Time Management

Let’s say you have a typical life and try to live it in the healthiest way. You might allocate your 24-hour weekday this way:

Sleep: 8 hours
Exercise: 1 hour
Work: 8 hours
Eating: 2 hours (leisurely)
Hygiene: 1 hour
Travel: 1 (Commute, errands)

That leaves you three hours for family time, sex, shopping, food preparation, chores, household repair, volunteering in the school, and so on. If you have a dentist appointment, or your talkative relative calls, or American Idol has a two-hour special, you’re tapped out.

It’s a challenge to live a happy life if you aren’t giving enough attention to all of those categories, yet doing so is nearly impossible.

One time management strategy is to be independently wealthy, freeing up eight hours a day. But that option isn’t available to many. And apparently it isn’t fulfilling because most rich people continue to work full schedules.

Another strategy is to ignore the fact that you are slowly killing yourself by not sleeping and exercising enough. That frees up several hours a day. The only downside is that you get fat and die.

A third path is to work less than you could, live economically, enjoy each day as it comes, and try not to think about living on cat food when you retire.

Which strategy have you picked?

Comments

[Anonymous]

I did not had the patience/time to read thru all posts ... but whatever i read ... i wondered how come nobody had any time allocated to 'prayer' or 'church' or 'meditation' ..It is said that it makes you a more 'accepting' person ... and you are more satisfied with what you have ... maybe a half hour allocated to prayer or meditation or self reflection will make us all more appreciative of what we have...

[MC]

In NY the 9-5 work day is a pure myth. You're lucky escaping after 10-12 hours and not having to work on the weekends. I opt for the 12 hour work day with no lunch break, 2 hours of exercise to un-do 12 hours sitting in a cubicle, 3 hour commute because I can not afford to live in Manhattan and must live in Brooklyn. Luckily, I live with my parents reducing my will to live . . . That gives me about 5 hours of sleep, a half hour to masterbate (given my lack of social time, a necessity) and a half hour to clease and repeat with one hour of time left over to sit depressed and cry.

[Listo Cómics]

I really spend a lot of time thinking about time management.
I finally ended up working in a high school. It's slowly killing myself, but I have a lot of free time to go to the cinema, read, rest, so sport and draw silly comics. I'm quite proud of my choice.

[Dan Jolt]

Note that at least in Europe you can have a job with 30 days of paid vacation. Add the 104 days of weekend plus a handful of holidays you get a lot of extra 8 hours to get stuff done.

If that's not enough, combine exercise + commute by riding your bicycle to work.

[Eduardo Burgos]

I pick option #2 hands down, having hopes on the scientists to hopefully remove the need to sleep soon.

[Karen]

I personally would move to France, then at least you have one extra hour per day. And who needs that much sleep?

[rocky]

Canned, moist or dried cat food?

Gourmet or generic?

Can I wash the bowl between meals, or do I have to just use the same bowl for months at a time so the little dried fish and cow intestine parts fuse to the plastic? That's what I always did with my cats. You save time not washing between meals, but in the end it takes longer to chip the dried stuff off. The new food sort of sticks to the old food and grows, like those crystal growing kits. Maybe I could just buy a new bowl every few months. Do I have to factor in the cost of a new cat food bowl and work more? I don't understand how I can answer this without more data.

[Josh Delcore]

Option number two for me... but I do hope they keep improving cat food in case we have to fall back on option number 3! LOL

Josh Delcore

[Tara]

I've chosen option 4: I'm working two jobs: job #1 is a normal 9-5 with a decent wage. Job #2 is sex work.

I save everything I make from job #1, max out my retirement accounts, live cushy, and have lots of fun.

Of course, this only works for women, but it's a great life.

[MIke]

I have chosen Option Two, i.e. I am killing myself with lack of proper rest and exercise. This is what we men do: get plenty of insurance and die as a result of work-related stress-caused illnesses, preferably at a time when we are just about ready to pass on the wisdom we have garnered from our (albeit horribly truncated, exhausted and depressed) lives to our children. It was good enough for my Dad, good enough for his Dad, and good enough for me. Our responsibility as providers and role models demanded it. If I do my job right, my son will realize what a farging fool I am and use me as a negative example, and move to a Caribbean island as soon as he's able.

[MIke]

I have chosen Option Two, i.e. I am killing myself with lack of proper rest and exercise. This is what we men do: get plenty of insurance and die as a result of work-related stress-caused illnesses, preferably at a time when we are just about ready to pass on the wisdom we have garnered from our (albeit horribly truncated, exhausted and depressed) lives to our children. It was good enough for my Dad, good enough for his Dad, and good enough for me. Our responsibility as providers and role models demanded it. If I do my job right, my son will realize what a farging fool I am and use me as a negative example, and move to a Caribbean island as soon as he's able.

[Bob Smith]

Great posts, will come in useful in the future.

[G H Diel]

I'm 84 and have been living quite comfortably on the human equivalent of cat food for the past twenty years, thank you. GHD

[adora]

Most people cope by doing personal things at work. i.e. shopping online, emailing, chatting, facebooking... etc.

[RuRu]

Perhaps, I really couldn't say that how I live is best enough for me. Well, it turns out that I live unhappily, unhealthily, etc. True enough, major change.

[Mike Johnston]

I work online. The most time per day I can spend working is about three hours, my commute is approximately 20 feet (the distance from my bed to the computer), and I went through the months of January and February on one (10-gal.) tank of gas for the car.

The downside is that I don't have enough money. But that might actually be an upside, because it means I don't waste time shopping, don't eat much meat, and don't have the responsibility of warehousing lots of frivolous belongings in an overly large house.

It's not the life for everybody, I acknowledge. But I like it.

Blue Mikey

[Tanya G]

How did that guy have 4 girlfriends? I don't have any bfs and I still have no time.. and I only sleep 6 hours!

http://lostandloster.blogspot.com/

[eli]

I live economically and hope some day my comic strip will be as big as Dilbert ;) at which time I will get health insurance...

[Barb]

You are correct that path 1 is not available for many unless you can hook up with a rock star or professional athlete, or was born with a silver spoon in your mouth. I tried path 2 until I found my self saying, "this job is going to kill me!" day and night, and gave up relationships. This was compounded by the fact that as I aged I found I was not able to multi-task as well. So I choose path 3. Cat food will be a reality only if I don't find some other kind of work that doesn't seem like work. Until then, train for a marathon and lead a "virtual" life and budget (the horror!)

