On Time by Catherine Blyth reveals why time sped up, why there never seems to be enough, and how to make it yours again. We have more time than ever: each one of us can expect 1000 months on this planet if we're lucky. So why do we feel time-poor? Our world is addicted to fast and we have become its servant. Instead of grasping the liberating potential of technology, many of us are locked into a doomed race to outpace hurry. In this book, Blyth combines cutting-edge research from neuroscience and psychology with accessible stories - from Leonardo Da Vinci to Usain Bolt, Aristotle to Anna Wintour, and Kant to Keith Richards - to reveal timeless truths about humanity's finest invention. Angry, witty and enlightening, On Time is a handbook for navigating a fast-forward world that asks the questions productivity guides ignore. * Why do some hours trudge while others sprint by? * How do bright colours, fast food and rapid breathing affect our tempo? * How does autonomy take the stress out of pressure? * What are the hours that suit which activities best? Stop clock-watching, self-reproach and quit chasing white rabbits. Time is humanity's finest invention: with these small practical steps, it can become your servant.
In summary, this was a difficult scientific or philosphical concept, covered by a writer with an interest in the subject, rather than an expert. I disagreed with some of the more subjective elements too, and came away from this with my understanding enhanced, but not as much as I'd expected.
Seemingly this was inspired by the modern concept of 'busyness', and the current phenomenon of people being time-rich and money-poor or vice versa. Blyth challenges this assumption, but the cries of 'I've been so busy' will probably be familiar to most of us. Although I'm sure no-one actively craves a complete dearth of spare time, I can't help but feel this mindset is one intended to show others how important (and popular) they are, rather than a genuine wish for more time.
The book is split into three sections: how our approach to time has changed; what is time; and what can we do to make better use of it. The first is a bit waffly, the second could have done with more science and the third has its merits, but is probably easier for a freelancer than the majority of workers who have their bosses at their workplace. The second section in particular was the least complete to me, the writer having gone too far in making a scientifically complex concept into a simple idea. A particular example was in explaining why time flies when we are having fun; time is slower when we are more engaged in more thought, such as concentrating on avoiding an error, and our minds flutter when we are doing something we enjoy. But I didn't feel it adequately described why doing something boring and unimportant is slow, and being with a pretty woman is over so quickly (both touched upon). I felt as though the primary sources had been condensed too much to ensure it wasn't too scientific.
There was then some discussion about wasted time at work, in particular email and meetings. Unless your job is measured entirely in measured performance (eg sales), the suggested actions are moot points unfortunately. The meeting may be useless, but it takes a brave soul to skip them if we don't feel they are useful, and responding immediately to an email gives a much better impression than the advice here, to never respond immediately. Adapting to the company culture is, for better or worse, a much less stressful experience. However, the difference in the way we remember time compared to how we experience it explains how the last year or so have been both a drag and a blur.
In some ways I think 2 stars is harsh, and were it not for the annoying format, I might have been more generous. But after each chapter there is a mini-article on an aspect of time, and a tacked-on bullet point list of themes and actions, as though this was intended to be a manual rather than an exploration of a theme. Aptly, it feels both too short and not detailed enough, but also a bit repetitive due to revisited themes, and more like a composition of long magazine features than a coherent book.
Странна книга. Едва 20-30% могат да минат за насоки и съвети как да подобриш начина, по който ползваш времето си. Останалото беше като история на термина "време", видовете време и въобще размисли по темата.
Щеше да е чудесна книга ако авторката нямаше слабост към лирични отклонения, философски и поетични вметки и много често напълно излишни исторически, филмови и всякакви прекомерно дълги примери. Идва трудна за четене в такива моменти и мозъкът ти тотално се разсейва. Уви, бяха на всеки абзац.
Наистина съм много раздвоена в отношението си към тази книга, тъй като имаше моменти, в които се спирах и прочитах отново дадено изречение или даже абзац, защото го намирах за вдъхновяващ или проникновяващ. Обаче, от друга страна, стилът й на писане ми дойде твърде наситен и тежък, особено в моментите като се правеше на умна с всякаквите безумни примери, вметки и отклонения. Бяха напълно излишни, ама напълно.
Hi Catherine. Thanks for your book. I’m not really sure why you wrote it. There isn’t any original thought here, so it’s a collection of ideas which is great but you’ve ignored some of the best ones. I had to work so hard to extract some good and that’s defeating the point of time saving. Look I’m clearly not a writer so what the Charlie do I know, but I do wonder if an AI tool could have generated something similar and may have included more ideas? Sorry I’m generally a kind person and hope to god you never read this - if you do something seriously weird has happened with amazons algorithms because seriously my love this is review is not worth a second thought. You did good, I didn’t get it.
