Having been a father for a whole 3 months, I am not the most experienced person to comment on fatherhood. However, I do have something to say on how your productivity impacts one’s ability to function as a father.
In a recent post about wasting time I received the following comment:
We mustn’t get too obsessed with efficiency, otherwise we become machines ourselves. Chill out a bit, guys!
I agree that when productivity becomes an end in itself, work has very little meaning. However, when productivity enables you to live a life that is richer than what others experience, it can add value. Productivity is what lets you provide for your basic needs with less effort. The less effort it takes to provide for your basic needs the more time you have to spend the way you choose. You can choose to spend this time working even more or you can choose to spend this time doing the things that you feel have lasting value.
If you can work 1 week per month and have everything you need to be happy, you free yourself up for a much better life experience than the person who works 60 hours a week for 30 or 40 years.
When the pursuit of productivity is just an exercise to get more stuff, it just means you’ll spend more time working. When productivity is a means toward spending more time with your family and more time investing in things that you feel have real value, it is a rewarding journey with lasting rewards.
Whether you are a father or not, I would challenge you to take some time today and reflect on your personal productivity. Is it allowing you to spend more time with the people who you truly care about or is it just perpetuating a vicious cycle of working more and more?
Being a student, increased productivity means a way to learn more and over a wide varied during the years I’m at school and college. ALthough I know that my learning won’t stop once I finish formal education, I think it’s best to make the most of this time, especially since I am paying a rather large amount for it.
As a father of a 3 year old and with twins on the way…and a degree in I/O Psychology, any little hack that creates free time with family and friends is well worth it.
Even if it’s as simple as cleaning the kitchen while cooking because you know the tot can’t come into the kitchen with hot pans, you might work up a sweat, but you earn that energy back when you roll around on the floor for playtime after dinner.