[Dwight Schrute]

Enjoy life while you can. No one wants to live forever, just be healthy enough to do what you want until about 60, then retire and really start to die. You want to optimize your joy in life vs time working/taking care of yourself. 80 shitty years of life may be less fulfilling than 70 good years, plus one year of being in a hospital. Most of us will die of cancer anyway, so not smoking and wearing sunscreen are easy ways to live longer with no down side.

[David Sickmiller]

I realize I'm joining the conversation late, but I looked through all the comments and saw relatively little discussion about how additional options can be created through "time-shifting." Assuming that most people do not have the option of dramatically increasing their productivity per hour, they still have the ability to choose a job that redistributes their work hours:
- Flextime adjusts work hours within a 1-2 week period.
- Seasonal jobs have long hours for part of the year but fewer or no hours in other parts of the years.
- It's also possible to work more some years and less other years.

Alaskan king crab fisherman are an extreme example of seasonal work, but work in hospitality or construction are also good examples. Many people work longer hours when they're young and scale back when they marry and raise children.

If people feel trapped by the original three options, they should realize that there are other possibilities. However, living with dramatic changes in cashflow does require more self-control than collecting a regular paycheck.

[cliffski]

My strategy is awesome. I wrote a video game about life time management strategies:
http://www.kudosgame.com
And am using it towards becoming independently wealthy enough to get those extra 8 hours.
I win!

[Lyn]

I'm with Jeff. What's up with the dilbert.com revamp? I know, most people grumble about change even if it is good. In this case, it's not. Or at least, not yet. Scrolling through to look at past strips is a little painful.

[Steve]

I've chosen the "ignore sleep to the point that I feel like I'm going to pass out all the time." My schedule is something like...

12 to 15 hours - All work-related activities (get up, morning hygiene, 9 to 12 hours at work with only 30 minutes each for lunch and breakfast, 1 hour of commuting each way -- at least I set it up so I don't go at rush hour most days or else there would be more stress of traffic and rushing at work).

5 to 6 hours - sleep (10 to 12 on weekends, from being exhausted)

So that leaves 3 to 7 hours to myself for other things (unfortunately during busy times at work, it's down to 3, which means things like "clean the house" are being ignored). I'm salaried, so doctor's appointments and such aren't too much of a problem, I just leave earlier or later.

I generally eat at my computer, or work when I eat.

[Arnab]

The fourth strategy; have a long line of Indian ancestors who survived on fish and rice so you have a really fast metabolism, so you don't exercise, and only work temp jobs every other month (you'd be surprised how much people would pay for temps)thereby getting maximum efficiency out of life.

[jon]

or you could phase sleep... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyphasic_sleep#Scheduled_napping_to_achieve_more_wake_time

[Free Website Content]

i work around 17 hours a day. Still i complete all my works a regular time. You just need faith in you.

[Lawrence]

Sit down and brainstorm on how can you make use Pareto 20/80 rules. Then concentrate to work on the top 20 percent of the activities and try to delegate as much as possible the remaining non-productive tasks to others.

http://www.managecontroltime.com

[Lawrence]

Sit down and brainstorm on how can you make use Pareto 20/80 rules. Then concentrate to work on the top 20 percent of the activities and try to delegate as much as possible the remaining non-productive tasks to others.

http://www.managecontroltime.com

[BrianD]

I guess I've choses the third path. Should I start stockpiling nonperishable foods now?

[Dani-Mochi]

I work 12 hours a day and have no life. And won't live long, probably.

[Robin]

Shaun L: when I was little I knew a computer programmer at my dad's work who operated on a week of six 28-hour days instead of seven 24-hour ones. His week synchronised with other people's at midnight on Friday, so he was roughly in phase with other people for weekend socialising*, but had the office to himself on his (four) weekdays.

* This may have been a bit academic, come to think of it.

[HannahsDad]

I couldn't agree more with Dennis' comments.

Notions such as 'fault', 'guilt', 'obligation', etc., and those classics 'I HAVE to/I MUST', are just weasel words for our own clouded thinking and laziness. However, I think the word 'effective' is a good pointer towards living well. Work out what you want to do, then do it. Done.

If the president of the United States has time to fart-arse around on a Segway scooter, then surely we all do.

[Bertram]

At my age, I make do with 6 hours of sleep. Mission accomplished.

[davich]

I've recently removed all women from my life (about a month ago I had 4 girlfriends (yes, simultaneously. yes, I really am an engineer!)). Removing all of them has given me so much free time to do the things I want to do! It's amazing. No dates, no sex, no talking on the phone or just hanging out.

So here is my new schedule:

8 hours sleep
8 hours work
1 hour travel (sometimes riding my bike, so exercise)
2 hours misc (shower, getting dressed, thinking)
5 hours leisure (includes exercise).
(I multi-task food in with other activities)

5 hours a day to do whatever I want... it's great!

[dennis]

Hmmm...

I think that I am one of the very, very few people who never ever thought that they have too little time. Well there were stressful situations, but I mean any permanent idea like a "bad schedule".

It escapes me how people always think of it.

I *do* sometimes think I could done something more sensible, but quickly I remind myself that in this case I WOULD have done it.

Sure, I work, sleep, I have family, friends, etc but I never had any competition between them. I just do what I do and when sometimes someone/something demands more I explain it to other people (or myself). Conflicts are a part of existence.

I don't want to be effective, important, or special at all. While that probably makes me special, I still refuse the notion.

Nothing I do is an obligation. I dislike it when people say "I HAVE to care about my wife/kid/dog." At some point I made a decision and I can decide differently if I think so today. "Family time" - what is that?

The problem is never TIME, it's just the inability to accept what we do is what we do and that we are responsible for it. Indecision and dishonesty is the problem.

It's easy when you know there is actually nothing you HAVE to reach and there is really nothing to leave behind. Stop budgeting your time as you have to blame someone or something because you are unhappy for NO REASON AT ALL.

Let life happen.

icebucketdennisREMOVE@googlemail.com

[Lennongirl]

Well, I don't fit into either of those options (although of course am striving for #1).

My day breaks down like this:

Sleep - 8 or 9 hours (okay I like to sleep a lot!)
Eating - 2 hours (includes prep time & food shopping)
Hygiene - 1 hour (includes a leisurely bath, make-up, hair etc)
Work - 8.5 hours (includes the commute to & from work)
Exercise - 1 hour about once a month when I can drag myself to the gym.

That leaves me 4 and a half hours for the rest of the stuff - quality time with hubby (no children yet), sex, reading, surfing the net, watching dvd's (not a big fan of tv) and socialising.

I have to also agree with Mike that a lot of my me-time and websurfing can happen at work, since my actual work load definitely doesn't take up 8 hours a day.

