Ditch your clock!

I mean at your workspace.

I got this idea this summer, when I was doing a lot of tabling (at the farmers market, PRIDE festival, etc.) for our group Vegan Kalamazoo.

Each gig was between three and six hours. On days when I wore my watch or kept my cell phone on, it was hard not to check the time every few minutes—and so, just as it does for bored schoolchildren or office-workers who watch the clock all day, the day draggggged. (Note: tabling isn’t boring! I love meeting new people and talking about veganism. But there’s no doubt it’s work.)

But on days when I left my watch home and shut off my phone, I entered a kind of time-free zone, and the day was much pleasanter and seemed to go much faster.

Eventually, it occurred to me that if I got rid of the clock on my computer screen my writing sessions would seem faster, too.

And I did, and they did!

This isn’t a new idea, by the way. It’s why, for example, you’ll only rarely see a clock in a supermarket, store, casino, arcade, or any other place where they want you to linger (and spend money).

A couple of notes:

1. Outside your workspace, you want LOTS of clocks. Clocks are a great time management tool. (People tend to keep phone calls and meetings short when there’s a clock.)
2. I time my writing sessions, and you should time your writing and other important work, too. (See Solution #4 here.) But position the timer where you can’t see it.

That’s the insanely simple tip! Try it and leave a comment letting us know how well it works for you.