A Bunch of Years Ago

I’m getting run over at work. I’m getting crushed. I can’t keep up. Here’s what I do: I try to move stuff off my desk as fast as I can and as competently as possible. But it doesn’t matter. The more I do, the more work finds me. I thought this was supposed to be a paperless society. But I seem to be doing everything twice: one electronic version, one hard copy.

I can’t sleep because my mind is on overtime. Sleep deprived and coffee dependent, I still try to go full speed to finish the tasks on my to-do list. The list never disappears, even for a minute. I’ve read a million self-help books and they all say the same thing: be more efficient, do more, practice makes perfect, perfect practice makes perfect. Here’s what I’d like to do: do less carelessly.

Every meeting I attend is exactly the same. Too many people are present. Approximately fifteen minutes pass before the meeting strays from its main purpose. It is never clear who is totally in charge of the meeting. With each passing minute it becomes more difficult to return to the supposed task at hand. Attention spans wander, someone comes in late, someone else leaves early. The first item on the agenda is not resolved, but everyone pretends it has. I propose that all meetings be cancelled for a period of one year. I predict productivity will increase in that time.

My friend brought his three-year-old to work the other day. The kid hopped around in circles pointing at every object in sight. I was impressed with his ability to identify everything correctly: “Look Daddy, bus!” “Look Mister, bird!” Little kids bring a smile to my face. They are the picture of life before stress. They are carefree and authentic. No posture, no bullshit, no worries, they are innocent and real to the core.

Author's note: Dug up this old writing from my Creative Writing file.