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How much time each day are you left fully to your own thoughts?

How much time each day are you left alone with your own thoughts?

  • Roughly 0%. I always have something guiding my thoughts until I sleep.

  • Around 15 minutes.

  • Around 30 minutes.

  • Around 1 hour.

  • Around 2 hours.

  • 3 hours or more...


Results are only viewable after voting.

Men_in_Boxes

Snake Oil Salesman
No video games, no TV, no phone, no computer, no podcasts, no music, no other human beings.

How much time each day, on average, are you left totally alone to your own thoughts? Is this time intentional or happenstance and when does it typically take place?

thinking-statue-YouFine-Sculpture.jpg
 
I pace in my office ALOT. Wonder if it's part of my autism or not. It's the only way I can stay sane. It usually happens when I make a breakthrough at work or just thought of new perspective to something i've been philosophically pondering for a good while. Happens pretty much every day lol.
 

Trogdor1123

Member
I’d say 1-2 hours a day. If it’s not my boss or my staff it’s my wife or my kids. Cost of growing up I guess. But really, these are pretty awesome folks to have. I have a great boss, great staff, and my family is amazing so I’m pretty blessed.

Some days I get more time though. Wife usually tries to give me evenings on the weekends too which is nice.

Edit, misread a bit. I’d say less than an hour. During summer I often sit on the deck with a whisky and watch the birds. It’s pretty calming.
 
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Men_in_Boxes

Snake Oil Salesman
Interested to hear from some of the "3 hours or more" people.

What are you doing for those three hours each day? How do you do it?
 

dorkimoe

Member
Interested to hear from some of the "3 hours or more" people.

What are you doing for those three hours each day? How do you do it?
same. If im watching tv, im doing something else and then if i pause it to leave the room i pull up my phone to walk to the next room, its awful.
 

Cyberpunkd

Member
30-45 minutes. I make it a point not to listen to anything when I’m out for a run, and most of a time I take a loop in the park that doesn’t cross any traffic. I just let my mind wonder and my brain to organise thoughts.
 

83n

Neo Member
I work out at least 30 min a day - but that is the only time I am really alone with my thoughts. I love those longer bike rides for that reason.

Otherwise its work, family, smartphone...
 
My anxiety has the great side effect of making me a chronic worrier, so I tend to keep my mind as occupied as possible so it doesn’t stray down a million bad tangents.

I could have all the time I want realistically. The girls are both teenagers doing their own things and I only work about 30 hours a week.
I’ve always got a YouTube vid or something running on my phone, even if I’m gaming or otherwise occupied.
 
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plenty since I WFH and not living with any family. though I don't really use those time for thoughts or reflection. mostly just play games and maybe watch a show or two from time to time.
 

BlackTron

Member
I do things like play games to reduce this time. Most people see games as a series of objectives. My objective is just to do something fun that engages/distracts my head. Open world checkbox-fests don't do it very well. Tetris is more engaging than walking from point A to point B back to A then C...
 

Dural

Member
With multiple kids, even taking a shit you're not left alone. I do take walks around the shop floor and am left to myself in my office but am usually working on PC or listening to something, so 30 minutes or so sounds about right.
 

Tams

Member
I've extended the contract for my current job for a year largely because I'm left alone most of the time and also outside.

It's really great for just thinking things over, though do sometimes end talking to myself, sometimes much louder than I think I am.

I've been trying to get more Japanese listening in, which has sort of put a bit of a spanner in getting lost in my thoughts, but then again, I often zone out from the podcast and just think.
 
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