A definition of time

We all have a notion of what time is, from the concrete—seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, years, and decades—to something more esoteric, "I'm having the time of my life," meaning you're enjoying yourself or, "Is that really worth your time?" meaning you're making the value judgment that time is equated with something that is worthwhile to do.

Those in the IT field, your workshop attendees, will probably agree that time is something that is key to how their value is measured by the companies they work for. The two basic measures for practically everyone in IT are:

• How fast can you get something done?

• How effectively and accurately can you do it?

Being fast—getting work done on time or in time or with plenty of time to spare or even being late because you ran out of time —is a key factor, of course, to how effective you are. But if what you deliver is wrong, outdated, inaccurate, or just plain same old, same old if innovation was required or preferred, just being on time will not turn out to be the best use of your time.

Note

Make a note

Time is a finite measure, usually by the use of a clock or a calendar, of a set number of units of moments, whether it's a second, minute, hour, day, month, year, or lifetime that help us to organize projects as well as interactions between individuals or groups. Time gives order to events so someone in India can set up a specific moment when it will be possible to interact by phone in real time with someone even if he or she is on the other side of the world, in another time zone, and even if it is a different day of the week.