The artificiality of time
Until the transcontinental railroad, there were no time zones. Each village kept its own time, based on its own steeple and its own high noon. And why not? There was no good reason to go through the pain of coordinating the clocks.
Factory work forced us all to know exactly what time it was. The shift couldn't start until the foreman and the workers were ready to go. Synchronicity paid big dividends, so we embraced it.
This notion of lockstep started to inform all elements of our culture. Not just what time rush hour was (what a bizarre concept) but how old you should be to go to college and to get a job and to get married and to have kids and to retire.
The web is asynchronous. Time frames have accelerated (started/funded/built/sold!) at the same time they have slowed down. It's up to you to decide how long your time horizon is--perhaps you're willing to invest five years into building a solid reputation on a web platform. The decision to work at a different rate than others can be a significant competitive advantage.
Celebrate New Year's when you want to, and as often as you choose. They're your resolutions, not ours.
Writing in a public forum is a challenge for me. I feel the need to cover everything in disclaimers (I do not always agree with Seth Godin's posts). I also feel the need to explain why I am doing what I am doing (because this post by Seth Godin is not only interesting from an informational perspective but also because he has summed up in a few words myriad thoughts that I have had but been unable to tie together into a cohesive statement). Factor in the fact that one should not post publicly unless one has something to say and you will see few posts from me. Beginning today I am comfortable with that.
