Most of us complain about shortage of time. We wish we had more quality time to spend with our loved ones, think of our dreams and what we really want out of life, and create a better lifestyle. But have you ever thought of how much time you waste during the day that you could use for the above purpose. If you have not yet realized how much time you might be wasting every day, I suggest that you go through the following list of top 10 time wasters and check for yourself.
#10 of Time Wasters: Obsessive Hobbies
A hobby is defined as an activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation and not as a main occupation. Having a hobby can detach you from what is going on the world and reenergizes you. However, if your hobby takes a form of obsession and gets out of control, it will occupy a lot of your time. Whether it is reading, playing guitar, running, or singing, make sure that you are not addicted to your hobbies. Unless your hobby helps you earn more income, you should be careful with how much time you spend on it everyday.
#9 of Time Wasters: Cleaning House
Depending on how big a house is, cleaning it regularly can take lots of time. We have a big house, which needs at least 6 hours to clean thoroughly. That is why we made a conscious decision to have a maid clean our house every other week for only $100, which is approximately $15/hr. If you think this is a lot, think of how much your time is worth ($ per hour) and how long it takes to clean your house. Depending on your situation, it might be a good use of time to hire a maid to come in and keep your place clean.
#8 of Time Wasters: Shopping
Many people spend hours in shopping malls. Some drive across town for an hour or so to buy groceries from bulk stores. Many stay in lines to be among the first ones to buy that newly released gadget. Others cannot wait for “Black Friday” to go to stores and waste not only their hard earned money but also their precious time. Did you know that you could order almost anything online and save lots of time and money? My wife and I purchase what we want (other than groceries) from Amazon.com and other online stores. But don’t forget that online shopping can also be a time waster if you do not know what you want to buy or if you become obsessed with price comparison. Give it 5 to 10 minutes and get it done. Don’t be distracted by other products, or “other customers also bought” items. Don’t do any extreme product comparison or research unless it’s something you really need and have never bought before.
#7 of Time Wasters: Driving
According to a research done by the Harvard Health Watch, an average American spends 101 minutes per day driving. This means that in a lifetime, in average we spend 37,935 hours of our time (or 4.5 years of our life) driving a car! Personally, I commute over 90 minutes each day. So this stat is true for me. Spending this much time in the car listening to music, talking over the phone, or doing nothing buy just driving is a waste of time. You need to use your time wisely in the car. That is why I have turned my car into a mobile training center. I listen to training audios (in mp3 format or audio CD) by successful marketers, experts, and motivational speakers while I am driving. So stop wasting your car in the car and start educating yourself in the car by turning your car into a mobile training center!
#6 of Time Wasters: Playing Games
I remember when I was a kid we had to go outside the house to play games with other kids. It was lots of fun. Then video games like Atari and Play Station came to existence and trapped kids and even adults in their houses. I can recall those days spending 12 hours straight with my cousins playing video games from 8 pm to 8 am! After that personal computers and Internet became hot spots for playing games online. And now variety of games (mostly free to start with) on smart phones, iPads, Tablets, and all sorts of gadgets to put our kids and us in the auto mode for wasting time. While a little bit of gaming is not a bad idea for recreation, entertainment, and change of mood, just be aware of the time you spend. Also limit the time your kids spend on games, whether video games, online games, or apps. If not controlled, it turns into addiction and a big time waster.
#5 of Time Wasters: Emails
How many times per day do you check your emails? Once, twice, 5 times, 10 times, or continuously throughout the day when you are in front of your computer or have your latest gadget(s) in hand? Based on stats from email marketing company BlueHornet, almost 34% of American consumers say they check their email “throughout the day.” This means that we waste a huge amount of our precious time checking emails. Why? Because we have nothing else to do! Or because we tend to defer doing what we need to do later and then in order to pretend that there are other important things to do, we get back to our habit of checking and rechecking our emails. By checking your emails continuously you not only kill your valuable time but you also create a distraction that is an enemy for your productivity and efficiency.
#4 of Time Wasters: YouTube
How much time do you spend on YouTube and other online streaming videos? If you want to know how much time we humans waste on YouTube watching videos that do not add value to us, checkout http://www.wastedhumanity.com/. For instance, Gangam Style music video has been watched over 2.5 billion times on YouTube. The duration of this music video is 4 minutes and 13 seconds. If you do the math, the total time spent watching this music video on YouTube is equal to 20,040 years! Isn’t that amazing how much time we human beings waste every day on YouTube? Unfortunately, we don’t stop watching only one video. When we get into the rabbit hole of YouTube, we end up spending hours and at the end we don’t exactly remember what we wanted to watch on YouTube in the first place. If you decide to watch YouTube videos, do it purposefully and commit to spending a reasonable amount of time.
#3 of Time Wasters: TV
TV has been a grand time waster since its invention. Most TV shows are not useful, helpful or recreational in the true meaning of the word. Don’t be one of those people who lose 20 hours or more a week in front of their TV watching crime shows, reality (or lie) shows, energy draining news, unworthy movies, and sports not to mention all the commercials in between! Isn’t there a better use for your time when you get back home from your hectic workday to relax and spend some quality time with your family? My wife and I have stopped watching TV for the last 12 years. And when we decide to watch a movie, we find a good movie and watch it as a special treat.
#2 of Time Wasters: Facebook
Facebook (and other social media including Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, Google+, and even LinkedIn) can be a huge black hole for time. As of the third quarter of 2015, Facebook had 1.55 billion monthly active users who have logged in to Facebook during the last 30 days. However, many use Facebook excessively and waste lots of time. In its decade of existence, the social network has attracted 1.1 billion users, and all their pokes, wall posts, baby photos and engagement announcements add up to a whole lot of time. If you are on Facebook and wondering how many days of your have been lost to this 11-year-old technology, use TIME’s calculator. In June 2014, Facebook saw 20 billion minutes of usage per day, or 17.39 minutes per day per user, or 8.3 hours per user per month.
#1 of Time Wasters: Smart Phone
In my opinion, the number one time waster that facilitates most of the above time wasters is our smart phone. These days you rarely find someone who does not carry a smart phone such as iPhone or an Android device. They have become part of our daily lives that have gradually separated us from human face-to-face interactions and connected us in a virtual form. Just observe people around you at home, at work, in the mall, at the coffee shop, at the restaurant, etc. and see what they do most of the time. Each one has a phone in hand busy with Facebook, watching YouTube, checking email, texting, playing game, surfing the net, browsing apps, and so on. If used properly, however, this amazing technology can even save us time and help us with our productivity. It is our choice on how to use it.
So this was my list of top 10 time wasters. What other time wasters are in your life? How can you save time by eliminating some of the time wasters in your life? Remember that you aren’t just saving time so you can work more. With more time available, you can make time for realizing your personal dreams and making them come true. That is how you become a dream achiever in much less time.
To your success,
Kamran Akbarzadeh, PhD
Founder of Dream Achievers Academy
Author of Leadership Soup
