What do we do with all this extra time?

[TheOldDesigner]

I stopped to think yesterday, “What do we do with all this extra time we keep chasing with automation or new features?”

My guess is probably nothing. Do we now just career from one vital task to another as the software automates the transition or does the very act of having to make that transition give us time to adjust to the new mindset? To me chasing the rabbit of automation down a very deep dark hole often has little actual impact in what gets achieved.

Yes of course things like KBM can help with automating things and I use it daily, however am I really more productive, do I have more time for leisure? Usually no, I just fill any extra time with even more things I have invented and convince myself I need to do/know.

I just wondered how many actually stop and think between tasks, and if the trend of automation actually in some cases is just that a trend with no discernible benefits. We are all rushing to do/achieve more as efficiently as possible, anyone actually stop and ask why or if we are any happier because of it?

[ryanjamurphy]

I don’t remember much from Sociology 1000, but one concept stuck with me: rationalizing technology. As a society, we accomplish many of the same tasks we used to do with our fancy new tools, and we think we’re doing so much better. Yet we forget about the cost of setting up and maintaining all these tools (in both money and time). My grandfather was in the town paper for learning to use email at 92… but was that really necessary? He could’ve spent that time writing more letters.

I tend to be on the side of “woo automation”, but I try to keep your critique in mind. If we spend all the time we save automating everything on building automations, we aren’t actually making any progress. We have to make it count.