Should We Speed Up Time?

There are many works on the subject of time and how it flows for each of us (my personal favorite). One common assertion is time flows more quickly when we're focused, doing challenging work or engaged in entertaining activities...in the zone if you will. Conversely, it moves relatively slowly when we're bored or doing something we don't care for. Of course, actual clock time doesn't change...it's just our relationship with it which changes. Ten minutes will pass no matter what we're doing. But, it can feel like an instant, or an hour depending on our activity of choice.

If the goal is to make the best use of our time, we first need to decide what good use of time feels like. If we want to make time move more slowly, we can do this by doing less and intentionally creating a vacuum of thought. This is really hard to do...give it a shot. On the other hand, we can speed up our sense of time by increasing activity through doing, focusing, playing and working. However, what we feel during this seemingly short period might actually feel longer while we're doing it. And, it's only once we look at the clock that we realize how quickly it seemed to go by. This is the paradox of time flow for each of us. So, while time seems to fly by when we're fully engaged, it slows down while we're so fully immersed.

Life moves pretty fast. But, we can slow it if we choose to. How to slow it though is an important choice. Do more. Or, do less. Choose wisely.