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What is this meshugas people have that they set thier clocks ahead of time, like by 5 -10 minutes? What exactly do they gain from it if they know its quick. Anyone have any idea?
Because when you see the time 10 minutes fast,it makes you hurry!
I do it, and it helps me hurry up even though I know it is fast. There are also times that I will forget that it is fast and hurry up too.
It works well in the morning when you’re not thinking or calculating exactly how much time you have.
its not logical, its psycho-logical
and it works
i do it also
10 min fast in the kitchen
15 min fast in the bedroom
exact in the den
Just SEEING that time makes you realize “yikes,it’s almost that time!”
I would never want to fool myself.
the key is to set it to some uneven number like 3,4 or 7, because when you look at your watch quickly you may not have the time or patience to calculate the exact time so you end up rounding to the safe side, which gives you an extra minute or so.
And also what PB said, especially when you’re in a big rush, sometimes you forget that it’s fast.
My husbands been doing it for 26 years and it still makes me crazy. I put a second clock in our room which is “my clock” with the RIGHT time but i still get crazy from his!
Mussar seforim would agree that its a good idea to fool yourself if thats what it takes to get you to be on time.
I used to do this, but my kids put a stop to it (They are right, it was pointless)
brisker
yes on one level i know its 10 min fast and subconsciously calculate the real time.
on a psychological level it looks and feels like its the correct time and gives me a spur to get moving
The concept bothers me; it seems too close to the issur of owning incorrect scales (especially for people who charge money for their time).
The concept bothers me; it seems too close to the issur of owning incorrect scales (especially for people who charge money for their time).
If he logs in on one clock and logs out on another YES:
Otherwise ??????
Of course, if he logged in on one clock and logged out on another, it would be theft, not owning false scales. Here, I’m only talking about owning false scales.
How could it come to theft? One could be talking on their portable phone and say, “oh, it’s four o’clock” without remembering that the clock is wrong. Or one could take a call in one room and walk around talking, then think they were on for forty-five minutes when it was only a half-hour.
brisker
thats probably because you think straight
you have to be a bit twisted for it to work
it’s mind over matter what you see on the clock you see in your mind and then you calculate,it could help you make a school bus or just miss it,so there it helps alot.it could sometimes be helpful.
There are also times that I will forget that it is fast and hurry up too.
That’s why I set my watch 1 min. fast
I’ve been doing it for years. i like to be on time, and it helps. the only drawback is that the calculation becomes so automatic, you forget that other people don’t set their clocks the same way.
Like smile said, it has to be a funny number. When you’re in a rush, you wont bother actually figuring out the time, but it’ll make you move quicker. I think its one of those things that either you love or you hate.
the clock in my parants room is like 12 minites fast. When i see it i think oh its like 12 minites left and then if it is less i rationalize and think its STILL 12 minites left even if its only 8 9 10… bad idea cuz who am i really fooling?
living rm. clock is 10 min. fast. I love it! my kids don’t. when we have company, they always say, omg, we gotta go, till we tell them it’s 10 min. fast. bli ayin hora, I rarely come late.
I have an explanation.
Most clocks and watches lose (or gain) time over, well, time. If one sets the exact time, a few weeks later the clock may be slow and the person may miss something important. I think the “ma’ariv phenomenon” is well known. You think you’re on time, but when you get to shul, they have already started and you missed borchu. Setting a clock or watch ahead solves that. Yes, there is a psychological element here too and it works for many people.
I find it difficult to compare this to the issur of owning inaccurate scales.
You think you’re on time, but when you get to shul, they have already started and you missed borchu. Setting a clock or watch ahead solves that.
Know what else solves that? Stop playing “Jewish Time” and simply train yourself to be on-time. Believe it or not, much of the rest of the world manages to get things started on-time, like weddings, family celebrations, graduations, meetings, etc. Gee, maybe I should post this in the Pet Peeves thread!
Mod 80:
I always used to wonder why I see your name so often while other mods hardly seem to appear! Now I know why.
You wrote re. putting clocks fast: “I do it also. 10 min fast in the kitchen, 15 min fast in the bedroom, exact in the den”.
So you cant REALLY have any idea what the real time is!! Therefore you think this is the time to be on duty at YWN when really other mods are supposed to be on now!
