Slaying the dragon of time during Covid-19 lockdown
Now that most states have flattened the curve and things are starting to reopen, I thought a rear view look at how we’ve managed our time might be a relevant blog topic. If you’ve been working from home during the Covid-19 pandemic or have children whose homework needed your supervision, we recognize this has been a particularly challenging time for you. However, for the rest of us with 16 hours a day to fill, time management has been more fluid.
Three months ago, I was busy with two big projects: a charity gala and auction for CancerCare and an international conference for 350 professional women. Then, the Coronavirus raised its ugly head. Both initiatives fell apart. The gala was cancelled and the auction went virtual. The conference was postponed for two years. The question then was how to find other meaningful activities to fill the void.
It occurred to me that others might also be scratching their heads and wondering, “What have I accomplished in these past three months at home? And, if we are to be in isolation for much longer, are there other methods of productively I could adopt?”
For many of us, it has become a challenge to focus on achieving goals the longer we stay sheltered-in-place. Whereas early on we might have enthusiastically started our day with a requisite “To Do” list, now some of us are just freewheeling it. It is increasingly tougher to get up early to exercise, stand in line at the grocery store, or do any random tasks you half-heartedly designated in the morning as “essential.” Merely getting out of bed, showering, and putting on sweatpants—which the NYTimes refers to as our “uniform of isolation and impotence”—seems taxing these days.
How have my friends managed with having so much time on their hands during these past 90 days of lockdown? Have they become as lethargic and unfocused as I? What has been their level of productivity? To answer these questions, I queried a random group of pals around the country. Read on and discover why some of these energetic people have made me feel like a tortoise. Fortunately, however, there are others whose sluggishness, like mine, have reassured me that I am not totally abnormal.
JODI DALEY, a talented videographer, has approached the time management challenge with strategy, determination, and a heavy dose of humor.
How are you spending most of your time under Covid-19 lockdown? When you think about it, Covid quarantine has been an entire quarter of the year…and possibly more by the time the self isolation is over. So not to be one who can waste time or even take a two-week vacation, I’ve been challenging myself to …oh who am I kidding, I spent the first month sleeping until 11:00 a.m and drinking at noon.
We did initiate the “virtual happy hour” with friends in other places and we did and still do try and get in touch with at least one person a day who is quarantined alone. But then it hit me: most of the lack of activity and productivity would not lead to a smiling look back when it was all over.
Did you set any early goals? SOOOOOO, I started thinking: let’s get productive.
Week four: Up by 9:00. Get at least three miles in. Don’t drink until five.
Week five: ADD: Learn how to individually string pearls.
Week six: ADD: Teach myself new editing software.
Week seven: ADD: Build a makeshift and portable voice-over booth in the bedroom.
Week eight: Clean out closets.
Week nine: Re-organize the kitchen.
Week ten: Try on old summer clothes and realize one must increase mileage and decrease calorie consumption.
Week eleven: Bitch about lack of calorie consumption and increased mileage.
Week twelve: Fit back into half of the old summer clothes.
Week thirteen: Give away half of old summer clothes and order new ones.
Any lessons learned about how to survive home confinement and keep your sanity intact? As of now, we are still both sane. I am blessed to have a partner who speaks with me rather than at me. We take time apart to regroup and keep social media and news to a minimum. We are also extremely grateful to have our health and enough of a financial cushion not to have been decimated by this extraordinary time.
But most of all, this time has made me realize that without leadership, the greatest country in the world can desolve into chaos. May future generations heed this warning.
DOUG BALDER,architect and New York neighbor, uses a Zen-like approach to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
How are you spending most of your time under Covid-19 lockdown? I work from home and spend most of my day and evening working. I go out for about an hour and half a day to exercise, bike, or walk. I have been cooking more and started baking bread, usually on weekends. Because there is a scarcity of yeast, I have been trying to make sourdough starter which I am having difficulty getting started.
Did you set any early goals? Yes, to use the time, now with no distractions, to bear down and get a book I am writing and illustrating going and possibly finished. Also, stay in shape and exercise in the house. There I failed.
