How Your Emotions Affect Time Management At Work

The concept of time is very interesting. There is the objective way to tell time with a clock, and there is your perception of time. Oftentimes, those two do not match. Most of us have experienced time flying by when we are having a great time, and time seems to be standing still when we are bored or when we are suffering emotionally.

Why does this matter? Our perception of time, which is affected by our emotions, affect our productivity. In my not-so-mindful days, not too long ago, the experience of time at work was quite interesting. I found myself spending almost the same amount of (actual) time to finish my work when I was seeing twenty-five patients or eighteen patients. If we operate in a regular pace, assuming that the complexity of the patients were similar, those two days should have had very different end times.

The difference was how I thought about the time. When my schedule showed twenty-five patients, my thought was to be as efficient as possible so that I could go home at a decent hour. There was a sense of urgency, yet not to the point of believing that there was not enough time to finish my work. That turned into more focused energy. I was able to concentrate better, prioritize the tasks and minimize distractions. The result was finishing my work at a decent hour – at that time, 7 pm was decent for me.

When there were eighteen patients on my schedule, I thought that there was more time to spend with each patient. Although in theory that was true, my mind went on to the belief that I could slow down with each patient encounter. Since my perception of time was not great (it still is not when compared to the objective clock time), I over-estimated the time I had, which resulted in finishing my day around 7 pm.

Those days are behind me now. One major concept I get to understand is that the perception of time is affected by our energy, which is our emotion. When you feel bored, stressed or frustrated, time seems to be going slower. When you feel energized, pleasant or hopeful, time seems to go by faster, yet at the same time, you seem to be able to accomplish more things within the given frame of clock-time. In other words, when we experience more pleasant emotions, time seems to be to our advantage and we get to accomplish more than when we experience unpleasant emotions.

Put it simply, when you experience pleasant emotions, you increase your productivity. As emotions are affected by how we think, your perception of time affects your efficiency and productivity. For example, when you think that there is not enough time to do the scheduled tasks, you feel inadequate, incapable and flustered. You are unsure what to do first because you believe there is not enough time to do anything. The result is that you do not get much accomplished.

On the other hand, when you think that there is enough time to get your work done, you feel capable, in control and determined. You are more decisive in choosing what to do, one thing at a time, and you are able to focus better. As a result, you have more accomplished in the same amount of time.

Our perception of time changes as we age and as we have more experiences. If you have done the same thing over and over many times, you will have a better accuracy in estimating the time you need to complete the task. To maximize your productivity and efficiency at work, it is to find the delicate balance between the objective time with a clock and the perception of time. In turn, utilizing pleasant emotions as fuel is a way to “expand” time – to accomplish more in the same amount of time. The perception of the urgency of time is also important – if you think there is time to spare, you may slow down and end up spending more time at work than you desire. If you think there is no time to lose, to the point that it makes you feel scarce, the unpleasant emotions come up.

It is important to examine yourself to see what your concept of time is at work. Is it a helpful thought? What emotion does it generate? If it is not a helpful thought, what other ways can you think of time at work? Utilize your emotion to increase productivity. By experiencing more pleasant emotions, you generate better mental health too.