Garbage Time
Don't aim for quality time, aim for garbage time
"People talk about quality time; I'm into garbage time."
-Jerry Seinfeld
My family and I recently returned from a trip to Boston and Maine. My wife attended high school in Boston, so showing our boys that part of the country was fun.
We planned a slew of activities:
Watch a Red Sox game at Fenway Park
Visit the Boston Garden and Boston Commons
Shop at Faneuil Hall Marketplace and Newbury Street
Get ice cream in Brookline at JP Licks
Try the two most famous pastry shops in The North End
Eat a Maine lobster while in Maine
We executed our plan perfectly, checking off every box.
However, as I was flying home and reminiscing, I was surprised. The best memories from the trip weren't the planned activities but the moments in between.
The random restaurants and coffee shops we popped into
The meaningless conversations we had while walking around the city
The funny interactions with locals
The impulsive decision to see a movie because it was so hot we couldn't walk another step
The people-watching on the train
The conversations over meals
The reruns we watched in the hotel room
The best part of our trip was the garbage time—the unplanned, unstructured moments. The garbage time, not the quality time, will stick with us.
I borrowed the concept of garbage time from Jerry Seinfeld. He discussed it in an interview I watched recently (Note: this video contains one NSFW word). Jerry distinguishes between garbage time and quality time.
Garbage time is simple. It is all the unstructured and unplanned time you spend with people when you are doing nothing, "but it's everything."
Garbage time isn’t just for families. It’s for team leaders and managers, too. This is why I'm bringing it up. This is a hidden gem of an idea that can positively influence your team.
Let me give you something a little more tangible. In 1988, Gallup started their employee engagement survey called the Q12. In this survey, employees react to twelve statements, indicating their engagement level. Three of the twelve questions are impacted by garbage time:
Q5 - My supervisor or someone at work seems to care about me as a person.
Q7 - At work, my opinions seem to count.
Q10 - I have a best friend at work.
Showing you care, making people feel heard, and building friendships. These all contribute significantly to how someone feels about their job and organization. These elements are impacted not necessarily by quality time but by garbage time.
If you are a team leader or manager, I want to relieve some pressure. You don't need to plan formal "team-building" activities to build your team. You need simple and consistent opportunities to interact with your team meaningfully.
This is not a new idea. It is the heart of what Hewlett-Packard figured out in the 1970s when they embraced MBWA (Manage By Walking Around). Amazing things happen when you wander around and talk to people. That is garbage time at its best.
Garbage time might be what your team needs most from you. It won’t appear on your to-do list and may not feel as satisfying as a zero inbox. But it’s the unsung hero of good relationships at work (and home).
So, close your laptop and walk around. Pick up the phone. Go to lunch with some teammates. Take a walk with a few people this afternoon. Garbage time is nothing, but as Jerry said so well, "it's everything."