If so, what was your success rate? Well, the pandemic is not over and sheltering in place is something I will be doing for the foreseeable future, so the jury is out. I will let you know about the book.
Any lessons learned about how to survive home confinement and keep your sanity intact? Yes, take time to prepare food well. Move about the home more slowly and deliberately. Look around. Focus for a while, be productive, and then relax and change what you are doing. Then come back and focus again. Listen to more music. Watch less TV. Breathe. Savor slowing down. Read more.
MAARTEN VANDERSMAN, a real estate advisor, zeroed in on changing his life.
How are you spending most of your time under Covid-19 lockdown? Serving coffee and lunch in my husband’s office formerly our home.
Did you set any early goals? Yes, to review my personal business plan.
If so, what was your success rate? Yes: I just moved to Sotheby’s International Realty.
Any lessons learned about how to survive home confinement and keep your sanity intact? Don’t put off apartment renovations. Life is too short to live without a dishwasher.
BARBARA HANLEY, businesswoman and co-owner of Shy Brothers Farm artisanal cheese makers, solves the time problem with an equation of equal parts number crunching, pathos, and “playing in the dirt.”
How are you spending most of your time under Covid-19 lockdown? Running our cheese business. Sales are off by well over half, but the internet orders have been much appreciated. And…gardening!
Did you set any early goals? Stay busy, don’t dwell on the negative, mourn the losses, and get three messy beds in my garden completely redone.
If so, what was your success rate? All of them, now I think I need to go into the landscaping business—I’m obsessed as never before!
Any lessons learned about how to survive home confinement and keep your sanity intact? I’ve made lots of friends—people who are out walking—while working in the garden. I’ll be down low working and they can’t see me behind the old wrought iron fence. Then they laugh when they get closer and see me with mud on my face. I’ve gotten to give a lot of plants away too. Need any peonies? I have six I’m going to give away.
Seriously, I’ve found a deep-seated anxiety that I haven’t known before because so many people are hurting and there’s nothing I can do. I’ve lost two lovely neighbors, an old friend in the next town, and my business partner has lost an aunt and an uncle. We can’t even go to the funerals. Then my heart breaks again over the violence against people of color. Writing checks may help, but it doesn’t make me much feel better. So, I just stick my hands back in the dirt and keep going.
MIA MALM, highly respected, Napa Valley-based wine marketer, keeps it simple and California “cool.”
How are you spending most of your time under Covid-19 lockdown? I've been fortunate to be able to continue working from home.
Did you set any early goals? Not any appealing ones! They mostly involved housework.
If so, what was your success rate? My kitchen table remains unpolished but I did make a couple of face masks out of an ancient La Tour d'Argent dish towel and some hair ties.
Any lessons learned about how to survive home confinement and keep your sanity intact? Meditation and online yoga videos. And staying in touch with loved ones.
KATHLEEN KENNERLEY, hospital administrator, who resides in Pennsylvania’s bucolic Buck’s County, admits to living with the impact of a “Covid brain.”
How are you spending most of your time under Covid-19 lockdown? Most mornings I get outside for a 3-4 mile walk. I sometimes meet a friend or walk by myself. I spend most of Monday to Friday working. I'm accustomed to working at home so this feels somewhat normal. Work helps structure the day and is a welcome distraction from some of the craziness. My husband also works from home now and spends the day in his office. Our adult daughter is also with us, for now, and she spends most of her day doing her activities.
So, during the day, we all retreat to our respective areas in the house. We reemerge in the early evening for some appetizers, while I make dinner. I sort of feel like I'm hosting a dinner party every night. But that's ok. Right now, having a decent dinner is more important to me than it was before. The evening is spent watching a movie or a series that we all will like. That's been a little tricky sometimes.
Did you set any early goals? Oh yes! I had intentions of taking one of the “Great Courses," cleaning out the pantry, the basement, and my clothes closet. I didn't want to look back on this and think I had squandered this time.