All in all, I have a pretty happy & balanced life. Not missing out on pay, and not killing myself with no sleep and since I prepare all my meals, I'd like to think I eat pretty healthily. Well, the exercise is something I could work on, but then that'd cut into my 4.5 hours of fun, which I don't always see as a great compromise.

[Don]

New comic page fails:

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New blog doesn't come up either...

[JeffUK]

Off topic...

What in the name of spartacus' sporan have you done to dilbert.com?

[F]

screw the employer, sleep less, eat lunch in 5 minutes. leaves plenty of time for anything.

PS: get that goddam registration on dilbert.com fixed
my lines were
So you want to change the SQL dBase installed yesterday?
The industry is moving fast.

[Geoffrey James, Sales Machine]

Freelancing. It's relatively easy to make six figures and then some, essentially working part-time. The key is understanding that freelancing is essentially a sales job.

[AJ]

eat in front of the TV with your family thereby combining at least 1 hours (given that breakfast n lunch are either rushed or at work) for tv and family time

You also forgot that part of your eating will be a work lunch therefor either 1 hour or 30 mins should be reduced from work time.

im worknig on an average of 7 hours work or 7:30 mins work

get and Exercise bike and use it whiel in from of the TV or listening to music. if you can use different parts of your brain you can do many thnigs at the same time just don't try reading and driving (not good)

also just to be clear many people can and most do function perfectly wel on less that 8 hours sleep night.

[Jimmy]

"That leaves you three hours for family time, sex..."

Assuming you all eat together, eating is family time. And sex comes under the hour of exercise.

[quantum_flux]

Shameless self-promotion:

http://irrationaltheorist.blogspot.com/

[nondescript]

Lack of social life. My friends didn't get on well with my wife so they are more accurately described as ex-friends.

Off topic, the dilbert beta site looks neat. And good idea to get advertisting revinue to yourself rather than just letting typepad or whoever get rich off your humour. Just surprised there is no merchandising like buy this stip printed on a mug or mousemap type of thing or is that still to come? Its certainly what I would do.

[a]

AAAAAAAAAGGGHHHHHHHH
what's that horrible new blog page Scott?
it's like up(up?!?)grading from xp to vista!!!
please, please, PLEASE, stick on the old one!

[Gavin]

Your new website sucks.

Fix it.

Not everyone lives in the US for a start!

Its not ready for use.

I wanted to see todays strip and cannot.

it keeps crashing too.

[Robin]

Well put. I'll be switching to the third path (part-time work) soon. I also overlay the "exercise" hour on the "commute" one by cycling to work, an option available to far more people than use it, in the UK anyway.

I also don't use up any of my precious hours by having a family (although I still have vague plans for that to change some time) or, currently, sex (which may be a hindrance to those plans.)

[Chuck]

Here's my problem:
I'm fit and healthy - exersise and good eating are my idea of fun.

I've worked hard all my life for very little money - I love the job but it doesn't pay well.

Consequently, I have my health but no retirement plan whatsoever.

I'm throwing in my lot with the armageddonists. It seems there's so many reasons for the world to fall apart, and I'm just hoping that civilisation collapses a short moment before I open that first tin of cat food.

[Comics Page Is Broken]

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[ShaunL]

Maybe we should slow down the rotation of the Earth, giving us 28 hour days. Just need to get everyone in the world to grab someting solid and all yank to the left at the same time.

[Owen]

One thing I don't have time for is "flash only" web sites. I used to enjoy reading the daily strip and I bought the books and the desk calendar, but it looks as if that is all over now. Dilbert did not seem to me to be a "Flash only" kind of guy, but it is, of course, up to you to make him so if you like.

[Mike]

I have regular health checkups and it being found that my cholesterol was a bit high am now taking statins (which are also protective against Alzheimers and kidney disease). Although my blood pressure wasn't too bad at 130/90 my Doc felt I'd benefit from it being lower and put me on blood pressure tablets. BP is now around 110/70.

Problem? I can't get travel insurance (luckily I already have life insurance). I've never had any symptoms of ill helath so if I'd ignored my healthcheck and wandered around with high cholesterol and high(ish) blood pressure I'd have no difficulty whatsoever.

[Joe Price]

I'm not going to say I've resigned myself to ramen noodles and tap water because I'm still young enough to strike oil or discover a wealthy relative on the tail end of a terminal illness (Joe was the only one who cared enough to fluff my pillow, etc).

If your job was fulfilling, then one could argue that those eight hours aren't totally wasted. Work is what you make it, right? While it would be better to sit on the couch and listen to yourself digesting food (BOCTAOE), work can be more than what you do to keep from starving if you've got the right perspective.

[Donnie Yodha]

You're actually moderating all this craps? Wow, you have much more leisure time than expected. Makes me want your job more and more... make me your apprentice!

Anyway, no matter what I do, I'm afraid I have to look forward for that cat food even before my retirement. That is if I'm lucky enough. So, go figure...

[Sundar]

Flexitime!

[Luke]

How about 7 hours of sleep (still healthy), and exercise only 3-4 times a week (apparently still good for you).

Besides, for most people sex is roughly 2 minutes. Not even a dint.

Not me of course. I'm a stallion.

http://thisdevilsworkday.wordpress.com/

[S@ns.S@nity]

As somebody has already pointed out, we dont work seven days a week, so weekdays and weekends have to be categorized separately. And i chose the sleep slightly less, and eventually die approach (like everybody else)

For me the break down goes something like this:

Weekdays

Sleep 7 hrs - (nuff for me!)
Exercise - 0.5 hrs
Work - 9 hrs (sometimes slightly more)
Travel - 1 hr (includes shopping)
Eating - 0.5 hrs(preparation plus eating) ...heres the trick... cubicle dwellers have 2 meals within work hrs
Hygiene - 0.5 hrs (men dont need an hr!!)

that leaves 5.5 hrs for other stuff. which usualy starts at 7 in the evening till midnight give or take half an hr on either side

this is the time i spent on engaging my hobbies (music, writing, playing games), watch purchased and pirated content, have sex, drink (goes in parallel with everything else)

Weekends are different. I sleep less so that I can party more.

Sleeping - 5 hrs
Exercise - 1 hrs
Eating - 1.5 hrs (procurement, preparation and consumption)
Work - 0 hrs
Hygiene - 0.5 hrs
Travel - variable (0 to 3 hrs.. depending on whether stayin at home or going to a club, a show , etc)

This leaves (counting travel at 1.5 hrs avg) 29 hrs per weekend to enjoy.. which is sweet..

Of course being single helps alot. You as a family man must have alot of other chores that I don't...