And please let me guess what times other clocks in your house may be set to…
KIDS BEDROOM: 20 mins late so they will be on time for the school bus.
ENTRANCE HALL: ten mins early, so that when guests arrive, you still have enough time to prepare for them.
EN SUITE GUEST BEDROOM (where your in laws stay): 2 days late, so that you can get rid of them nice and early.
BATHROOM: 30 mins late to discourage long term occupancy.
BASEMENT: thirty mins early, no obvious reason.
STUDY: You have 3 clocks; one facing your chavrusa set at half an hour late to explain why you’ve nodded off during learning in the evening. The other two are facing you – one is set to kitchen time (ten mins fast) while the other is set to the entrance hall time (ten mins early), so that between the 2 clocks you can work out what REAL time actually is… 🙂
Calling Mod 80!!
Shtika k’hoda’a? Your silence and lack of response on this thread this past 2 days is deafening! Are you:
1. Considering your reply? Or
2. Attending Yiddish lessons so you can mod on the yiddish thread? In which case ich vart far deiner haguos oif mein letzter post vus ich hob arayn geshikt!
I can’t stand having the wrong time on a clock. I have a radio controlled clock and always set my other clocks and watches to the nearest second (or nearest minute if I can’t set the seconds).
Its actually a very interesting subject – setting a false time when you know the real time, and yet for many people, it works!
There must be a pschychological reason why. Is it like when you know the time cos you just looked, and someone asks you the time, you just gotta check your watch again before answering!!!
I remember the Kaminitzer Mashgiach, Rav Moshe Aron Stern zatzal, noting that while he always sees clocks in every beis hamedrash, he rarely sees one in a yeshiva dining room! His point was that there are times when you need a clock, and times that you dont eg cos you’re enjoying yourself so time has less meaning.
Any other thoughts on this?
It’s a psychological thing. Either it makes you hurry up, OR, as in my case when I was a teenager, it let me know I can sleep an additional ten minutes when the alarm goes off, and I am still on time. It also helps that when you are running late, you can relax a little because you gave yourself an extra ten minutes.
I actually have done both -I sometimes leave my watch on the old time when they change the clock, and I’ve set my watch a few minutes early. I eventually switch to the right time because your mind can only be fooled a little bit. What I mean by this -is that everybody knows the right time but you can fool yourself a little bit. Esp. in the morning, when your mind is a little groggy. But there comes a time, when it becomes automatic switching in your mind to the right time, so I lose any advantage; at this point I change to the correct time.
The clock in my parents room is half an hour fast so that when the alarm rings my mother knows she still has half an hour.
The clock in the car is 10 minutes fast so we could all freak out and are like, we’re leaving late again, and then it’s like nope we have 10 more minutes.
Its annoying sometimes but at the same time I totally understand it why people do it.
My husband sets him clock 10 minutes fast. When you are in a rush you forget that the clock is not the right time. It works for him…
my son started doing it and yes it works great for him,he sets his watch fifteen min earlier, and hes always on time…
This thread is quite apt for this time of year, asseres yimei tshuva, as it teaches us how precious time is and how a minute here and there can make such a tremendous difference in so many ways. Utilize your time wisely because every second we have should be treasured! See what we can accomplish in such a short time period of those extra few minutes and use it as a musar haskel of how important and valued time really is. The goyim say time=money, but we know time=life!
When I worked I always had the bedroom alarm clock set 10 minutes fast. When the alarm rang I always jumped out of bed before I realized that I had spare time. In that firt moment of groggy awakening, I always managed to fool myself and I was quite wide awake (well, at least had my feet on the ground) before realizing I had extra time.
I’ve been doing it for years to offset my extreme punctuality!
..ness
I honestly don’t know how “extreme punctual” people have been
doing it for ages (with sundials) before they invented the clock!
(B’lashon Sagi Nahor) V’hameivin Yovin.
What I do is set my watch a few minutes slow, so that way, everyone is ready and waiting when I make my way to the podium
Has anybody tried to set their watch back 10 minutes??
Make sure you get there just a few little late.
bpt but then you’ll arrive late for your appointment and somebody else will be having their nails done instead of you
Setting my watch fast works for me
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