原文: Death of the Clock: Reclaiming Your Time

Article by Zen Habits contributor Jonathan Mead.

We live our lives around the clock. We wake up at a certain time, work on a schedule and base our performance on the amount of time it takes us to do things. More things done in less time = good. More time needed? Deadline not met? Unacceptable.

But it’s not just the clock that gives us anxiety; it’s basing our worth on how productive we are. We have this false belief that if we just finish everything on our to do lists, we’ll be done. After that, we can finally be happy, right? Unfortunately, that time never comes.

We always find more things to do, more projects to work on, more ways to improve and optimize. But when we base our happiness on achievement, we’ve joined the cult of productivity. Being productive is no longer a means to an end. It’s the end entirely. And it’s a sickness.

Here are some signs you’ve contracted the productivititis:

• Inability to sit still for prolonged periods of time while playing games or spending time with friends.
• Accidentally leaving your planner at home causes you to break into a cold sweat.
• Lack of a highly-detailed action plan induces blurred vision, lack of ability to focus, and severe anxiety.
• You feel that saving time is a serious accomplishment. Clearing your inbox in 40 seconds less than yesterday is cause for a monumental celebration.
• Painting, laying out on the beach, and other non time-based activities are considered a horrendous sin against productivity.

Part of the reason for this obsession with productivity is we think time is money. But time is not money. Time is life.

Now, I’m not trying to throw the baby out with the bath water (actually, I don’t want to throw any babies anywhere — I’ve always thought that was a morbid expression). There is certainly a need for productivity and accomplishing goals. Without them, we would probably be pretty damn bored. But the problem is that we think more is the answer.

We want bite-sized happiness and short bursts of satisfaction. We go to theme parks and insist on going on every ride. We take trips and vacations, where we require that every attraction and monument be visited. We schedule our weeks trying to fit as many appointments and tasks in it as possible. All of this is done with the thought that someday, far away, we can relax.

If doing more isn’t the answer, maybe it’s doing less. Maybe it’s slowing down enough to actually enjoy the experience. Maybe it’s slowing down enough to remember what the hell you did two days ago, without having to look to your day planner.

With technology, we can get more done quicker than ever before. So isn’t that supposed to result in more free time and increased happiness? If so, why is it that most of us feel that when we’re not doing something productive, we’re uneasy? Why is it that when our time isn’t structured, we feel guilty?

In this article, Leo gave some good advice for how to break free from the clock. I think it’s important that we reject living our lives based on an arbitrary measurement. But I also think it’s important we question the values that brought us to this place. I think it’s possible that our search for happiness in productivity is largely due to a lack of being able to find satisfaction in the present moment.

Here are some suggestions for regaining the control of your time:

1. Keep a balance. There are bound to be sacrifices that we must make in life for the future. Sometimes we have to use stepping stones to build our way to success. Sometimes we have to work a job that we don’t necessarily like, in order to make connections to move our way up. Sometimes we need stepping stones. Just try to keep a balance between goals that are long term, and doing things that make you happy now.
2. Stay in perspective. Sometimes we need to drop goals that are no longer serving us. Having the courage to quit a goal that’s no longer aligned with you is okay. What matters most is that you stay authentic.
3. Future goals. Are the sacrifices you’re making now a part of a larger purpose? Our long term goals should enable us to have more free time to do what we want in the future, not create more stress. If the stress outweighs the benefits, it’s likely that your goal is not authentic and is mostly ego-based.
4. Say no. How often do you say yes to a commitment when you really want to say no? A lot of our freedom is stolen simply because we are unable to selfishly claim ownership of our time.. Realize you can only do so much. There’s no point in helping a hundred people if it’s making you miserable. That’s not a very good example to set for others.
5. Is increasing your productivity increasing your happiness? If you’re getting more done, but not making more time for the things you want to do, something is wrong. The point of getting things done is not to have more time to get things done. It’s to have more time for the things you truly enjoy.
6. Slow down. You’ll enjoy your time much more if you’re not constantly in a hurry. Something that’s helped me greatly is pretending as if what I’m doing is the only thing that exists at this time in the universe. This highly focused state doesn’t just make me enjoy what I’m doing more, it also makes me more effective.
7. Just be there. We enjoy the time we spend much more when we’re “in the zone.” That is to say, we have completely lost track of time. We’re not judging what we’re doing, we’re just doing it. We’re not thinking about it, we’re just flowing.
8. Follow your natural rhythms. We tend to try to force ourselves to be productive when we feel like relaxing. Doing this, we end up working against ourselves. Try to pay attention to your natural rhythms. When you feel like being productive, go with it. When you feel like relaxing, don’t hold yourself back. Doing nothing is not a crime. It’s essential.

If we can learn how to be more content, our productivity can have more meaning. Our productivity can be the result of our happiness. Not the other way around. Cultivate meaningful productivity and start to re-claim your time.

Remember, time is not money. Time is life.

This article was written by Zen Habits contributor Jonathan Mead of the Illuminated Mind blog.

