By Jillian Broaddus and Chuck Cusumano
Time flies…
We’ve all said it at one point or another.
But is it just us, or does time seem to be flying especially faster lately? It can feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day to accomplish all that we need to. Annual obligations turn up again in the blink of an eye (it’s already tax season again?!). Add in Daylight Savings, and it certainly feels like we’re running out of time!
But, think back to childhood, when the long, summer days seemed to stretch on forever, when each school year felt like an eternity, and when there seemed to be eons between one Christmas and the next.
If you can relate, the issue isn’t just in your head. According to one psychological study in the U.S., “77% of respondents agreed that Christmas seems to arrive more rapidly each year,” and this data was similarly replicated on a global scale!
Believe it or not, there’s some science to why it seems that time seems to fly more and more, the older you get. When we are children and everything around us is a new and exciting experience, it makes our days seem longer:
According to one report, “Our brains lump time together when the days or weeks are similar. So for an 80-year-old who largely does the same thing every day, the year is going to blend together in their mind and feel like it went by quickly. The new and exciting things in a day are what make the days and months feel different, and thus set them apart in our minds.”
If you want to put more time in your days (or at least feel like there is!), it’s possible. Here are some tips:
Stop to smell the roses: Literally. Focus on slowing down, consciously taking in your surroundings, and perhaps even adding in daily practices such as meditation or journaling to reflect on all that transpired. When we enlarge our ability to perceive the events around us, we also gain the perception that time is slowing down for us.
Avoid multitasking: Similar to our first bullet, the process of multitasking inevitably leads to an inability to take in everything that’s happening right under our noses. Focus on one thing at a time so your days don’t rush past in a hustle-and-bustle whirl.
Seek out new experiences: Whether it be traveling across the world or simply taking a new route home from the office, it’s critically important to seek out new experiences to enhance our cognition and creativity.
There you have it! If you want our help in time management or making the most out of your day, feel free to reach out to us at hello@thejoshuagroup.net!