This was such a perfect book to my right now in so many ways. I made a million notes and was very entertained along the way. Time is a subject that has been intriguing me since forever. I've been maybe a bit nostalgic, keeping diaries and tracking time, trying to capture it in photographs and texts and memories and, yes, books. I think that's why I write these reviews, too. And I will proceed to write something about time when I'm starting to write again and this was heaven-sent.
I had initially picked up this book couple of years ago for my dad who was drowning in work. To be completely honest, I was mainly determined to get it seeing the review of a UCL professor on the back of the cover, and, as a UCL student, it hit close to home. Reading it now, years later when time is slipping through my hands and I’m looking for ways to stop that, I find it quite eye opening. It’s very fact-full, which I like. Some people might be put off by the many historical facts about time, but they are fitted well into the context of the book. There are many book references throughout which, not only consolidate the idea that the author is presenting, but make you pick up the book that’s been mentioned. Overall, this book felt like a much needed conversation with a therapist. I’d highly recommend it.
An interesting read about time, why there is never enough time and our current obsession with time and speed. A thoughtful and practical guide on making time for things that matter. Would make an ideal Christmas present.
“Time is money”, is a phrase we often use and hear. Time is precious, for once it is used, you cannot gain it back. So valuable time is that we become a slave to it, trying to do the most things possible in shortest of time. The more advanced our technology, promised to help us use time more efficiently, the faster the time seems to go. We rarely ask ourself, since when time become valuable as a commodity? Especially when looking at the past, when life seems more idyllic (and backward). This book discussed all of them, and filled with tips on how to use time, free yourself from the chain of time, avoid procrastination, and many other things, time-related. And now, I have to pay for the time spent reading this book.
How do we experience time? Is it possible to have a different relationship with time in a world that seems to be perpetually speeding up? Blyth attempts to answer these questions, but ultimately fails. The book starts well, and the issue of time and our relative experience of it is surely an interesting one. Unfortunately, the end degenerates into a discussion of habit formation, sleep rituals and goal-setting exercises that are heavily derivative of other (better) works. Skim the book in a bookshop to get the general idea, but you can probably skip this otherwise.
Our world seems to be on fast forward. There never seems to be enough time. We are all racing against time and why is that when modern technology provides so many aids to our everyday lives. Catherine Blyth discusses why we are slaves to time and how this affects our work life balance. She advises how to stop clock watching and the secret to routines and deadlines. She suggests that we declutter our day and offers advice on sleep and the benefits of a good nights sleep in our navigation through life. I received this book from the author and Goodreads in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.
Thank you Goodreads for sending me this book. A fascinating book about time and how it affects us all. We all have a relationship with time, which constantly changes. Packed with interesting facts, theories and experiences, the author gives insight into the ways we view time and use it. We cannot change or avoid it, but the book provides suggestions on how to make better use of the inevitable march of time.
1) The formatting Whomever made the formatting needs to shot into the sun. Changing fonts repeatly and sometimes in the same page is so jarring I had to stop. I'm not talking about italics but a jarring context subject switch
2) Interesting bit on pre industrial time perception
3) There are *some* useful suggestions. There are a lot of lists with a bunch of take it or leave it items.
Would I recommend? - Meh. Nah. Would I reread? - No.
I’ve learned about my circadian rhythms, the importance of sleep, the addictive ness of social media and also the difference between delaying (good) and procrastination (bad). I’m now going to list my priorities and try not to get distracted by say, reading Goodreads reviews or faffing around on Facebook..
What drew me into this book was what's written under the title. I think for me, this is an important topic living in a world that constantly produces and praises such slaves for speed as fast-food and fast-fashion conglomerates are hailed as exemplary business operation. However, the content of this book is beyond disappointment. Apart from some useful paragraphs worded with a dead-boring writing style, the whole book is densed with a whole lot of bombshell survey stats and name-dropping analogies. Not much of anything valuable to my time!
Bilimsel veya felsefi bir kitap olarak düşünmeyip, kişisel gelişim kitabı olarak okursanız daha çok faydalanabilirsiniz. ben kendi adıma konuyla ilgili okumalar yapmış olmama rağmen (çeşitli çok satan kitaplara da referanslar var içinde -alışkanlıklar, teknolojinin bağımlılık yapan yönü vs. nasıl kurtulunur, nasıl yeni alışkanlıklar edinilir, nasıl verimli olunur vs.-) faydalı buldum diyebilirim.