If so, what was your success rate? No! On one hand, I found that I have been reading more but I just haven't been motivated to get the other projects done. Maybe because I'm thinking ... there's still tomorrow. I also blame it on " COVID brain". I get caught up in checking the news more frequently than I used to and next thing I know an hour has gone by. I get weary from trying to balance the precautions we need to take, trying to time my expedition to the grocery store to when may have been restocked, etc. It has also taken more energy that I realized to try to keep an even keel and not get annoyed with people for trivial things that would have irritated me before. All of us, not just my family, are dealing with this differently and have different levels of stress. The least I can do is take a deep breath and be patient.
Any lessons learned about how to survive home confinement and keep your sanity intact? It has reinforced how much I like my home and where we live. We're fortunate that we can be outside, go for a walk, etc. without a lot of other people around. I've also spent time going for walks with my brother. Prior to this, we spent very little one-on-one time. Usually we'd be together for family dinners, holidays, etc. I'm grateful for having the opportunity to get to know him better.
TORIA EMAS, retired Chicago Bar Association senior executive, maintains a healthy diet and human contact to boost her morale and get her through the day.
How are you spending most of your time under Covid-19 lockdown? Actually, the protests were going past our street--they were peaceful and respectful, but the helicopters over our house were disconcerting. We are watching too much TV. I have another jigsaw puzzle--1000 pieces. If I didn't adore it so much, I would scream. Baking and experimenting with new recipes to use my CSA fruit and veggies. We try to walk every day. There is a little park at the end of our street where we have met neighbors and friends for a social distance chat while wearing masks. Enjoying an occasional Zoom call with friends. Our Saturday breakfast club meets over Zoom. Last week we attended a Zoom wine tasting and dinner with California wine producer Philip Togni and his daughter Lisa.
Did you set any early goals? If so, what was your success rate? My goal was not to gain weight--so far so good. Cleaning projects-not so good.
Any lessons learned about how to survive home confinement and keep your sanity intact? Stay calm and think of others, not yourself. Be thankful we are retired because it reduces the stress of worrying about business and staff.
Let’s all admit that being able to use our time constructively in the middle of a pandemic is not as simple as we imagined back in late February. Why? Because our lives have been upended. Americans are dealing with a plurality of problems: the perpetual health threat of Coronavirus; human loss; financial damage; emotional strain; political uncertainty; and now racial injustice. There is also no definitive consensus on how much longer we will need to be home-bound which adds to our stress and overall feeling of malaise.
Hopefully, some of the ideas from this post have resonated with you. But, keep I mind what Kathy Kennerley observed after she completed the questions: “You've made me realize that maybe this thing will come to an end so I better get to my "To Do" list. I would like to be able to look back on this and have something to show for it.”
To conclude, here are a few more productivity tips on how to slay the dragon of time.
Make a To-Do list: Start your day with a list of things you want to accomplish. Star what is most important. Cross off each activity as you go. It’s a good feeling to know you’ve met some, or all, of your goals. And, even if you fall short, just add the ones not completed to the next day’s list.
Be flexible: It is not necessary to reproduce your normal 9-5 routine. Try working early in the morning or later in the day whenever things are quieter.
Use time blocking: Dedicate a block of time to get something done and don’t allow yourself to be distracted with other activities. Surprisingly, achieving one thing at a time is more efficient and productive than multi-tasking.
Don’t over-connect or over-commit: Limit the amount of time you spend reading or watching the news. Don’t allow yourself to be shallowed up in a vortex of social media. Reserve specific slots of time during the day to catch up and stick to this. Remember, you also don’t have to accept every invitation to join a zoom meeting, do a FaceTime meetup or chat on the phone. Select what is important to you. Then, learn how to graciously say “no” to those which are not.
Be kind to yourself: This is not the time to add extra stress. Find something you like to do and add it to your routine. Mine is watching a daily free opera streaming from the Met. It’s a great distraction and stress relaxer. Plus, I always feel good about having increased my repertoire of opera knowledge. I also have a weekly date with Xavier Solomon, the curator at the Frick Museum, who organizes an online “Cocktails with a curator” on Friday evening at 5 PM. Not only is Xavier brilliantly knowledgeable about art history, but he also mixes a mean cocktail. Join us next Friday and see for yourself: www.frick.org/interact/miniseries/cocktails_curator