Let’s talk about time. Don’t worry, I’m not planning a physics lesson here. I don’t want to talk about the fourth dimension as a thing, or for that matter, any of the other 10 dimensions either. What I want to talk about is the good old fashioned time that we deal with in the every day world. You know, the one where only four of those dimensions seem to work. In that world time is sometimes on our side and sometimes working against us. It allows us to waste, kill, and even use it constructively. We do all sorts of stuff with time, but no matter what else we’re doing with it, we’re always spending it. And like any currency, there isn’t an endless supply.

You see, the big problem with time is that eventually we run out of it... completely. And how we deal with time throughout our lives seems to be directly related to how worried we are about this fact.

So is time actually precious, or is it expendable? Well, like all other things we have attributed material value to in the world, time has absolutely none unless we say it does. But unlike Gold or Diamonds for example, we have no universal agreement for the value of time, only for the measure of its length. Therefore the value of time seems to vary radically from person to person, based upon the particulars of age and lifestyle. Basically those who value time are usually those who feel they have very little of it.

I like to break the entire human race down into those who have time and those who don’t. The “timers” and the “no-timers”. Whether or not people have time seems to be related to whether or not they have any goals in life. If someone has no goals or any need to accomplish anything, they generally have plenty of time. So we can similarly break the human race down into those with goals and those without, because this is interchangeable with those with time and those without.

It is perfectly acceptable to have no goals in life. Probably two thirds of the population of the planet has no aspiration whatsoever other than to live one day to the next in the most pleasurable way possible, while doing as little work as possible. These are people who are looking for ways to fill time. For them, life when not working is about combatting boredom. Boredom is what happens to people who have no direction or goals. Time, in the case of this sector of humanity, has very little value and exists only to be filled as stimulatingly as possible with anything that might temporarily give life meaning. Life is a never ending procession of one bit of outside stimuli after another, serving to fill space that would otherwise be vacant. There is nothing wrong with any of this. On the contrary, I doubt very seriously that most types of entertainment, the travel industry and the Internet would exist if it weren’t for the timers. So I thank them very much for driving the markets that make many of the things I love possible. More on this in a moment.

On the other side of the coin are the people that have goals and aspirations. For these people time has great meaning, weight and value. For them, there simply isn’t enough of it. The no-timer cannot possibly have spare time because there is always a long list of things to do which never gets any shorter. If a goal is reached, there is another one lurking around right behind it, ready to take precedence even before the dust of the previous one has settled. Unlike the timers, the no-timers derive the greatest pleasure and satisfaction from accomplishment and the sense of growing ever closer to accomplishing their goals. They can also enjoy the same things that timers do, but generally won’t allow themselves the luxury, as this would take precious time away from doing something that could bring them closer to their goals. No-timers are passionate and driven, often single-mindedly so, and are often fiercely independent. They are never bored. Boredom is the providence of people with time to kill. No-timers are never short of ideas. They may welcome them from others, but never require such contribution.

Timers find no-timers intangible and difficult to comprehend. No-timers understand timers perfectly, but can’t relate to the concept of spare time.

There is actually a third category of humankind. They are those who work so hard at their jobs that they actually have no time to be either a timer or a no-timer. This sector can be disregarded though, as everyone in it aspires to be either a timer or no-timer. Circumstances often prevent us from spending time in any way other than what responsibility dictates. But I think it’s pretty safe to assume that everyone always knows how they’d LIKE to be spending their time.

So who are the timers and no-timers and what do they do?

All the idea people and visionaries of the world are no-timers. Those who come up with truly new and innovative things are almost always no-timers. Inventors, theoretical physicists, innovative company CEOs, designers, scientific researchers and cutting edge software developers are all no-timers. While one does not have to be a no-timer to work in these areas, the people calling the shots generally are. Albert Einstein was a no-timer, so is Steve Jobs. In fact, pretty much anything in the world that has ever been built or developed originated in the mind of a no-timer. This is because, at heart, no-timers are about building things, whether it be a piece of software, a theory, a building, a musical composition, a new molecule, a novel, a car or a spacecraft. You get the idea.

Anyone can be a no-timer, because the only real prerequisite is that you are passionate and devoted to your goals and derive your greatest satisfaction and pleasure from achieving them. Carpenters, electricians, musicians, artists, plumbers, architects and painter/decorators can all be no-timers. Anything that allows for construction of any type, or requires innovation or creativity, can be home ground for the no-timer.

But you cannot become a no-timer. You are born into it. It is a personality trait which can often be mistaken for obsessiveness, although the two are not mutually exclusive. Similarly a no-timer can never be a timer. You are who you are, and that’s really what this whole thing is about.
So who are the timers then? Everyone who isn’t a no-timer. Timers make up the majority of the population of planet Earth. Timers are the ultimate consumers of stuff. They have the time to become interested in anything and obsessive about everything. All non-productivity based stuff in the world is created to occupy spare time. And who has the spare time? Yep, you guessed it.

Let’s put it in the context of something near and dear to all of our hearts. Timers fuel the Internet. Without them there would be no blogs, forums, podcasts, Facebook or social networking as a whole. Anything that requires an investment of time online, will have hoards of timers there ready to spend it. It is probably safe to say that fandom in general would not exist and never would have existed without timers. They are the backbone and driving force of humanity. They are most people.

Timers often work for no-timers and the inverse is also true. There are no rules. Timers sometimes take the ideas of no-timers and create much more successful businesses than the originators of the ideas themselves. You see, timers can be just as driven a non-timers, but not by the same things. And most of the time this is a really good thing. The ability to step back and detach themselves from the goal is something timers are particularly good at. This is why no-timers often hire timers to run their companies. Web 2.0 is largely comprised of thousands of timer run businesses based on a very small number of no-timer ideas. Timers are very good at jumping on a bandwagon, taking the ball and running with it.

So getting back to my initial point about time running out, some final thoughts on the subject. It all changes with age, whether you are a timer or a no-timer. Teenagers have time on their hands and are likely to get bored, regardless of what camp they will eventually end up in. And as people grow older, even the most dedicated of timers will start to show concern about the “well running dry”. So ultimately the spenders of time are the victims of time.

Now you may have already deduced that I personally am of the no-timer variety. If I wasn’t, how could I be writing this? But by the same token, why would I take precious time to do a podcast if it weren’t part of some ultimate goal? Hmmm...

So what’s the point of all this? I’m not quite sure myself. Killing time, I guess. Just kidding.