Throughout the day we have gaps of 'free time', which I'm calling 'time scraps'. As one example of a time scrap - we find ourselves sitting in someone's lobby waiting for a meeting to start...that's a time scrap. These time scraps are too small for time-consuming tasks. Too small for major efforts of concentration. Often, they are only few-minute time scraps. And, in some situations we do not know how long the time scrap will last before the next 'work event' or other disruption arrives. Regardless, we can choose to use our time scraps. As just one example, we can choose to carry a personal organization tool like a Franklin Covey planner or a Blackberry. And, when we are facing time scraps we can choose to open our personal organizer and double check our 'To Do List'. This sort of task does not call for much concentration. This sort of task can be interrupted without damage...i.e., even if only one or two To Do items are checked a piece of goal-directed progress has been accomplished. 

My View: I believe in moderation....I believe in a balanced approach to work-goals and work-tasks. Actually, I believe on working on the somewhat-excessive side of moderation but not at the extreme end of goal-focus where both attention and priorities become obscured. Success is not sustainable and relationships fall through when work-goal and work-task obsessions and compulsions gain a life of their own. For example, I am not in favour of carving days up into 5-minute pieces and killing my spirit by trying to make sure each and every 5-minute time scrap gets a gold-star performance rating. Expectations about performance and time/timing of activity need to be realistic...at least a little stretched...but still clearly within the bounds of realism.

PS: Time is a most-precious thing. Shame on the people who repeatedly waste time then complain about not having enough of it.

PPS: This Thought Post was written while I was waiting for a supplier-meeting to start.

PPPS: We all have the same amount of time...we know the past is gone...we know we have the present...we only hope we have the future.