Have you ever noticed how many conferences and books and events are related to time management? It’s obviously a worldwide problem. I know I have trouble with it. Time doesn’t like to hold still long enough for me to manage it. It is a slippery thing. Just today I thought I had a handle on it and then it went and messed up my plans. Sleep, it said? No, I think not. You have fires to put out.

In the book “Organizing from the inside out” or it might have been “Zapp, the power of enlightenment”….I forget which one but recommend both, it talks about being a Conquistador of Chaos. Someone that doesn’t really manage time well but likes to come in when it is crucial and save the world. These people spend their time being firemen. I’m speaking Figuratively, not Literally here. I have nothing but respect for actual firemen. Well, respect and a small bit of lust, but that’s a whole other topic.

Being a figurative fireman is great except for the tendency of said fireman to not really have a firm grasp on their own life. They spend their time running around putting out ‘fires’ instead of planning ahead, setting goals, working for goals, and having an organized life. The ‘fires’ they put out are usually very good things. They are the ones that drop everything to help a friend in need, run to the store for last minute party snacks for school, stay late at work to bail out a coworker, spend their weekend helping friends move, or forgo a much needed pedicure for months to watch their grandson. It’s all good stuff.

The hardest part about having a figurative fireman in your life is being able to keep up with them. They may seem scatter brained, unorganized, non-communicative, or secretive. Believe me, they aren’t trying to be any of these things, but it can be a result of their lifestyle. They are most often seen flying by the seat of their pants, without rhyme or reason most days. It may seem like they get a heck of a lot done or that they get nothing at all done. That depends on how you look at them.

These figurative firemen may be very frustrating to deal with. Rest assured, they are frustrated as well. It isn’t easy living your life being blown in different directions all the time. They try to do what’s right, to help out, to ‘be that person’ someone can count on. They feel like they put their whole heart and soul into what they do, but it is seldom seen that way by others. They appear flighty, uncommitted, sketchy. It’s damn frustrating. Or so I hear….not that I would actually know. I’ll look into that problem as soon as I douse this campfire….cause I said so.

Photo credit: http://www.philipgraham.net