Ever calculated how much time you spend organizing ways to save time? Let’s do some depressing math.
The Numbers That’ll Make You Cry
The average knowledge worker spends:
- 9.3 hours weekly searching for information across apps
- 32 days annually just switching between tools
- 23 minutes recovering from each context switch
- 5.2 hours weekly just managing tasks about managing tasks
That’s not productivity. That’s digital busywork wearing a productivity costume.
What You Could Do Instead
In the time spent organizing tickets, you could have:
- Learned to play the guitar
- Written a terrible but complete novel
- Actually finished that side project
- Mastered the art of sourdough
- Started and failed at three different businesses (valuable experience!)
- Built meaningful relationships with actual humans
The Real Cost
While you’re color-coding your fifteenth productivity system, somewhere:
- Your dog is wondering why you don’t play anymore
- Your coffee has achieved room temperature for the 1,047th time
- Your brain is plotting its great escape
- Your childhood dreams are filing for emotional bankruptcy
The Escape Plan
Here’s a radical thought: What if we spent less time organizing our lives and more time living them? What if every second spent configuring workflow automations was instead invested in actually doing the work?
Stop organizing your tasks about organizing your tasks about organizing your tasks. Your brain was designed for bigger things than being a professional button-pusher.
Your time is finite. Your project management tools are infinite. Choose wisely.