译文: 时钟之死：唤回你的时间

文章由禅宗习性撰稿者Jonathan Mead所作

我们的生活绕着时钟转。我们在固定的时间起床，照着计划表所定的去工作，我们的表现由做事所需的时间多少来衡量。在更少的时间里完成更多的事=优秀。要更多的时间？没有在最后期限前完成？这是不能接受的事。

但是，不单是时钟给予我们渴望。由于我们把自身的价值放在了我们究竟多有效率上，我们就错误地认为。如果自己可以完成计划表上的所有事项，我们就是成功的。在这之后，我们会很高兴，是这样吗？很不幸，那个令我们高兴的时刻从未来临。

我们常常觉得有更多的事情要去做，有更多的项目要开着，有更多的方法来提高和充分运用。但是，当我们把自己的快乐建立在了成就上，我们就颅内了过分执着于高效率的迷失者。有高效率不再是到达重点的唯一途径。该结束了，这是一种病。

这里是一些说明你已迷失于高效率的迹象：

• 和朋友在一起或者是玩游戏的时候，你不能一直安静地坐着。
• 偶尔把你的计划表忘在家里会让你冒冷汗。
• 没有高规划的行动计划会促使你没了远见，不能集中注意力，并且焦躁不安。
• 你觉得，节省时间是项大成就。如果能在昨天之前，用40秒的时间清理好你的邮箱，就完全有理由开一个大型的庆祝活动。
• 你认为画画，在沙滩上躺着，和其他非基于时间的活动是无效率的可怕罪恶。

沉溺于高效率的追求，其部分原因在于我们认为时间就是金钱。但是，时间不是金钱。时间是生活。

现在，我不是试着把宝宝和洗澡水一起扔出去（实际上，我不想把任何婴儿扔到任何地方去——我常常觉得这是个病态的想法）。确实，我们需要高效率已经完成目标。没了它们，我们很可能觉得极度厌倦。问题在于我们认为“更多”才是答案。

如果“做得更多”不是答案的话，也许答案是“做得更少”。也许，脚步放得足够慢，我们就可以真的想到过程。也许，脚步放得足够满，我们就可以记住两年前不看你的日计划表时，你所要承受到的地狱。

有了技术，我们可以比以前做得更多，做得更快。因而，这真的可以给我们更多的空闲时间和更多的快乐吗？如果是这样，那为什么大多数人不在高效率地工作就会觉得不安呢？为什么当我们的时间按没有规划好，我们就会觉得愧疚呢？

在这篇文章里，Leo给了我们一些如何摆脱时钟的很好的建议。我认为，不要再把我们的生活建立在反复的计算上，这点是很重要的。但是，探究将我们带领到这种地步的价值观也是很重要的。我们研究高效率中的快乐，这很大程度上是因为在现今的状况下我们可以找到满意的机会很少。

这里是关于如何重获你的时间所有权的一些建议：

1. 保持平衡。为了未来，在生活中，我们必须做出一点牺牲。有事，我们不得不用垫脚石来铺设我们的成功之路。有事，我们不得不做一些我们实际上不喜欢，但为了让我们的道路继续的工作。试着在长期目标和现在令你不快的事物间保持平衡吧！
2. 走中庸之路. 有时候，我们需要放弃那些不再能服务于我们的目标。勇敢地把不再与你一道的目标对到一边去吧！让你觉得可信的才是最重要的东西。
3. 未来目标。你现在所做的牺牲是宏大目标中的一部分吗？我们长期的目标应该让我们有更多的空间和时间做我们将来想做的事，而不是知道更多的压力。 如果压力超过了利益，很可能你的目标是不实际的，而是很大程度上以你自我为中心的。
4. 拒绝。当你确实不想说"no"的时候，你想承诺说了多少次"yes"?因为我们不能对我们的时间自私地寻高自己的所有权。所以，我们的自由就日次简单地被剥夺了。意识到你仅能做这么多。如果帮助一百个人让你感到不快，那么这就是无意义的事。对别的来说，这可不是个好例子。
5. 你的效率更高就能让你更快乐吗？如果你做完了更多的事，去不是在你想做的事上花费更多的时间， 那这就不对了。完成事情的意义在不在于花更多的时间就能把事情做完，而在与把更多的时间花在你真正热爱的事物上。
6. 放慢脚步。如果你不是经常匆匆忙忙的话，你会有更多的机会享受你的时间。假装我所干的事在这个时候是唯一存在于宇宙中的，这会大大地帮到我。这种注意力高度集中的状态不只是让我享受于自己所做的事，也让我变得更有效率。
7. 就在那儿。当我们在“那个地方”的时候，我们更深入地享受到了自己所花费的时间。那也就是说，我们已经完全失去了时间的轨迹。我们不是在评判自己做的事，我们只是在做这么件事而已。我们也不是在考虑这件事，我们只是随时间漂流而已。
8. 跟上你身体的节奏。当我们觉得想要休息的时候，我们会有这样的趋势，试着去迫使自己有高效率。如果这样做了，我们终会因为身体原因结束工作。请注意你身体的节奏。当你感觉想要高效率的工作是，就那样做吧。当你觉得要休息的时候，不要强迫自己继续工作。无所事实不是罪孽。它是必要的。

如果我们能懂得如果变得更知足，那我们的生产率会有更深远的意义。我们的生产率是快乐之源，而不是其他的原因。培养有意义的生产力，并开始唤回你的时间。

记住，时间不是金钱。时间是生活。

这篇文章摘自点亮的心灵博客，由禅宗习性撰稿者 Jonathan Mead 所撰。