Time and How to Spend It by Blinkist is an essential read for anyone looking for ways to better manage their time and, ultimately, find more life satisfaction. Through taking readers through a comprehensive look at different ways to use time, from understanding the science of time to exploring its philosophical implications, this book will help you to better manage and keep track of your time. Key learnings from this book include understanding the importance of prioritizing tasks, cutting down on inefficiencies, combatting procrastination, and discovering the power of time reflecting. As someone interested in philosophy, architecture, data, urban planning, and mobility, this book will provide insight into the most effective ways to approach these topics and how to maximize your time and productivity. Other books to read along the same lines are Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport and The Art of Choosing by Sheena Iyengar.
🎀 Highlights
we tend to feel like we have less free time than we actually do.
what really brings happiness into people’s lives are experiences.
happiness is a strong precursor to success. Conventional wisdom usually tells us that happiness is a byproduct of success, and yet a lot of evidence suggests that it’s actually the other way around.
the first question you can ask yourself is: Will it add to my Story? Any valuable experience will add to your story by ticking off one or all of the items on the checklist.
the hero accepts a “call to action” that requires perseverance through many trials and tribulations.
Events that provide change and transformation are key to finding fulfillment.
once you understand that change is a key part of a fulfilling life, you can start actively seeking it out,
Let’s take vacationing, for instance. There are basically three ways you can approach a vacation: fly and flop, find and seek, or go and become.
going to a resort and engaging in passive experiences like lying in the sun, eating familiar foods and reading books and magazines that require very little effort on your part.
travel to new places with the intent to explore,
most part it’s an experience that any other sightseer or concert-goer might have.
purposeful intent to learn inspirational things about different cultures and customs, or new skills like painting, boating or traditional sushi techniques.
go and become
Find and seek involves
Find and seek
fly and flop,
Compared to walks on a treadmill, these immersive forest walks were far more effective at reducing tension, anger and fatigue, as well as blood pressure and cortisol levels, while at the same time improving mood.
they were happiest while in nature – especially when close to water.
Happiness levels in coastal areas, for instance, were generally six points higher than in urban areas.
while the app recorded GPS and weather data.
Mappiness app, who periodically entered their mood and activity while the app recorded GPS and weather data.
valuable experiences that lead to happiness are more likely to take place in nature and away from the online world.
There’s a biological factor at work here. Scientists believe we’re simply predisposed, from an evolutionary perspective, to enjoy the calming sights, sounds and smells of nature and water.
Scientists believe we’re simply predisposed, from an evolutionary perspective, to enjoy the calming sights, sounds and smells of nature and water.
Interaction with your smartphone is much like gambling on a slot machine: what’s at work is a system of operational conditioning known as intermittent variable rewards.
inconsistent promise of large or small rewards.
even the most intelligent people can end up picking up their phones 300 times a day, checking how many likes their latest Instagram or Facebook post has racked
even the most intelligent people can end up picking up their phones 300 times a day, checking how many likes their latest Instagram or Facebook post has racked up,
too much time online leads to feelings of isolation, stress, depression and insomnia.
whenever you have an interesting experience, it gives you a good story to tell, and sharing stories is one of the best ways to form bonds with others.
And when’s the last time you talked to your neighbors?
Check out what’s going on in your community.
a state of being in which you’re so fully immersed in what you’re doing that you lose track of time.
finding flow essentially means being so  intensely focused on what you’re doing that all your troubles recede.
mindless video games, binge-watching and endlessly scrolling through
mindless video games, binge-watching and endlessly scrolling through a news feed are not sufficiently challenging activities. Even though they can cause you to block out everything around you and suck hours from your life,
real flow and fake flow – is to know that good flow requires you to put in true, intense effort in order to receive the reward at the end.
sports are great for adding flow to your life
paying attention to the peak moments
Peak moments, as well as endings, have a disproportionate amount of influence on how we experience things.
the peak-end rule. Essentially, it means that you can wait in line for an annoying length of time, but if the line speeds up in the last moments, you’ll likely look back at the experience as not that annoying.
For example, if you’re having a miserable time stuck in traffic on the way to a music festival, you can rest easy knowing that this is your experiencing self suffering, and that the peak moments of the festival will be the things your remembering self will care about, while the misery of the traffic will be forgotten.
