Articles
Pam Vaccaro, CSP

Nine Ways of Living With Time

Take a close look at yourself. You could be your own worst enemy when it
comes to using time.
Pamela J. Vaccaro, MA

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The first step in time management is to realize that no one can manage time. Time management is a myth. The truth is we can neither speed up nor slow down the passage of time. There will always be 24 hours in a day. No one has more time than anyone else. What makes the difference for each one of us is how we view time and manage our behavior around the finite resource called time.

Tips and gimmicks don't work

When I began conducting time management seminars in the late 1970s, I took a "Hints from Heloise" approach, encouraging people to make to-do lists and clear off their desks at the end of the day. I soon realized, as people began to repeat my seminars, that such generic how-to advice offered quick fixes but produced no lasting results. I turned my attention to why people procrastinate. While workshops on this subject proved to be very popular, many participants still struggled with time issues. About ten years ago, I realized that we can try every time management tool and technique that comes out, but if we lack a sense of purpose about what we are doing, we will still be disorganized and unproductive.

It is impossible to accomplish everything. Without goals and priorities -- knowing what's most valuable and important to us -- we are just treading water. Goal setting gives meaning to life. If we learn to develop goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time related, we have a much better sense of direction and we're less likely to flounder amid increasing demands and challenges. But goal setting is only one of the missing pieces to the puzzle. Not only do we need to know where we're going, we need to understand how we each go about getting there.

Your personality type holds the key

Each of us has a different view of time. What we see as time well spent depends on the filter of our own personality and motivation. For instance, someone who appreciates knowledge considers research time well spent; someone who values relationships will take time to volunteer. Understanding your personality type will help you zero in on the problems that develop around your use of time. You can then begin to manage your behavior in ways that alleviate the blocks to personal and professional productivity.

How would you describe yourself? Do you have high standards? Do you view time as a friend or an enemy? Do you feel a sense of accomplishment when you can check things off a list? Is it important to you to meet everyone's demands? Are you most or least comfortable dealing with routine tasks? It may take some work on your part to accurately identify your personality type. A good starting point is to look at the chart on personality-based time management types. It is based on the Enneagram personality model,1 which describes nine primary personality types that are motivated by different needs, such as knowledge, success and relationships. While you may want to consult other resources for more comprehensive information, the chart does highlight the key indicators of different personalities and offers basic solutions to various time-related concerns.

What's your number?

The nine personality types (identified by numbers) each perceive reality differently and have their own time consciousness. Fives, for example, see time as a series of events from which they can derive wisdom. Sevens act as if time is endless and are wildly optimistic about how much they can do. Nines experience time in a metronomic way -- each period of time has the same value to them. Each type also has its own time-effective assets and liabilities. Eights, for example, have clear goals and a solid game plan, but they often don't solicit input from the people who might enhance the game plan and they lose time mending fences. Because each personality type views time differently and has unique assets and liabilities, each demands a different set of interventions. (This is why a one-size-fits-all approach to time management rarely works.) Since motivation plays such a key role, it is also important to determine what internal messages are most likely to stimulate greater productivity. For example, ones have very high standards and don't enjoy their accomplishments because they tend to focus on what still could be done. They have the mind-set: "There is never enough time to get a task done right." This type of thinking needs to give way to: "There is enough time to do a job well if I plan my time well."

There is a sense of empowerment in knowing that life balance is not about managing time but using time and managing ourselves. No longer can we blame outside forces for how much time we waste; instead we must assume responsibility for how we choose to spend our time, knowing that when we do assume responsibility we also gain the power to change.

1. Palmer H. The Enneagram: Understanding Yourself and the Others in Your Life. San Francisco: Harper & Row; 1988.

Pam Vaccaro is president of Designs on Time, a consulting firm in St. Louis specializing in time management and organization. She is also a nationally recognized speaker and a contributing editor to Family Practice Management.