Productivity

 Recently I am challenged by our culture’s focus on productivity.  I am being intentional to align my view of being “productive” with my values for myself and my family.  I used to feel that I had to be busy in order to be productive.  For years I lived under an unseen pressure to be doing “enough”.  Life is certainly full for most of us and we can become accustomed to a frantic pace where we always feel behind.  But so much of what is most important to me cannot be quantified or checked off a to-do list.

Consider the definition of productivity:  the state or quality of producing something. The effectiveness of productive effort, especially in industry, as measured in terms of the rate of output per unit of input.

Surely there are areas of output in each of our lives.  But there are also vast amounts of time and energy put into various outputs that are immeasurable.

Producing peace and joy in my home is important to me as a wife and mom.  I am raising happy, confident, secure and hardworking kids.  My time playing, resting and being creative with my family is productive in a way that is not at all easily measured.  I believe that the time spent in these ways is equally, if not more vital, than the time spent doing the “busy” work of parenting.  I am producing more than fed, clean and clothed children!  Love, nurture, wisdom, companionship – these are inputs whose outcomes are more obscure.

As a pastor and influencer, I do many things that require time and energy, but not all of it can be written as a task.  My investment in people and relationships is critical input, that yields a return.  It is just a return that is often not easily seen or quantifiable. While many details and tasks are necessary, it is the impact in lives that is most rewarding, and yet the most difficult to determine.

Since we are immersed in a culture that is rather focused on efficiency and productivity, it is critical that we carve out our own measure and standard. The values we have for ourselves and those close to us need to be honored within our view of what is productive. The more we are intentional with how we spend our time, the greater potential there is to experience the reward of being satisfied and pleased with that investment. This applies to tasks as well as people.  When we are intentional in prioritizing the people who are close to us, and invest in them, our sense of purpose in these relationships increases.     

Not all areas of life can be accounted for in columns of time, product, value and profit. If we are to live balanced, healthy, deeply satisfying lives, we will need to be able to determine how we want the productivity of our lives to be measured.

There are plenty of tasks that fill my days, but the people that many of those tasks serve are the critical places of investment for me.  I want my productivity to be measured by an increase of peace, hope and value.  Have I loved well?  Am I joyful in what I am accomplishing? 

How will you determine if you are “productive”?