Why Total Task Schedulers are Never “Free”

“Do you have some free time?”

There is a particular kind of ultra-busy professional who doesn’t understand this question. But people who belong to this cohort are not crazy, or overwhelmed with work. They simply think about time usage differently; in a way that‘s empowering.

Awhile back, they accepted the notion that there is never, ever enough time to do everything. Nor will there ever be.

In other words, they accept the fact that there will always be a gap between the time represented by all the tasks they want to complete and their personal, available time. With only 168 hours per week, they recognize there’s a hard limit to the number of “time demands” they can complete. (What’s a “time demand”? An internal, individual commitment to complete an action in the future.)

Other people, however, see this as a problem to be resisted. They try to cut their time demands by limiting their total number or duration. In their minds, it’s the only way to avoid the guilt that comes from not doing everything they think they should do.

However, Total Task Schedulers who put everything they are going to do in their calendars aren’t phased. If you happen to be one, you know the truth: you will never finish every time demand because your mind is an infinite, creative source of new obligations. As a result, you understand there are two separate, independent parts of your brain at play.

One region creates time demands. It responds to a 24–7 array of triggers by adding new ones, even in our sleep.

Another part of your brain tries to determine (in the heat of the moment) what must be worked on in the next instant, later this week, six months from now, or by the end of the year.

As these two mental processes do their thing, they are governed by some hard realities. One is that of a 168 hour limit per week. Another is that completing a time demand now means saying no to all the other ones which remain incomplete. Fortunately, if you have visited ScheduleU, these physical truths may no longer be a problem. In your self-learning, you already taught yourself how to permanently eradicate the Zeigarnik Effect, the nagging sensation which pings us when a task is unfinished.

However, when asked by someone else for some “free time,” you still may find yourself reacting with suspicion or even irritation. Why?

The use of the phrase indicates the person making the request is mistaken. He/she assumes you have set hours aside for a few important things, leaving unassigned, spare time lying around available for other stuff.

As one of the busiest one percent, you can’t identify with this practice.

Instead, all your time is important. In fact, it’s so valuable, you have decided to run a permanent deficit, as I mentioned earlier.

Your colleague who asks for some of your free time doesn’t appreciate that accepting his/her request is not simple. It means you must say “No” to something else that you already deem important.

Whereas he/she may be used to the idea of retaining a pool of extra time, you don’t engage in such a practice. In fact, you are a serial optimizer, always seeking to juggle competing priorities.

Therefore, before you react adversely to their innocent query, take a deep breath.

Furthermore, if you are familiar with The Goal by Eli Goldratt you may understand the concept of a bottleneck. Your calendar is actually a “Herbie” — the author’s affectionate term for a place in your workflow which limits your throughput.

In this context, (and only for the busiest one percent), your calendar is a bottleneck to the management of your ambitions. To accomplish your goals, you must treat it carefully, making sure that nothing in your schedule is wasted.

Some oppose this idea. Coming from the old paradigm they see it as an instant recipe for overwork.

Many popular gurus agree. You must have empty spaces in your calendar to prevent stressful overload.

This piece of advice doesn’t work for you. This diagram shows why — it’s similar to the first calendar I advise a member of the busiest one percent to put together.

Notice that is has times for meals, exercise and daily planning and reflection. If it were mine, it would also include time to take a coffee nap each day.

By design, it’s an act of self-care. Here, in one place, are the activities I undertake each week to take care of myself. Before anything from the outside world intrudes, this is my underlying, essential schedule I use to start time-blocking.

By the time appointments and tasks are added each week from meetings, projects or other work activities, there is no “spare time.” My calendar is full.

By taking care of yourself first, you have ensured that a sharp increase in time demands won’t drive you over the edge. In fact, a decision to add more working hours is one you can make cautiously, because you know it means saying an explicit “No” to stuff intended for the care of self or others.

Unfortunately, using your calendar in this way puts you in the minority. Most people don’t understand the practice, hence their requests for “spare time.”

The irony is that they are more likely to use gut feelings under pressure. It means stealing a few hours here and there from their “free” pool of hours. In other words, they make a blind sacrifice.

It often ends badly. Why? Soon, their manager realizes that there’s a hidden pool of “free” hours, so they just keep asking for more. Over time, they come to expect it. A handful may realize what’s happening and put a stop to it, but most won’t. Case in point: recently, a friend of mine was told to find another job if she couldn’t work the regular plus emergency hours her boss needed.

The obvious conclusion is that being conscious and explicit about your schedule beats being unconscious and implicit. It leads to clearer decision-making, especially if you consider yourself to be a high-performing professional.

My advice is to expand your drive for results to include all aspects of your life, bar none. Your schedule is the key to getting all the rest, sleep, recovery time, slack time and transition time you need.

So go ahead. If you are among the busiest one percent, be as ambitious as you want and create all the time demands you can. Keep pushing yourself from all angles.

Just do so with the right tools, using both parts of your brain in concert. It’s the only way to maintain the elusive balance necessary for sustainable high performance.