In September 2014, I walked the Lurujarri heritage trail with a group of about 10-15 Aboriginal people (some were local Goolarabooloo men and women, some from other areas) and about 20 other non-indigenous people. The trail runs along the coastline north of Broome / Western Australia. You walk for 9 days for about 90 km mainly on sand and rocks. It is stunningly beautiful. Once you learn to fine-tune your senses and sense beyond the obvious, it becomes even more magical.
While we were walking, and sitting side by side, we learned a lot from each other. Sometimes, we had to wait for the right people to arrive at the right time. Some of the local stories could only be told by specific people – the ones we were waiting for. Some days were brutally hot and thus, we waited for the temperature to drop so that we could safely walk to the next camp. We waited for an elder to show us dinosaur footsteps and historic artefacts. We waited until food was caught (local fish and crabs) and then helped prepare it. We waited a lot and some people were struggling with that way of being.
In the bigger scheme of things – from a system’s perspective - there is the “right” (meaning perfect) time for everything in life and at work. Often, it is just very hard to become aware of when that moment is and then be ok with waiting for it.
Most of the time units we live by today are artificially made up by humans. They are useful to a degree. These units are easy to agree on and can be put into any project management tool. However, these times are intellectual concepts that exists independently from any natural cycle. Most people have lost the art of noticing when an environment would be supporting your endeavors.
At the same time, natural cycles are still the basis for your wellbeing and your performance. Our bodies evolved over thousands of years and were not created to work with rhythms and timeframes dictated by social media and smart phones. If you are not in sync with the laws of nature, you are expending more energy than necessary to get things done. You might still get your desired results but will most likely be exhausted at some stage.
The skill of waiting for the right time is inseparably connected to knowing when something is most likely to happen with least friction and energy expenditure. As time is a finite resource and can’t be renewed, the best way to “speed up events” is becoming aware of how energy flows and by managing your own energy. I’ll explore this in another newsletter.
For now, I invite you to consider the following for every project and activity you are about to start or struggling with:
Whose time schedule are you following?
How well is this schedule in sync with your own biological needs? If it is not aligned, what can you do to mitigate the energy-draining effects of the gap?
If you are looking for some detailed advice on how to make decision based on optimal timing, Daniel Pink’s new book “When” is a good starting point. Based on research from psychology, biology and economics, he reveals how you can use the hidden patterns of a day to build your ideal schedule. Fascinating stories and insights that I highly recommend.
The skill of patiently waiting for the “right” time.