There is a certain time that kills your productivity in work and life. I call it the Lemming Time, after the animals that are supposed to jump off cliffs in droves to their deaths.

You know the Lemming Time when you see it. It doesn’t happen every time and it’s hard to predict. You might be driving your car in town and it seems like every few metres a car is trying to turn into your path, a pedestrian is attempting an ill-advised crossing or people’s rushed behaviour turns erratic and mildly dangerous. It’s the time of day when everyone has decided they simply have to get something urgent done, yourself included.

It happens in work as well. A deadline is looming, you’re getting close, and suddenly the replies come in, the phone calls, emails, requests for a quick chat. Everyone else getting to the finish line of their own thing needs a quick interaction or two with someone else before they can put their thing to bed. All of a sudden you’re in a funk, that 3-syllable word that starts in cluster and ends in an anglo-saxon word for sexual coition. Bad for your productivity and peace of mind.

Avoid the Lemming Time. Plan better.