Are you running out of time - or running on panic?
- Vikki da Rocha
- Sep 19
- 7 min read
Dear reader,
With the end of the year approaching, how many of you have slipped into "panic work" mode? Working late, dropping boundaries, telling yourself you'll just "get a bit more done", but actually achieving less. It’s that familiar sense of running out of time.
I've been noticing how often I hear people say, "I can't believe it's already September, we're in the last quarter." I've even caught myself saying it. At first, it feels harmless, but here's the truth: those small words start to wire the brain into panic. Suddenly, time feels scarce, and when time feels scarce, panic replaces productivity. It feels as if we’re constantly running out of time.
For me, that's looked like:
Working late into the night on tasks that could wait until morning.
Ignoring my own boundaries in the name of "catching up."
Spending twice the energy for half the results, because panic slows clarity.
This isn't just about stress in the moment. I've seen how the December panic often ends with people collapsing into illness during the holidays.
The December Panic
For Jorge, it became almost predictable, like clockwork. Every December, after months of running in overdrive, his body would suddenly come to a halt, and a cold or flu would strike just as the holidays began.
Yes, it made him slow down, but it wasn't a break; it was recovery. Instead of rest, joy, or presence, December turned into a cycle of illness and rebuilding.
Has anyone else been there? Pushing so hard right up to the finish line that the moment you stop, your body crashes?
This is what happens when we rehearse panic for months. The nervous system doesn't just shut off because the calendar says 'holiday.' If anything, it crashes harder.
How Distortion Shaped Two Very Different Weeks
When Amelia was unwell, she was home with me for a whole week. The exact number of hours in each day, but those days felt long and spacious. I had the mental focus of "let's do what we can and get through it," and the interesting thing was that time felt generous.
The following week, when she returned to school, I had the opposite experience. I'd built up so many tasks in my head that the moment we dropped her off, I caught myself saying: "Okay, we have six hours to get stuff done." I was already distorting time before the day had even begun. The pressure to squeeze everything in made the week fly by. Five days felt like two.
It wasn't the clock that changed; it was how I related to time. In one week, time seemed to expand because I wasn't resisting it. In the next week, time seemed to contract because I loaded it with panic before I'd even started.
Cal Newport's Lens on Time
Cal Newport's work on slow productivity adds another layer, focusing on three key principles: Do fewer things, Work at a natural pace. Obsess over quality.
I found the last one I could grasp quickly. I believe in doing something well and producing the standard that you want rather than just getting it done. But the first two I had to sit with for a while.
I realised that my need to fill my day was indeed an old pattern of "busy means productive" when in reality busy meant feeling so overwhelmed and stimulated that most of the time I did the easy jobs just to satisfy my busyness and never really did the important stuff, and now it makes sense, do fewer things – do what matters.
Then he said something interesting, he challenges the way we use to-do lists. I heard him explain it as follows: most of our lists aren't really "to-dos," they're wish lists.
We write them because it feels good to imagine all we'll achieve, but then reality hits. This is where the natural pace became my aha moment! The brain, which isn't built to accurately estimate time, becomes overwhelmed when we can't keep track of everything, so we feel stressed, guilty, or inadequate. Therefore, it's essential to work at a realistic and natural pace; remember, it's a 'wish list', not a 'to-do' list.
The key insight:
A to-do list is not a contract. It's a wish.
Slow productivity means choosing what truly matters, focusing on fewer things, and doing them deeply.
When we collapse our wish list into a rigid to-do list, we attach our worth to how much we can cross off. No wonder we feel we're always behind.
The Printer Lesson: When Language Projects Panic
I recently witnessed this play out with a printing job that had a strict deadline. The company informed me that they needed the files by the weekend, so I worked late into Friday night, anxious to meet their deadline. I even skipped something meaningful for my daughter, convinced they'd be working through the weekend to get it done.
The reply came back: "We don't work weekends."
I was furious. I'd pushed myself unnecessarily, only to find out that the printers weren't going to touch it until Monday anyway. But when I looked closer, I realised the problem wasn't just them, it was how I had interpreted their message.
They likely meant: "We need the files in by the weekend so we can start first thing Monday."
I heard: "We'll be working on this over the weekend, so you must get it to us then."
That minor distortion in language created unnecessary stress, wasted energy, and frustration. I projected urgency that didn't exist.
This is what happens when we panic about time: we don't just distort our own schedule; we also start distorting other people's words.
When Time Becomes Distorted
Last week, you heard me discuss the brain's three filters. I believe that distortion has a part to play in our time panic, you see, the practical side of distortion: helping us understand something based on our current beliefs and projections is essential; however, the shadow side, especially when it comes to time, sounds like:
"There's no time left."
"The year's already gone."
"I'll never catch up."
Or simply: "I’m running out of time."
These phrases aren't facts; they're distortions of the truth. They compress time, shift our perception, and convince the brain that time itself is the problem. And when time becomes the enemy, panic takes over.
Two Questions to Reclaim Time
Here are two simple check-ins you can use anytime you feel time pressure rising:
Am I distorting time right now? Am I telling myself it's running out, disappearing, or already gone, when in fact I still have the same 24 hours as everyone else?
Am I making time the enemy? Am I treating time as something I must fight against, instead of a resource I can use wisely?
These two questions help you pause distortion, shift out of panic, and return to clarity.
As September turns into October, I'm calling quits on the "end of year panic." Let's stop rehearsing scarcity and start relating to time differently.
Time is your resource, and like any resource, how you speak about it, plan for it, and inhabit it will determine whether it drains you or fuels you.
Your time is your gift; use it with clarity.
If you'd like to go deeper into understanding how your mind filters, join us at our NLP Practitioner Certification [link landing page here] in Melbourne in October and Sydney in December. It's where you'll learn the tools to stop repeating old patterns and start using your mind as your most potent resource.
Vikki
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In this blog, I've shared just a glimpse of a few NLP concepts and techniques. If this sparks your curiosity and you'd like to explore more, or even consider becoming an NLP Practitioner yourself, we'd be delighted to welcome you to our in-person NLP certification training. Our next sessions are scheduled to run in Melbourne this October and in Sydney in December 2025.
Click here to learn more about our NLP Certification Training and secure your place.
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