Top 10 Time Wasters Some Experts Talk About

Time wasters are on top of the list these days because of so many distractions everywhere. Time wasters are things that steal time from your life. Time wasters rob you of the time you would ordinarily have kept and used for more productive endeavors.

There are many such activities you and I engage in that can be productive, if we are careful. Otherwise, these activities can become huge time wasters; pushing us away from our dreams and goals.

However, it’s amazing some ‘experts’ miscommunicate things and make healthy activities as time wasters. They make those things look as if they are really not worth spending time on. The goal of this post is to list some of the good things in life that can be a life saver and turn into time wasters if we are not careful about them. While many ‘experts’ make these look like time wasters, I think we can have many blessings if we take these activities seriously, consciously and make a decision to be productive.

The List Of So Called Top 10 Time Wasters

So, here is the list and I will let you go through them and decide for yourself if you think these are time wasters for you or a blessing, if you choose to make it so. Here you go:

Time Waster #1: Facebook

Facebook (and other social networking sites) can be a huge black hole for time sometimes. We can end up spending all our time on these social media channels achieving nothing of significance. In fact, there are a lot of us who spend countless hours posting pictures, watching videos and chatting with other people with no purpose in mind. Used that way social media can be a huge distraction, a huge time waster. There is no question about it.

On the contrary, social media has brought a whole new world of opportunities for those who use it wisely. People who leverage the power of social media and internet marketing for Personal Branding, new business development, connecting with people in their respective field, build relationships etc. have tremendously benefited from the same thing which many an ‘expert’ preach as a major time waster.

Time Waster #2: Photography

I was surprised to see this in the list of time wasters to begin with. However, there is a school of thought that preaches this as a time waster.

My friend Bill Butler says, “You create future memories today.” I completely share his view and sentiment behind the statement and I am sure you agree as well.

Now the question is, is it not a blessing that we are able to capture each important moment of life so easily with a click of a button? Is it not awesome that in today’s fast paced life we still have the ability to capture the beauty around us quickly using a camera? I think this is an absolutely incredible gift that technology has brought us.

I don’t think it is fair to say that you should have a passion for photography only when you are a professional, though professionals can make money using this skill. But does it mean that taking pictures, keeping them organized, sharing them with your friends and family is a time waster?

Time Waster #3: Personal Grooming

It’s amazing to see some ‘experts’ believe that spending time on personal hygiene, personal grooming is also a time waster.

Dressing sharp, grooming properly and being at your best at all times is one of the most important ingredient of success. It is not something that you are hearing for the first time. I have heard this from my childhood and I am sure you have heard it countless number of times as well.

Now, if grooming, dressing sharp and making sure you look your best is a time waster, then why is sleeping, cooking a good meal, or listening to your favorite speaker not a time waster? Why is writing a blog post or playing with your children not a time waster?

Time Waster #4: Exercise

This one is even worse. It is medically proven that at least 30 minutes of intense exercise is good for health. In fact, if nothing else, we all know that we should at least do a 30 to 45 minutes of brisk walking everyday just to keep up.

But to my amazement, some so called ‘experts’ list exercise also in the list of time wasters. Do you really believe that?

Exercising to me is like saying your prayers. It requires discipline to do it daily. If you don’t do it, your body will never complain. But if you do, while it’s not fun while working out, you surely feel world class for the rest of your day. Such an activity can never be a time waster in my list. Would you agree?

Time Waster #5: Going For A Coffee

This again really depends. Some people go for coffee simply because they want to kill time. Others go to Starbucks and get a cup of cappuccino to reward them for the great work they have done so far. I go to Starbucks sometimes to do my writing while I can also enjoy my favorite Caramel Macchiato.

I have many associates and clients who do business presentations at coffee shops. Coffee shops are also a great networking places and there are many success stories of people who found new business while being there.

Now, if somebody is going to coffee shop just for the sake of killing time, it may be a time waster. But if the visit to coffee shop is for a productive purpose, I don’t think it can be plainly classified as a time waster. Would you agree with me?

Time Waster #6: Reading Books

Whatever may be the thought process behind classifying this activity under the list of time wasters, I couldn’t disagree more.

Even if you have a habit of reading stories, you still learn valuable lessons from story books. Reading, simply is an exercise for the mind, and I can’t imagine in what circumstances reading can be a time waster.

My take on this item is, if reading is a time waster, I love to waste my time. What would you say?

Time Waster #7: Commuting

Commuting is not something fun. It can also be a time waster if we let it. However, it is an opportunity for those who want to make a productive use of this time. In fact, I use this time to listen to audio books, inspirational talks, my audio self-talks and to do my pep talk.

Take another look at the situation and you will notice that nobody wants to commute to work. Nobody want to be stuck in traffic. So, even if you say it’s a time waster, how are you going to get rid of this?

So, rather than getting frustrated about it, I would rather suggest to make full use of this time for productive purposes. Make it your personal time, spend some time planning your day or reflecting on the day spent. Listen to some audio that uplifts you. Maybe it’s time to be grateful for all the good things in life. How would you think this time can be used in the most productive way?

Time Waster #8: Shopping

While shopping is a necessary activity, some people may be spending their time and money excessively. This may be partially true that some people may be doing this in a wasteful manner.

But I am not convinced that simply because some of us may be spending a little more time than others on shopping (simply because either they have more time or money), this activity can be classified in general as an activity in the list of top time wasters.

Time Waster #8: Online Shopping

Again, online shopping has made our lives much simpler. We can get products of our choice at a much cheaper rate. We can compare the prices at many stores from one place. We can pick and choose the best deals available. And we can shop anytime of the day.

Can you imagine how much time it would otherwise take if we needed to find the best deal in town on a product and we can to search for paper coupons and drive to many stores to check the prices?

I think online shopping is a blessing. It is a time saver for me, rather than really being a time waster. To me, driving to the nearest store, finding a parking lot, filling the cart and then standing in line to make the payment, loading the stuff in my car and then driving all the way back – is a lot more time consuming task than browsing through the internet and placing an order.

Time Waster #9: Accounting

If you don’t know accounting, it may make sense to hire someone to do the work for you provided you can afford it. If you have to learn accounting simply so you could do accounts by yourself, it’s too much work. Yet, you may still have to do it if your finances don’t allow you to hire someone to do it for you.

However, it is a valuable skill and if you can manage your accounts by yourself, why wouldn’t you do it? Unless your time is so important, why wouldn’t you want to manage your own accounts, and your own money?

While it may be a time waster for someone who has business activity, that is more important than managing the accounts and he or she is ignoring that important accounting task. But other than that, for  most people, accounting isn’t that much of a big deal. I would like to see what do you think about this.

Time Waster #10: Cleaning Your House

Cleaning your house may be a time waster because you may not be making money doing it. Because of this, many people may place this activity in that category, and that’s okay.

But again, it depends on what are you postponing to clean your house. If you are postponing a business activity or an important phone call because you want to clean your house, yes, that’s an excuse.

But I know many of my friends who are in good shape simply because they spend their time and energies cleaning their houses. It gets them an intense workout and helps them maintain a good health.

Therefore, I would say that even cleaning house can’t be broadly placed in the category of time wasters. It is a subjective matter.

Over To You – Share Your Thoughts

I would like to know your thoughts on the above so called time wasters. How do you think these activities play a role in your life? Do you think these cause you to waste your time?

Please  click here to go to the comments section to share your thoughts. Thank you kindly!