[Ben]

My dad chose independant wealth.....that seemed like the weasels way out to me so i decided to slowly kill myself - that way theres more time for fun and less time spent hating old age

[guest test]

three hours is a long time..
i wont have a dentist appointment / idol show everyday .. so guess three hours is good enough ..

[shadows]

What about commuting? It takes me 2 hours to travel back and forth. So, I have to cut down on sleep (usually 7 hours) and TV/newspaper/internet time.

[Katja]

For me best is to just change regularly:
sometimes work till physically being exhausted and sometimes relax as much as possible and doing things that shouldn't be done or are less healthy, but taking the joy.
What kills us it the routine, not the pace.

[SyrinxNymph]

College: 14 hours a day of degree work and classes
Homework: 1-2 hours
Friends: 1-2 hours (usually concurrent with classes or homework)
Sleep: 6 hours
Exercise: 1 hour
Eating: concurrent with class
Errands: 1 hour

My days usually average out like this. Weekends tend to be about:
Sleep: 9 hours
Applied work and school: 6 hours
Friends: 4 hours
Homework: 4 hours
Exercise: 1 hour

This works out pretty well for me, and you don't get fat if you eat healthy.

[Vijay]

Dear Scott,

Have you forgotten the Dilbert principle? Use work hours for everything including but not limited to sex, phone calls, dentist appointments, shopping. Ensure that Outlook is blocked with meeting request. You should consider yourself lucky if your organization has multiple buildings. Ensure that meetign request is on an unknown conference rooms. Add it to the advantage of working in big companies with 40+ buildings..Infosys :)

My life is full of happiness coz of hectic work schedules.

-Vijay

[aaron]

I liked the Vista Dilbert Gadget. I got to choose when I wanted to read a comic and only have to click once. Now it's broken. So I've got this Google version of the official Dilbert Gadget. It's loud and tacky and I have to click to see each cell.

There is a pattern emerging for commercial media. Official sources tend to be of lower quality than their pirated sources. The pirated version will tend to be of best quality.

Quality means easily spread and with out money making contaminations like commercials. DRM and commercials all reduce the quality.

Art is a meme and it has brain washed it's biggest fans into trying to spread it to as many other people as possible. The trick is to figure out how to return money to the artist/author as part of this natural process. That way pirating can be encouraged.

The author could be paid to spread hidden messages. Basically subliminal advertising that can't be cut. This will reduce quality though. A memetic parasite. Religion does this very well.

Another way is to demand money first. Get an audience hooked with previews or free tracks, episodes, chapters. Then only release new ones once a certain number of fans have pre-ordered it. It could be like shares and the fan base are co-producers. Maybe they get something back if it's successful post release. Free merchandise or something. Post release makes money from secondaries like merchandise. And copies of the art are given away.

Anyway work out the right thing and it'll be huge.

[j_major]

l use most of the time working. l eat breakfast and dinner with my family, so it also counts as "living" time.

l don't exercise at all, and l don't sleep more than 6 hours...

l don't plan to keep this schedule for long: only in the first year-or-2 in my own business l started last january.

[Andrew Kun]

If you live 10 minutes walking distance from work, as I do, you can cut down on the 1 hour commute, and get some exercise in at the same time. That helps with the daily balance.

[Rachel DC]

In a three second move on my way out the door, I revealed to myself what my true priorities are:

I saw the lamp on in the other room and knew I should go turn it off to help the environment, but I felt too lazy and instead turned to go down the stairs anyway. But I felt bad about it, so I turned off the light to the stairs and tried simply to grope my way down them. From those gestures, I concluded that my priorities can be listed as follows:

1. Not having to work
2. Saving the planet
3. Personal safety

Who would have thought that under my lazy, donut-eating exterior beats the heart of a saint?

Anyway, to answer your actual question, here are my time priorities:

1. Sleep and work win alternatively
2. Sleep and work both sometimes lose to friends
3. Cleaning my house always loses to having fun with friends

To save even more time, you might consider combining activities to find your winning combinations (most of mine end with "+ fun with friends"). Here are some ideas:

Eating + Hygiene (Dogs, for example, have special treats that clean their teeth)

Hygiene + Fun With Friends

Work + Fun With Friends (said to defy laws of physics)

Sex + Household Repair

Dangerous:
Sleep + Travel
Travel + Eating
Sleep + Eating
Any combination containing three or more elements

Not Meant to Be Together:
Family Time + Sex
Sex + Food Preparation

[Ripsnorter]

I've combined my travel and exercise, I ride a bike to and from work, about an hour each way. I feel good when I get to work and home and it gives me time to unwind and think about things.

[pingee]

Option 3 for me. Luckily cat food nowadays is getting more sophisticated and tastier.

And this article is for you:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/apr/17/animalwelfare.animalbehaviour?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront

[ed42]

The various levels of government steal 50% of your salary, or in other words, they steal 50% of your work day. Would you like 4 extra hours a day?

[John]

I am not sure if I have these things all balanced. However, fucking moves up on the list for me. I prefer to spend a better deal of my time doing that than working so that I can eat.

[jim]

Ummm - that second one. Then again, I spend a lot of time with my friends as we attend the funerals of people that die while they are exercising. I also try and combine family time with meals. Mainly breakfast and dinner. Not sure how you came up with 2 hours for meals - that ain't leisurely - that's eating in a coma. Also, you forgot about weekends. This one I'm going camping. With the family.

[Ricky]

Sleep: 6 hours
Exercise: 0 hour
Work: 9 hours
Eating: 2 hours (leisurely)
Hygiene: 1 hour
Travel: 1 (Commute, errands)
Drinking & smoking: 1 hour
Surfing the net: 3 hours

Yup that's my 24 hours. I'm 26 right now and expect to live about 2 more years until I die a painful death.

[sam]

Buy a slow cooker. Spend 15 mins in the eve to chop up some meat and/or veggies, add herbs and marinade overnight. In the morning stick it on low and a meal is pretty much ready when you get in at night. In the winter this is a great way to not waste precious daylight hours cooking up a warm and comforting meal... also very healthy and nutritious and less hassle that micro-meals really. Can make thai/indian curries, stews (mmm beef and guinness), soups, chili, bolognaise etc and doesn't really get boring. Can spend time at weekend making something more special ... Can by small ones too, for singles or couples... best $35 nzd I have spend in ages :)

Also combine commute to work with excercise as many have said, and just make sure the kids are in bed ealyish so can have some relaxing time in the evening :)

[Matt]

You left out one strategy. Be poor, disabled, live hand-to-mouth, don't worry about tomorrow. And if I die with unresolved problems I won't really care, now will I?

