How to choose?

You and I have 24 hours a day. Each of us gets the same—no more and no less. I can spend portions of my time grading assignments and writing manuscripts, or I can go and join my extended family for lunch or dinner. I can use the time to write up reports and prepare abstracts for conferences, or I can have a tea party with two colleagues celebrating their birthdays or go to movies. So what do I do? And how do I choose?

If I choose to relax and enjoy my time with friends and family, I come home feeling guilty that I am behind at work—that I haven’t tried my best to perform, to do my best in whatever I have been trying to achieve in my professional career. If I choose to keep working during the evenings and weekends, yes, there is a sense of accomplishment, that something has been done, completed. Yet, I yearn for connection with family and reprimand myself for not looking after me. My mind and body deserve to be treated with respect. My eyes, my wrists and my back cry out for time away from the computer screen. I also feel guilty that I am not living life as it should be, but instead making work my whole life. I am in a Catch-22 situation. Are you?

Modern men and women who live in cities lead very busy lives. We go about our business as if we are the centre of things that are about to happen. Our behavior suggests that the world cannot turn without us. Of course, we know it isn’t true. But we multitask like crazy, nonetheless.

This struggle to spend our time wisely—when will we find a way to resolve the dilemmas presented to us? Will we always feel this way until we retire? And what will life in retirement be like?

For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.