?

It is a helpful check in on how I’m using my time and where/who some of the time wasters are. Recently this led me to creating a visual of what I termed “time munchers”. These are the people who eat into our time on a regular basis. (If you’ve ever played an online game like Agar.io or Slither.io it feels the same, where the creature keeps growing and growing the more they eat.)

Many time management books will tell us that we need to control our own time. It’s not always so simple and most of us have some level of responsibility for, and accountability to, others.

When time gets tight though, it’s an opportunity to reconsider what we’ve got in place to protect us from the time munchers.

I often use:

Time blocks in the calendar

Do not disturb periods (technology and doors alike)

Schedule office hours and lunch breaks for ‘interruptions’

And, for the hungry time munchers, I have open and consistent conversations about how we can best work together.

Our challenges with time are as eternal as time itself and dealing with them is important. Many of the time munchers are important people in our work and life, and finding that win-win solution makes sense.

What has been your experience with time munchers? How do you protect your time for important work? And, have you ever found yourself munching into another’s time?

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