[joel]

My approach is very simple. DON'T WEAR A WATCH. Try it! It might sound silly, but the day feels longer, and it forces you to make smarter time-related decisions.

[msharkey]

This shows the importance of making your job a pleasure, like Scott has done. I am in the same boat. My job, if you could call it that, is as satisfying as my free time activities, and I'm not a workaholic by any stretch.

[tubby]

Get fat and die happy.

[CN]

I would simply sleep when I am tired, work 8 hrs if I had to, if I had my own business I would work more for sure. Do whatever it needs to be done, sex...well a necessaty repetetive evil. Dentis...another evil as well. The rest is only details!

[mleonard]

It's already been said, but your commute time is way off. Seriously, how many miles can you travel in half an hour?
In London, not many.

[Donizen]

Cat food??? Luxury.

[Rich T.]

Why not be a "weasel"? (After all, you wrote a great book about that.) Try "working from home", for starters. That frees up about 5-6 more hours, during which you can do errands, exercise, have sex, sleep (nap), and eat. Then your evenings are freed up entirely, and you don't need to sleep as much.

This is the best way to "move up" in today's work world - by improving your lifestyle while getting paid the same.

[Nic]

You can free up an hour there easily: you have one hour exercise and one hour commute each day. Combine the two! Cycle to work (I do!) Also we in England work 7 hour days, we're not nuts like you lot. I think you could even cut that down to 6 without any noticeable loss in productivity, due to you being better rested and refreshed for the time you are at work as a result. Leave most chores for the weekend, laundry and cleaning and paying bills etc.

Looks like I've doubled your free time without any losses. Now you have six beautiful hours for cooking (which should be fun or else what's the point?) spending some quality time with your loved ones, catching up with friends, having sex, and whatever other hobbies you may have.

Having said this if you're complaining about only having three hours of free time, and you're prepared to waste two of them in front of the TV, then you clearly don't need any more free time do you?

[Roger Williams]

The one most similar to the Pixie Dust Theory?

What do I win?

[Adam]

Cat food.

[minister of silly walks]

I find that sleep is highly over-rated.

I get plenty of excercise dodging responsibility at work & chasing my granson at home (he lives with us).

As for travel is my commute is only 15 min each way.

Meals? Breakfast is usually a granola bar on the way to work (combing travel & eating). For lunch I usually wolf down a sandwhich at my desk while I'm working (combining work with eating). Dinner is usually take-out that I picked up on the way home (again combining travel with eating).

Hygene? I manage to grab a shower once a month whether I need it or not ;-).

Sex??? My mother-in-law, son, daughter, son-in-law & grandson have all had to move in with us. I don't even remeber *how to* much less *when* the last time was I had sex. (you try getting frisky when your 83 yr old mother-in-law walks in on you to ask what channel Law & Order is on)

[Briana]

Everything I need to know about time management, I learned from The Sims. Sleep can easily be replaced by coffee, exercise is overrated, and hygiene only matters if you plan on talking to people.

...All kidding aside, I spend no more than 1 hour a day eating and always multitask during meals. I live in small town North Dakota, so the longest commute I could have is 15 minutes. Add in zero exercise and 6-7 hours of sleep, and I'm pretty much set.

[Miguel]

I'm getting fat and ready to die by the time I'm forty :p

[Scott from Canada]

Ideally I'd get my hour of exercise from sex.

[burt]

airplane pilot is the way to go mr adams

[Keith Nicholas]

eating, travel, hygine only take about an hour of my day (perhaps a smidgen more).

I sleep 6 hours

that gives me an extra 4-5 hours a day :)

[Les]

I think you left out a couple of significant things in your schedule. For one, what job you're doing has a huge effect on your happiness. I like the job I do now, and if I get the job I'm hoping for soonish, I'll be much happier, as it's a job I've wanted to do since I was 10.

Also, it depends on the food you're eating. If you like your food, it can be one of those little joys of life. Even if it's catfood, I suppose.

I enjoy taking showers as well, so that's an extra amount of relaxing time.

And if you get to listen to some good music on your commute, or at least a good talk show, that can make it pleasurable.

There are other things too, like your thoughts on purpose in this life, whether or not there's an afterlife, etc., that affect how happy you are here. So, my method is worrying less about quantity, and more about quality.

[brian]

I'm 35 and moved back to my mother's house 2 years ago Haven't actually got a plan yet..

I'll get back to you.

[kman]

I think eventually you die from either doing something to or not doing something for yourself. Therefore, to not sleep enough or exercise should be considered killing yourself quickly as opposed to killing yourself slowly by doing exercise, etc. and living longer.

[jj]

Sleep: 6 hours
Exercise: 1 hour
Work: 12. hours
Eating: 2 hours (leisurely)
Hygiene: 1 hour
Travel: 2 (Commute, errands)

[mike]

I've been lamenting about this conundrum for years!

[Carrie T.]

Sleep: 7 hours
Hygiene: 1 hour
Work: 8 hours
Commute: 1 hour
----------------
There's 17 hours there.

Meals: 1.5 hours
Exercise: 1 hour (includes quality time with dog)
-------------------------------------------------
19.5 hours

And the rest is mine to do as I please: music, friends, tv, chores, sports, more dog time

[Oliver]

do some things only on a few days a week:

-work/travel
-exercise
-chores
-shopping
-sex
-american idol

accept that you can't do everything every day.

that works out but it's still frustrating.

[Detton]

The industrious weasle will try to combine as many of these as possible - as it has already been displayed by all the weasle reaponses you've gotten so far.

But can it go too far? I submit that it can not!

Sleep, Exercise, Work, Eating, Hygiene, Travel.

Travel to work, have sex with a co-worker in the employee wash room during your lunch period, and sleep the rest of the day.

At first you might worry that you're not enhancing stockholder value like that. If that's REALLY a concern for you ethical weasles (a contradiction in itself, but i'll play that game) then take a stockholder instead of a coworker.

[Dan]

Sleep: 7 hours (I CAN'T sleep 8...)
Exercise: 1 hour (I wish) - on nice days (Seattle) I walk to work.
Work: 8 hours
Eating: 1 hours (FAST)
Hygiene: 1 hour
Travel: 0.25 hours (Live very close to work)
Chores:30 min

Live in a condo (almost no repairs, no yardwork etc)
Hire a maid (they really are not that unreasonable)
Food Prep - not by me

REAL Free time - 5.25 hours on a week day.
Downside (sometimes) - no kids

[Adam Williams]

6 hours sleep = + 2 hours
no excercise = + 1 hour
eat fast = + 1 hour

So I get an extra 4 hours out of my day

[Chris Sokalofsky]

I'm sure that people have pointed this out already, but a lot of the stuff listed can be done simultaneously with other daily events, I.E eating and working, exercise and travel ( well, I walk 45 min to school and back everyday), etc.

