Deadline
All my life, I have noticed that deadlines, and deadlines alone, have motivated me. In school, I would put things off until the last day and wait for the late night moment of inspiration. Though I worried the moment wouldn’t come, without fail, it always would. And as always, it was amazing and invigorating. As I grow older, tasks are more mundane in my life and require less inspiration (i.e. translation), but my productivity still completely governed by when things are due.
In college, while procrastinating, I even formulated a productivity function based on a deadline. Y = 1/X x P. Y is Productivity, X is Time Remaining and P is the Personal Panic Factor. The less time remaining and the more uptight one is, the more productive they are. Now, some ask about the infinite productivity at the deadline, but one must remember that the transaction time to hand in something makes this infinite productivity unattainable. People also point out that panic can be crippling rather than motivating.
I often joke that in the grand scheme of things, it’s a damn good thing I am mortal. Without the deadline of death, I would get nothing done at all. Of course, with people, we know abstractly that we will die, but we have no clear line. This ambiguous deadline perhaps motivates us to do some things. We better get our marrying done, our children born and our money earned before we get old (though I imagine peer pressure and social norms are probably the largest culprits for human action rather than actual contemplation of death).
Ambiguity, though, may cause humans to be less productive as well. If the Grand Canyon were going to disappear in one year, how many people would go see it? Of course, knowing that it is always there, people put it often and never see it. How many more sunrises will we see in our lives? Thirty? Forty? It is probably a small and limited number, but it seems endless because the exact number is unknown and when we will die is unknown.
I would say that nearly all of us are happy not to know our death day. We don’t want to be crippled by panic. Still, if we did know, our lives would probably be much fuller (and certainly more hectic)
In college, while procrastinating, I even formulated a productivity function based on a deadline. Y = 1/X x P. Y is Productivity, X is Time Remaining and P is the Personal Panic Factor. The less time remaining and the more uptight one is, the more productive they are. Now, some ask about the infinite productivity at the deadline, but one must remember that the transaction time to hand in something makes this infinite productivity unattainable. People also point out that panic can be crippling rather than motivating.
I often joke that in the grand scheme of things, it’s a damn good thing I am mortal. Without the deadline of death, I would get nothing done at all. Of course, with people, we know abstractly that we will die, but we have no clear line. This ambiguous deadline perhaps motivates us to do some things. We better get our marrying done, our children born and our money earned before we get old (though I imagine peer pressure and social norms are probably the largest culprits for human action rather than actual contemplation of death).
Ambiguity, though, may cause humans to be less productive as well. If the Grand Canyon were going to disappear in one year, how many people would go see it? Of course, knowing that it is always there, people put it often and never see it. How many more sunrises will we see in our lives? Thirty? Forty? It is probably a small and limited number, but it seems endless because the exact number is unknown and when we will die is unknown.
I would say that nearly all of us are happy not to know our death day. We don’t want to be crippled by panic. Still, if we did know, our lives would probably be much fuller (and certainly more hectic)
posted by American Dilettante at
12:47 AM
1 Comments:
I wonder, how did the Buddha get anything done? He does not let himself "panic", and therefore would never reach the point where he is spurned into action.
I find that the Buddha thinks of procrastination as laziness. Realizing this, the Buddha does not allow himself to be distracted by trivial activities, and therefore never disappoints his friends, family or co-workers.
Easy for you, Mr. Buddha. Not practical advice for me - I wind up with the worst of both worlds. When I am able to achieve a sense of inner peace and calm, it results in a staggering lack of productivity.
I am lazy, and the Buddha (and everyone else) is ashamed.
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mizerock, at 11:31 AM
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