Here is the full transcript of Brad Aeon’s talk titled “The Philosophy of Time Management” at TEDxConcordia conference.
In this TEDx talk, time management researcher Brad Aeon discusses the deep connection between time management and philosophy. He begins by sharing a personal childhood epiphany about mortality and the finite nature of life, which led him to question the purpose of work and life. Aeon criticizes modern time management for its lack of philosophical depth, focusing merely on productivity rather than meaningful use of time.
He emphasizes the importance of asking fundamental philosophical questions about time, like its true value beyond monetary equivalence. Aeon challenges the belief that time cannot be managed, using historical examples to illustrate changes in time perception and usage. He advocates for integrating philosophical inquiry into time management to make it more meaningful and fulfilling.
Lastly, Aeon stresses the societal implications of time management, urging individuals to consider the broader impact of their choices on community and personal relationships.
Listen to the audio version here:
TRANSCRIPT:
When I was six years old, my biggest fear was to get bored. I used to make to-do lists every single day that always had something to do. But one day, I was watching this documentary on sea turtles, and it said that sea turtles can live up to 150 years of age.
And I realized, as a six-year-old kid, that I’m probably not going to live that long. I’m going to die. It was such a strange realization: “Don’t you feel weird sometimes when you realize that no matter what you do in life, you’re still going to die in the end?”
So, I ran to my mother and asked her, “Mom, is it true that we’re all going to die someday? You, me, Dad, my friends?” And she said, “Yes, we’re all going to die. There’s nothing you can do about that.” And I was horrified.
I started to cry. And I cried so hard because of what death meant. It literally means the end of existence, the end of everything. And I wondered, “What’s the point of all this?”
The Meaning of Life and Death
So, I turned to my mom, still crying, and said, “So, why do we work? Why do I have to work? Why does Dad have to work so much if he and everybody else are going to die anyway?” She never answered my question. But that question stuck with me. I ask myself a lot of questions, and I’m sure you do too. That’s what philosophy is all about, asking questions. And what could be more important than asking questions about how to use your time?
Probably nothing. Because time is all we have. So naturally, you would expect the whole time management movement to be very philosophical. After all, time management is a concept that started out in philosophy. The ancient philosophers were obsessed with this one very important question. “How can we use our time in a way that makes our lives meaningful?” But modern time management is philosophically empty.
Time management books are written by consultants, not philosophers. It’s always about tips and tricks and techniques to get more things done, to do things faster, to be more productive, more efficient, and to work better. Time management has become philosophically empty. Time management has moved away from its philosophical roots. But if we really want to live a meaningful life, we have to once again re-infuse time management with philosophy.
Philosophy and Time Management
And philosophy starts with questions. Here’s a very simple question: “Why do we need to manage time?” Some people might say time is precious. Very precious. So, we need to manage it. But how precious is time exactly? See, whenever I introduce myself to people as a time management researcher, the first thing people say is, “Oh yeah, time management, that’s really important, because time is money.”
“Time is money.” Every time I hear “time is money,” it reminds me of this conversation I had over coffee with a contractor. As we were talking, he looked slightly annoyed and impatient. So I asked him, “Jeff, what’s going on, man? Everything alright?” And he said, “It’s just that I hate wasting my time. It makes me so angry.” So I asked him, “What do you mean?”
And he said, “Look, I make $160 an hour. That means every hour I spend with you, I’m losing $160.” I was slightly offended, to be honest. But it’s what he said next that really shocked me. He said, “Whenever I’m spending time with my own kids, it makes me so angry, because yeah, I’m spending time with them, but every hour I spend with my kids, I’m not making $160.” And it’s not just an anecdote. You can see this everywhere.
Experiments show that whenever people start to think of time as money, they become more agitated, less happy, always in a rush. And importantly, they get greedy. They become less likely to help people out, to volunteer, or to think about the environment, because nothing else matters when you’re making $160 an hour.
The real question is, “Is money the real value of time?” The Roman philosopher Seneca said that if we think of time as money, we’re actually valuing our time very cheaply. We value our time very cheaply because we think we have a lot of it, because we think we’re going to live forever. But we’re not going to live forever. We’re going to die.
And the moment you realize, and I mean fully realize, that you’re going to die, $160 an hour won’t mean much. Time is not money anymore. Now, some people might say that thinking about death is not exactly cheerful. Maybe. But it’s very helpful.
The French philosopher Albert Camus said that the most fundamental question in philosophy is “Why shouldn’t I kill myself right now?” It’s true. “Why shouldn’t you kill yourself right now?” Your answer to that question will remind you what you’re truly living for.