I have been re-watching the English TV series New Tricks. It premiered 20 years ago (that's 2003 for those of you with a mathematical bent). Twenty years!
We had just moved into our new house and the neighbours across from us had a new grandson. A babe in arms. Now, he’s a strapping 20-year-old man, primed for an exciting future. Still, I’m willing to bet that most of those twenty years crawled by. For him.
Now, the original cast of New Tricks are different. One of them died last year. The others are all still working. Do they look much different? Not really. But I’m willing to bet that these past twenty years have flown by for each of them.
The counting of the years is a matter of perspective, isn’t it?
When you’re busy and you know what’s ahead, time is an enemy. It’s inelastic.
When you’re not very busy and you’re unsure about the future, time is an enemy. It’s far too elastic.
The trick is to forget about time and just get on with living and doing. Stop counting so much. We have become a world obsessed with counting, with quantifying everything. We have surrendered control over our businesses, our governments, even our lives to people who measure – usually the cost. Cost rarely equates to value – we all know that. And yet…
Measuring has value, don't get me wrong. What shirt size should I buy? I measure my neck. Not measuring sometimes requires bravery. Where would we be when we’re trying out a new recipe? Or a new way of working?
We might make mistakes! But then, we might learn something, too.