Finding some time to think

Recently I read about one of Bill Gates' most fascinating business practices. Twice every year, Gates reserves an entire week, travels alone to a cabin in the woods, and spends 18 hours each day reading and thinking. He calls these “Think Weeks.”

I'll admit: I was jealous. Life at Red Hat has never been busier. Just the other day, I turned to my chief of staff and asked about the next available time I could spend alone, thinking about something outside of my daily to-do list.

"Thinking..." she responded as she looked carefully over my agenda. "That is ... not on the schedule today."

And, sadly, it rarely is.

I know I'm not the only one feeling this pinch. Not having enough time to just pause, breathe, and think is one of the most common frustrations I hear in my conversations with anyone in any role at any organization. And yet I'm sure we're all reading the same articles and reports stressing the value and importance of deliberate, thoughtful reflection throughout the week.

Too often, it seems to me, people assume the time for this kind of thinking and reflecting will suddenly materialize on its own. Maybe they believe that if they optimize their schedules just a little more, if they try one or two more productivity hacks, they'll somehow uncover a spare 45 minutes. Day after day, in a seemingly never-ending cycle they claim “I’ll get to that tomorrow.”

I suspect they hardly ever do.

Because something else is always waiting to fill that newly discovered time—and too often I know I let it, because I feel like I'm shirking responsibilities if I don't. ("Let me just respond to the rest of these emails and clear my inbox, then I'll close everything and take a quiet moment for myself" is a line I love using on myself. In the past 10 years, I can't say my inbox has ever been empty!)

But resisting the urge to feel constantly engaged in activity gets easier if we distinguish between "free time" and "unstructured time."

"Free time" is non-work time. It's leisure time, the time I specifically set aside to spend with my family, read a bestseller, or enjoy a game of golf with my wife. However I use the time, what I choose to do in it is generally unplanned and unscheduled (and I recommend taking a healthy amount of it!).

Time spent reflecting on business challenges and organizational issues isn't "free" in this sense—but it is unstructured. It's time unencumbered by meetings and emails and phone calls. Being more honest about the true nature of this time (unstructured, but still necessary for doing good work) means we're less likely to feel guilty about taking it. We're less likely to see it as an indulgence.

It also means we're more likely to be intentional about it and to make it a priority. For one thing, we can schedule unstructured time. I try to block time in my weekly agenda to make sure I don't neglect it. This way, I use my schedule to free me from my schedule (a nice bit of organizational jujutsu—when it works).

To be clear: this isn't planning time. Instead, I'm planning time not to plan my time. Instead, I'm taking this time to really explore and contemplate high-level issues. I try to focus on three general areas:

1. Strategy: How are our customers doing? How are they using our solutions, and what do they need to accelerate their work? How are we positioned to serve them relative to our competitors? Are there new areas we should be considering? What more could we be doing to help them realize the value of our partnership with IBM?

2. Taking action: Are we executing our strategy in the best way possible? Do we have the right plans in place? Do the plans need to be adjusted? Are we hitting our numbers?

3. People and culture: How do we grow Red Hat now that we’re part of IBM? And how do we ensure that we scale our open culture—which gives us a competitive advantage with our customers—as we get bigger? How do I make sure my direct reports have what they need to support their teams? How are we thinking about succession planning and evolving the organizations within Red Hat?

Sometimes I'll finish an unstructured period of time with some handwritten notes—but not always, and it isn't a goal. Sometimes I'll come to three or four important conclusions, or I'll finally be able to articulate a general goal for the week ahead (especially helpful since I tend to block this time on Sundays).

Most importantly, the time helps me identify priorities and set intentions—critical components of effective leadership, but something only available to us if we prioritize the (unstructured) time necessary for identifying them.