Life has been somewhat crazy and upside-down, but all in a good way. I’m waiting for the subway train to come, questioning myself because I’ve let a couple of local trains (that make every stop) pass by while waiting for an express train (makes only certain stops). I’ve been waiting so long that I think I made a mistake by letting all of those locals pass by.
My degree from the University of Florida is a bachelors in industrial engineering. One cornerstone of IE is efficiency – finding the most efficient ways to do tasks to save time and money. Though I realized about 3/4 of the way into the degree that it wasn’t my calling, efficiency is hard-wired into my personality.
I constantly question my decision-making, wondering if I could have done something better. As I type this on my phone (in order to maximize my commuting time), I’m weighing getting off to transfer to a local train, which will stop closer to my office, or staying on the express, which will get me a further stop faster.
At grocery stores, I scan the checkout lines and switch lines depending on variables like:
- Number of customers
- Volume of customers’ merchandise
- Speed of cashier
- Width of conveyor belt
- Age of bar code scanner
OK, I’m not an engineer, so those last two aren’t true. But I really do watch for people who get in the other lines at the same time as me to see if they leave before I do.
Maybe I’m just trying to make the most of my time. Maybe I have mental issues. Maybe I’ll read some psychiatry journals on the pot to study up on it.
Are you an efficiency freak like me? What extremes do you go to?
No related posts.
Yes. I always have a reason for doing things certain ways. For example, this morning, I missed the normal exit I take out of a shopping center where there’s a Starbucks. The way traffic flows at the exit I was at is not very efficient and ideal, so I backed up and went to my normal exit. My regular exit went smoothly.
It drives me nuts when people do things a certain way without understanding why. It drives me nuts when I see people doing things in a way that seems obviously inefficient but they are always resistant to ways to make it better.
Some people might think I have a problem. I don’t. They have a problem and I’m just trying to help.
Oh this is so me its scary. Especially the supermarket thing, and when driving to & from work, I’m always assessing which lane I should be in, but also trying not to be a lane-hopper/annoying driver while doing it.
And every time I do it (ie: all the time) I’m reminded of Elaine’s recounting her super-efficient trip to JFK…until she hit the Van Wyck.
Seinfeld, my brain would be so much emptier had it never existed.
I take my coffee out of the freezer at the last possible moment and then return it as soon as possible – to minimize the amount of energy used to cool it again.
This was going to be my next blog post! Well, not this EXACTLY, but one similarly examining my obsession with efficiency. Stay tuned!