So this multi-tasking can sometimes open up a substantial amount of extra time, provided your brain can stand the mental output.

[Borjan]

I'm working about six months 8 hours per day (on average - I really work 2 months for 12 hours a day and maybe another 3 for 6-10 hours) and I earn enough so I can put something aside and do nothing for the other half of the year when there are no fairs.

Even with all that free time, I couldn't find enough time to fit in all my interests - playing basketball, tennis, badminton, reading books, watching movies and quality TV (no reality TV or talent shows) plus time to read a dozen interesting websites or blogs (like yours).

The lack of time really frustrates me.

Plus, now I have a daughter who will turn 1 year in a month.

Do you see what I'm getting at?

[David]

You can always eat less if you don't exercise. Not all of us are a block away from where we need to go anyway.

[Jan]

I'm skipping exercise, I eat fast and I don't sleep much, which isn't sustainable in the long run.
I'm childfree and unmarried.
I avoid unnecessary obligations and potential liabilities.

I live below my means and work towards financial independance. When I get there, I could work less or quit altogether and catch up on sleep, fun and thinking. That would be nice.

I'm also investigating anti-aging, hoping to extend the non- or less-working part of my life as much as possible.

[Mr. Shiny & New]

Just combine some activities: for example, exercise and sleep: sleepwalking.

Also I find 2 hours of eating is a bit much. If I cook a meal from scratch and eat it (dinner time) that only adds up to maybe 2 hours but usually less... say 1.25 hours. Breakfast is 10 mins and anyway I eat breakfast and lunch at work, thus fitting them into the 8 hours.

On the flip side I WISH I had only 1 hour of commuting daily.

[jennifer]

you forgot the college student strategy:

work only enough to pass classes and afford ramen. if you're a grad student with a stipend, you don't even need to flip burgers for your ramen!

live, in general, upon the generosity of wealthier friends. wear patchwork and grow dreds. call oneself a "hippie" and expect free drugs in return. (for the "love", man)

insist upon taking wild enjoyment in cheap or free things, such as bad television on someone else's cable. the free drugs help with this.

steal.

live for each day. because at your current rate of progress, tomorrow is gonna suck monkey balls.

graduate. existential crisis. get a job? dude, wtf?

realize the option of graduate school. let's hear it for coastin' on in righteous poverty for another 7 years!

graduate again. if you have yet to grow some sort of sense of dignity, or desire for actual food by now, repeat grad school. do not pass go, do not collect 200 pages [of thesis]. other option: become bitter post doc. you can afford the fancy ramen, but you have lost your free-loving spirit because of it. enjoyment will never be yours again.

[Helene K]

I chose the depressing one.. Don´t know how to get out of it.

[Andy Holmes]

I think this is more common (at least for the typical males):

Sleep: 7.00
Exercise: 0.75
Work: 10.00
Eat: 1.00 (Eat breakfast and lunch at desk)
Hygiene: 0.75
Travel: 1.50

Still leaves three hours a day. Of course I wish I could work less and sleep more, but this is reality. I like my higher than average paycheck more than an extra hour of sleep per day. Just like I'd rather exercise more than eat less, I'd rather work harder than attempt to live more economically. Incidentally, I had an interesting thing happen yesterday. Years ago Scott wrote that in his experience, working men tend to work more hours than working women, and this is evidenced by his fellow commuters at oh-dark-thirty in the morning. I typically leave for work at 5:30 AM or so, and it has been my experience that most of my fellow commuters at that time of the day are men. Yesterday I had jury duty. I slept in for what felt like hours and left for the courthouse around 8:00 AM. More than half (I'm guessing 2/3) of the commuters were women.

[Volker Hetzer]

My strategy is to make work part of the enjoyable part of life, giving me ten more happiness hours per day. Might sound strange, but spending 80% of my adult waking life on something I don't enjoy would be total horror, wouldn't it?

[Jeff]

You forgot the stereotypical Silicon Valley geek approach -
Sleep 6 hours, eat while working, work from home (or live at work), spend no time on hygiene.

Sleep: 6 hours
Work: 8 hours

The remaining 10 hours can be divided between working more, hobbies, exercise, and looking for friends.

Suddenly makes the geek stereotype a lot more interesting...

[charlie]

Well there's the "wally strategy". Use your "work" time to take care of things like errands, internet surfing, and maybe even sex, if you're lucky.

[AC]

This is one reason why I want to have one parent/adult not working for an employer when kids are in the picture. The shopping, errands, a bit more time with the kids to condense for me the important issues to focus on is handled by her.

For a couple of years it was handled by me so I am all for women being in the workplace and/or being the main income stream.

1 hour - wake, head off to work.
1 hour - drive to work (currently learning Spanish via CD)
10 hours - work
1 hour - drive home
1.5 hour - eat, walk dogs (typically interacting with kids)
3.5 hour - discretionary
6 hours - sleep

Doing this makes me feel a bit better on what I have accomplished during the 3.5 hours during the work week.

[Stan]

I chose door number 2. Wait. I am still stuck on the Monty Hall Problem fused with the Time Management post...

[Rick]

Have you seen the price of cat food lately????

[rjf]

Since I don't have time to allocate to reading this blog very often, but I sometimes get a laugh at the host and the posters, I would like to ask you to do something for me. What was the breakdown of yesterday's post. How many of your readers/posters would go for the brains vs. how many would go for the morals?

If you could drum up those statistics, then I could enjoy life AND get something to talk about without wasting any of my 3 hours!

[Peter Payne]

I run a popular website that sells various wacky things from Japan (www.jlist.com) and sadly, I have to to work about 12 hours a day just to make things go smoothly. Sucks, but I can't complain since it's still a lot of fun...somehow.... I still have time for my kids and "onsen (Japanese hot springs, FTW).

[Wizard Tim]

Get a job in the Civil Service (working for the Government). Then you can knock off the '8 hours working' and '8 hours sleeping' at the same time.

[Roberto Roman]

Difficult choice. I would like to take number 3 but I like the "rich lifestyle" so I need to work hard the next 5-10 years to be rich enough to stop working at 30 and enjoy the last part of my youth (if being 30+ is still considered youth). I dont like to be tied to work for so long so in my budget I reserved a place for a weekly lottery ticket, that way I can dream to be free earlier.

[Dave]

Forget the cat food. I'm going to eat the cat!

[Yuriy]

Option 2 (slowly killing self) all the way!