Now, this doesn’t mean you need to pack every day with as many peak moments as you can. After all, if it’s all extraordinary experiences all the time, you’ll likely burn out. Plus, it takes an ordinary
After all, if it’s all extraordinary experiences all the time, you’ll likely burn out. Plus, it takes
After all, if it’s all extraordinary experiences all the time, you’ll likely burn out. Plus, it takes an ordinary baseline to make the extraordinary stand out.
but if you make each brew part of a daily calming ritual, it can be pretty extraordinary.
have a happier life by recognizing the everyday as already pretty special.
about being in better shape so that you can increase the range of physically demanding adventures and activities that are available to you. The final path to higher status is to turn off the
Plan some outdoor activities for the weekend ahead, like hiking, canoeing or biking. Maybe pack a picnic and head out to the seaside,
Stuffocation. Here you’ll find more evidence for why our experiences are far more valuable than all the material stuff we spend our money on.
we tend to feel like we have less free time than we actually do.
what really brings happiness into people’s lives are experiences.
happiness is a strong precursor to success. Conventional wisdom usually tells us that happiness is a byproduct of success, and yet a lot of evidence suggests that it’s actually the other way around.
the first question you can ask yourself is: Will it add to my Story? Any valuable experience will add to your story by ticking off one or all of the items on the checklist.
the hero accepts a “call to action” that requires perseverance through many trials and tribulations.
Events that provide change and transformation are key to finding fulfillment.
once you understand that change is a key part of a fulfilling life, you can start actively seeking it out,
Let’s take vacationing, for instance. There are basically three ways you can approach a vacation: fly and flop, find and seek, or go and become.
going to a resort and engaging in passive experiences like lying in the sun, eating familiar foods and reading books and magazines that require very little effort on your part.
travel to new places with the intent to explore,
most part it’s an experience that any other sightseer or concert-goer might have.
purposeful intent to learn inspirational things about different cultures and customs, or new skills like painting, boating or traditional sushi techniques.
go and become
Find and seek involves
Find and seek
fly and flop,
Compared to walks on a treadmill, these immersive forest walks were far more effective at reducing tension, anger and fatigue, as well as blood pressure and cortisol levels, while at the same time improving mood.
they were happiest while in nature – especially when close to water.
Happiness levels in coastal areas, for instance, were generally six points higher than in urban areas.
while the app recorded GPS and weather data.
Mappiness app, who periodically entered their mood and activity while the app recorded GPS and weather data.
valuable experiences that lead to happiness are more likely to take place in nature and away from the online world.
There’s a biological factor at work here. Scientists believe we’re simply predisposed, from an evolutionary perspective, to enjoy the calming sights, sounds and smells of nature and water.
Scientists believe we’re simply predisposed, from an evolutionary perspective, to enjoy the calming sights, sounds and smells of nature and water.
Interaction with your smartphone is much like gambling on a slot machine: what’s at work is a system of operational conditioning known as intermittent variable rewards.
inconsistent promise of large or small rewards.
even the most intelligent people can end up picking up their phones 300 times a day, checking how many likes their latest Instagram or Facebook post has racked
even the most intelligent people can end up picking up their phones 300 times a day, checking how many likes their latest Instagram or Facebook post has racked up,
too much time online leads to feelings of isolation, stress, depression and insomnia.
whenever you have an interesting experience, it gives you a good story to tell, and sharing stories is one of the best ways to form bonds with others.
And when’s the last time you talked to your neighbors?
Check out what’s going on in your community.
a state of being in which you’re so fully immersed in what you’re doing that you lose track of time.
finding flow essentially means being so  intensely focused on what you’re doing that all your troubles recede.
mindless video games, binge-watching and endlessly scrolling through
mindless video games, binge-watching and endlessly scrolling through a news feed are not sufficiently challenging activities. Even though they can cause you to block out everything around you and suck hours from your life,
real flow and fake flow – is to know that good flow requires you to put in true, intense effort in order to receive the reward at the end.
sports are great for adding flow to your life
paying attention to the peak moments
Peak moments, as well as endings, have a disproportionate amount of influence on how we experience things.
the peak-end rule. Essentially, it means that you can wait in line for an annoying length of time, but if the line speeds up in the last moments, you’ll likely look back at the experience as not that annoying.
For example, if you’re having a miserable time stuck in traffic on the way to a music festival, you can rest easy knowing that this is your experiencing self suffering, and that the peak moments of the festival will be the things your remembering self will care about, while the misery of the traffic will be forgotten.
Now, this doesn’t mean you need to pack every day with as many peak moments as you can. After all, if it’s all extraordinary experiences all the time, you’ll likely burn out. Plus, it takes an ordinary
After all, if it’s all extraordinary experiences all the time, you’ll likely burn out. Plus, it takes
After all, if it’s all extraordinary experiences all the time, you’ll likely burn out. Plus, it takes an ordinary baseline to make the extraordinary stand out.
but if you make each brew part of a daily calming ritual, it can be pretty extraordinary.
have a happier life by recognizing the everyday as already pretty special.
about being in better shape so that you can increase the range of physically demanding adventures and activities that are available to you. The final path to higher status is to turn off the
Plan some outdoor activities for the weekend ahead, like hiking, canoeing or biking. Maybe pack a picnic and head out to the seaside,
Stuffocation. Here you’ll find more evidence for why our experiences are far more valuable than all the material stuff we spend our money on.
