Four Thousand Weeks - Oliver Burkeman
Another book I have been perusing through this month has been Psychologist and Guardian Columnist Oliver Burkeman’s ‘Four Thousand Weeks’. Having spent a career dedicated to (and obsessed by) time management techniques, productivity advice and tips and tricks for ‘getting things done’ - he has realised that none of them, actually, work. Not really. Not in any meaningful way that allows us to enjoy our lives and find both meaning and fulfilment in what we do.
There are these pesky laws that state that even when you manage time, all it does is create more activity. Feel familiar? I have felt this too, that the time management technique offered (Grid methods, clever to-do lists, or planning cycles) just create more work! And greater feelings of inadequacy when they can’t be sustained.
And the title? Well, a life lived until about 80 is about 4,000 weeks. Cripes. When put like that, it feels terrifyingly short. We may of course, have less (or more). But importantly - how will we spend those precious weeks?
It feels valuable to consider this, this month, as we consider what to cut back - or PRUNE. Because how will we know we are cutting back the right things?
How will we be satisfied by less?
Like Kate Northrup the message is clear: when we know what is most important to us, knowing what to keep and what to keep out becomes obvious. Burkeman also talks of the Joy Of Missing Out (JOMO) as a counterintuitive riposte to the FEAR of missing out (that we are all probably familiar with).
I have to say, I have been mulling on what I most enjoyed about the lockdown period (all but a memory, for now). And it is this: the far reduced pressure to keep up, do as much, to be out. I have wanted to reclaim some of that feeling, and Burkeman’s book seems to be getting close to this idea.
Ultimately, what do I most want to spend my precious - and LIMITED - time and energy on? What do I feel most strongly about? What do I stand for - and can I ensure I have the time and energy to stand for it?
What needs to go, to make space for what I most want and cherish?
Below are two videos (one short, one long) that helps articulate some of the findings in the book. Once you have considered this - head over the the ‘What matters most to me’ resource to start your journey of understanding where to put your time and effort. Happy listening!