[Michael Tung]

Answer: get a job that involves sex and sleeping (with others). I figure you've successfully compressed 8 hours out of there.

[rita mae]

Thanks, Big Billy Arvia.

Now I can't get the vision of you out of my mind. You are combining hygiene, sex, and exercise into one ten-minute shower? Is Miss Vicki in the shower with you? Does your combination act include her getting her hygiene, sex, and exercise at the same time, or is this a solo act?

Shame on you. Skip the exercise and give Miss Vicki a couple extra strokes on her back with the loofah.

Rita Mae

[Karyn]

I "downscaled." ;-) Five years ago I bailed out of what turned out to be an abusive, nutzoid corporate environment and landed at the local grocery store as a late-night cashier. What is it about night shift providing the best jobs for keeping one's sanity intact? Anyway, there it is: I work 27-32 hours per week at union wages (plus medical coverage and paid vacation), have time and energy for a life, and while it's not prestigious work, sometimes I actually have fun. It helps that management is off the premises and sleeping. Heh.

Also remember that, as of this writing, management cannot invade your brain and prevent you from doing your own thinking. (Though they certainly will try.) I live a lot of my inner life while going through the outward motions of Company Business. This is what they call Work-Life Balance.

P.S. - For those of you who watch TV, buy an exercise bike. Also, some of us like to cook from scratch now and then, not just microwave dollar dinners, and can easily spend 2 hours preparing meals on those days. Consider it R & R time.

[Dave]

> Another strategy is to
> ignore the fact that you are slowly killing yourself by
> not sleeping and exercising enough. That frees up
> several hours a day. The only downside is that you get
> fat and die.

I don't ignore it. I fully acknowledge the fact that I don't sleep and exercise enough.

Getting fat and dying early ... that sounds good to me. So, what exactly is the downside?

-- Dave

[Mattyboy]

The only way I can see it taking me 2 hours to eat 2 meals (no breakfast in my life) is if it counted as family time as well. I think 3 hours a day of "What the heck am I gonna do today" time is enough.

But then again, my daily schedule is:

Sleep: 10
School: 2-3
Study: 1 (maybe)
Travel: 1/2
Eating: 1
Moping around the dorm: 9

[patti]

patti says: Scott, I just realized that some people here (if they are DilbertBlog readers) will know who I am and (more to the point) where I live. I gave out way too much info in my stupid post/comment.
Please.. delete it.
Sometimes, I start taking you way too seriously and really try to answer (depends on my mood and free-time).. as if I know you! I think I will post anonymous from now on.... Sh#T!.. thanks

[Phlubanakawahaha]

Some people don't shower every day. Or ever.

[Jason]

Usually it's the sleep and exercise bit I cut into. I use to travel 2 and half hours a day to work. So I finally moved and I know I travel 1 hour and 20 minutes a day. I've been spending my new free time on trying to recover from the move.

[Joselito Peidabala]

Exercising is for faggots. I spend my free time enjoying life getting drunk in front of tv (take takes something a 4 hours of my day). I work about 12 hours a day, which gives me 2 hours of eating time and six hours to sleep.

I really don't care living 10 or twenty years less than a "healthy" person, as long as i can eat bigmacs in breakfast and get drunk every single day when i'm back from work :D

[Fletch]

I work and sleep at the same time.

Nothing beats multitasking.

[Bundy]

Multitasking is definitely the way to go. Just eat while having sex and watching American Idol. Most productive two hours ever.

[patti]

patti says. (Damn.. Oh crap! I am sorry, Scott. I got carried away, again and this is a long one. I hated to delete it. So, I will tell/warn others to just not read it. It turned out to be my life's story! If you delete it, it is ok. I couldn't do it!)

Talk on the phone while you: drive, pee and take a bath, exercise (breathing heavily) and maybe your relatives will talk less.

Example: relative says, "what's that sound?"
You say, "Oh I am sorry but I have a bladder problem and need to pee every 10 minutes", or "gee I've reached my destination.. gotta run" or "I am in my whirlpool and that sound is bubbles and whirling"
I spend 1hr showering, dressing etc (45 min mornings and 15 min evenings),about 6 hrs a day working, 1 hr on the internet.. fooling around (broken-up into 10-15 minute segments), 7-8 hrs sleeping. 2 hrs for laundry and cleaning, 1 hr cooking. Probably, 1 hr in driving time (various places)..which gives me at least 4 hrs for everything else.

Seriously, I have always tried to plan & live my future.
My goal has always been to enjoy "my future" right .. now.

I live in Florida, where I designed my own home for comfort and exercise. I have an exercise cycle at home, treadmill, ski-machine, a great professional automated shiatsu air-massage chair (which I could never live without).., ingound pool and spa and 2 more whirlpools in baths. So, I have enough exercise equipment and relaxation equipment. I have an outdoor gazebo and BBQ. And 2 fountains and 3 waterfalls ( a couple were built by me and a friend along with a fire-pit) all made for relaxing since there are always birds chirping and plants and flowers.
Location was important to me. One of the many beaches near my home is about 15 minutes away and a fantastic park (tennis, walking trail, sports fields, handball/racquetball and bocce courts and small lake with ducks) ..is just down the street..1/4 mile.

BUT? NO! I .. am definitely not rich. I AM .. spoiled.

However, Many of my home projects were done by me and my family and friends and so labor costs were almost nothing.
And purchasing and accumulating what I have was not easy.
I always search for sales and do NOT throw money around.
I gave up and give up doing many other things so that I can purchase items for entertainment and relaxation. Items that I can enjoy now AND later in life. For instance, I don't purchase brand new luxurious cars. Usually, I buy 3 yrs old autos. Or I purchase the autos that my grown kids are ready to trade in.. for what they are offered at dealerships.
I purchased a large home theater projector & 100 inch screen, so I seldom spend money to go to a real theater, except for live theatrical productions .. which I love.
I don't receive premium cable only basic cable.. and I have a cheap pay-as-you-go cell phone. I also, don't pay to join health clubs: I have my own smaller version... LOL
My parents live right next door and therefore I needn't travel far to see them. My children call. My son calls once or twice every week and my daughter calls at least once or twice every day. I travel to see them once a year and they come here twice a year. I have SKYPE to see and hear friends anywhere on the internet... for free.
Other people do not keep me on the phone too much. I try to limit those conversations to 10-15 minutes or so. Otherwise I e-mail.
I take herbs and vitamins and try to eat healthy (except for my chocolate addiction)
I try to eat dinner out only once or twice a week. And get together socially with friends only once a week.
I use to sing at clubs with some oldies rock n' roll groups or jazz bands, so I might visit a club now and then.

