A Geography of Time summary

It’s kind of amazing to consider the fact that, for most of human history, there were no clocks, no schedules, just people living by the rhythms of nature. Appointments were made at sunset, and the day began at the rooster’s crow. But that all changed with the invention of timekeeping devices.

It started with sundials – sticks in the ground casting shadows to mark time. The Egyptians refined them, and the Greeks increased their popularity. The drawback of course was that they were pretty useless when the sun disappeared. That’s where water clocks came in, measuring time by the steady drip of water. Later, people got creative – burning candles, incense, and tracking sand in an hourglass.

The shift into clock time has had a pretty big effect on us. While some people have a personality that suits moving fast – be it talking quickly or eating quickly – a lot of us can end up with a condition known as hurry sickness. We feel restless whenever forced to slow down, a compulsion to move fast even when there’s no real reason.

It’s all a bit messy because our perception of time isn’t as precise as a clock. Rather, it’s shaped by mood, surroundings, and even body temperature. If you’ve ever been bedridden with a fever, you’re probably felt like time is dragging. Likewise, people in cold environments often feel like time is speeding up. This might explain why cultures in hotter climates tend to move at a slower pace. Their sense of time makes everything else seem fast. 

Now that we know about the kind of influence clock time has had on us, as well as other internal and external factors, let’s look at the research the author and his team did to try and measure cultural tempos around the world.

It came down to three simple tests: How fast people walked 60 feet in busy downtown areas, how quickly postal clerks completed a standard transaction, and how accurate public clocks were. With this approach, they gathered data from 31 countries and found some surprising results.

In these final sections, we’re going to flip the script a bit. Rather than looking at why certain cultures are faster or more leisurely paced than others, we’re going to look at what happens to the culture, or the people in it, as a result of the tempo.

You don’t have to dig too deep to notice that speed has profound effects on how people live. A city’s tempo influences not just how quickly residents walk or talk but also their health, happiness, and even their generosity.

Let’s end this Blink by doing two things: taking a look at how you can be more skilled at navigating the time across different cultures – a skill known as time literacy – and then turn our attention to how you can master time in your own environment. 

Every culture believes its approach to time is the right one, but in reality, there’s no universal standard – just different ways of doing things, each with its pros and cons. Understanding these differences is crucial for navigating the complexities of time across cultures. As we saw in Japan, their fast-paced work culture only makes sense when you understand the broader cultural values behind it.