Think you have your hands full?

You do.

A recent Wall Street Journal article reports what many of us have been suspecting: economists may have declared that we are technically in recovery, (because we have hit bottom already)but it doesn't really feel like it yet. Why? In a word: jobs.

This recession has been a game changer. We've found ourselves with a new "normal". Some types of jobs may be on the verge of becoming extinct (video store clerk, maybe?), but many employers are just wary of adding to the payroll until economic confidence increases. With layoffs and budget cuts, productivity has actually increased. So what that means for many of us is that we will continue to do more with less.

Today's technology is making increased productivity possible and therefore more critical to your survival in the workplace. A growing technological literacy gap threatens every office worker that choses to look the other way - but how much is enough? How much is too much? How do you keep from becoming overwhelmed?

Sometimes our zeal for the "latest and greatest" outstrips our capacity to manage it. (Think about the field of bioethics - just because we have the ability to manipulate DNA, doesn't mean we are free to create designer babies.) With wireless technology, we are theoretically available 24/7 - that doesn't mean we should be. (I love Chris Brogan's thoughts on this in his post the Assault on Anywhen.)

So what's a harried, overworked person to do?

I think that rather than try to do and manage it all, we have to learn to be a little choosy and a lot disciplined about how we spend our time. I'll have some tips to help you do just that in upcoming posts.

Daylight savings time is just around the corner, a reminder of man's perennial attempt to manipulate time. The truth is, we are all given exactly the same number of hours in a day. How will you make yours count?

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