Anyway, I tried to figure out what amenities would be of benefit to me to have at my disposal now and in my “old age“. Priorities were written down and I realized that taking vacations away from home might not be possible some day. So? How would I like to be living later-on down the line. What could I benefit from NOW and in the future?
After family connections, location to parks and bus stops and many Churches and schools (all within 1-4 miles) was important. Next was owning things that help me health wise. Also, surroundings and equipment for relaxation from stress. Then came entertainment at home.

Financially? I will never ever be rich. But, I will probably be comfortable ( home should be paid-off in 3-4 years ) I have a vacant lot that I own (attached to my home property) and some IRAs.
Hopefully, I will not need to eat cat food (luckily I love pasta and rice and vegetables and I have a small 10 x 18 ft green house in my yard)

In the future, my biggest problem.. will probably be: My health.

I HOPE THAT I CAN STAY SOMEWHAT HEALTHY and that I can afford medical benefits and to keep purchasing herbs and vitamins etc.
** I have wire in my back (from MULTIPLE operations and a fusion).. and plates and screws in my right ankle & foot from last years surgery.

We all make choices (free will) in life. However, some things unfortunately, are beyond our control.

The hours of my day need to encompass necessary chores financial and household. But that HAS to balanced with exercise, rest and relaxation and social contact.

In the small things that I have accomplished, I did not try to outdo anyone or get more of something than anyone else. Many times, I accepted things on a much smaller scale. If I can have scaled-down versions of some wonderful things and full scale versions of some others. That is fine with me.
I never set any goals by what someone else has done.
And I never set my goals so high that they are unattainable.
I believe that it is all about setting and balancing priorities to allow time and money for some comfort in your lifestyle now and in the future.. Live your COMBINED GOAL.. NOW.

*****

[Paul]

I choose to live close to home in a smaller place so there's less commute, and I exercise and eat with my wife. I'll also run to work sometimes, combining the commuting and exercising portions.

Chores et al I just do in one big block on the weeken, get it out of the way, then do something else. And during that I listen to podcasts so that the time passes quickly.

[argenbert]

i don't bath, so i have 1 extra hour to work or sleep

[Sondra]

It's been found, by some scientist somewhere, that exercise is best taken in spurts.

So run like your balls are on fire and the lake is half a mile away, twice a week.

[Jorge]

I pick option 2.

Eating right and excercising just gets you 5 more years in a nursing home at $8000 a month.

[Lise]

I'm mostly on that third path and don't plan to retire. But I don't commute, and I don't need to spend a whole hour on hygiene, for God's sake (who are you, Narcissus?), or two hours on eating. Besides, eating can be combined with family time.

[Sondra]

Combine family time with chores.

Kids learn self-respect from accomplishing things.

They can fold towels, while you and Shelly fold sheets.

They can clean the table and floor while you do the dishes.

They can rake the yard while you trim the hedges.

Time spent together accomplishing things make up the best memories of my childhood.

Cooking together, building a house together, washing the car together, dusting knick knacks together...lots of talking and laughing and such a feeling of camaraderie and pride to stand back and look at our finished project.

[Ben]

2 hours for meals, are you kidding me?
Aside from that, turn off the TV and stop wasting time online... whoops.

[D. Mented]

To add to my complications, I'm completely unable to multitask. If the grocery bagger asks me "paper or plastic?" while I'm writing a check (and the cashier always wants to chat) I have to stop writing or I'll get something wrong and have to rewrite. That makes doing housework while the talkative friend gabs at me, plays a video game, argues with her kids, and fixes dinner, just not an option.
I let the house and yardwork slide, do errands on the way home from work, and hike at night for exercise.(No, I'm not scared of cougars and bears. How scared are you of dogs and homicidal maniacs when you walk down the street in broad daylight? There's a much higher chance of getting attacked by one of those...)
D. Mented

[Stargoat]

Sleep: 7.25 hours
Exercise: .75 hour
Work: 8.5 hours
Eating: 1 hours
Hygiene: 1.25 hour (pooping is leisure, right?)
Travel: 2.5 (Mostly commute)
Leisure: 2.75

[oreo]

What about that list of things to do before you die? Mine has about 200 things in it. If I finish it in time, I'll write another, longer one. Thats a tad more interesting than 100,000 hours out of my life spent inside a stupid office. Don't forget the other 12,500 spent going to and from work. I say if you want your life to have meaning, than its an individual responsability to do just that. Or you can follow Scott's plan for you.

[Cindy]

I won the suck lotto and inherited some money which has allowed me to go on the "work a little less" plan. Until then, I was on the "work too much and near put yourself in the hospital" plan.

[Thank you for change of Pace]

Reader's comments are better then the bolog. But I wiil give you credit for writing it and initiating the thread.

Did I mention I have nothing to comment as all the smart comments are taken?

[Vee]

I'm on the take time off from work plan. I make medical appointments during work hours. And I work out only 3 or 4 hours a week. Sometimes I leave early from work to go running on a beautiful day. And I'm not much for housecleaning and yardwork. I only do that when the dog or cat complains. I prefer writing or reading or playing music. I will clean if people are coming over...but I avoid inviting people over. People are just too picky.

[sid]

Some people have aready touched on multitasking but how about taking this a step further and combining more than one catagory in the same activity.

Eating while you work
Sleeping in the bath
Exercising and spending time with your spouse whilst having sex
Pro-active calls to talkative relatives while traveling. This has the advantage of avoiding boredom(to a degree) and they probbaly won't call you later on in the day.

The adventurous of you may wish to try sex in the shower whilst eating and working from home on flexi-time. The fact that non of the 6 catagories(Sex/ Family time/ Exercise/ Hygene/ Eating/ Work) will be wholey satisfied is undesirable but workable.

[R. Jhen]

My plan right now is to bust my ass working as many hours as I can through my 20s and 30s in national parks (Yellowstone this and last summer) to save up for an earthship (autonomous house, no utility bills, grows plenty of its own food). After acquiring one of those, I can rent it out and travel, living a relatively leisurely life, and still have a place to call home when I'm ready to settle down.

[R. Jhen]

My plan right now is to bust my ass working as many hours as I can through my 20s and 30s in national parks (Yellowstone this and last summer) to save up for an earthship (autonomous house, no utility bills, grows plenty of its own food). After acquiring one of those, I can rent it out and travel, living a relatively leisurely life, and still have a place to call home when I'm ready to settle down.

Two things: First, you left out that we get 8 free hours on Saturday and Sunday. It would be more valid to break it down on a week-to-week basis. Also, I (sort of) multi-task:

For example, this wee