The Myth of “More Time”

The house is quiet again. The backpacks are gone, the fridge isn’t mysteriously emptying every 90 minutes, and the WiFi bandwidth has finally recovered from the onslaught of Netflix, PlayStation, and “group project” calls that somehow lasted six hours.

For those of us working from home, this marks the annual transition: the kids are back in school (or, in my case, back at college), and suddenly we think we have more time.

Theoretically.

But, yeah, no…

Here’s the thing. Time doesn’t magically stretch just because the house is quiet. Instead, what actually happens is that the noise shifts. Instead of “Mom, where’s my hoodie?” or “Dad, can you drive me?”, it becomes the subtle creep of meetings, emails, and tasks that expand to fill the silence. Parkinson’s Law in action: work expands to fill the time available.

This is where August plays its little trick on us. We enter September believing we’ve unlocked bonus hours in the day. In reality, we’ve just swapped one set of demands for another. The quiet is deceptive. It invites us to say “yes” to more projects, more catch-ups, more to-dos, without actually granting us more capacity.

So the challenge isn’t really about gaining time. It’s about protecting it. How you set rhythms now, in this so-called “extra time”, will determine if you hit Q4 sharp and focused or stumble in overloaded and reactionary.

Here’s the shift:

The empty house doesn’t give you more hours. It gives you more control.

And control, when used well, translates into sharper decisions, healthier rhythms, and smarter prioritization.

The CEOs, founders, and leaders who finish the year strong aren’t the ones who get more time. They’re the ones who recognize that “quiet” is not permission to overload. It’s an opportunity to recalibrate.

So as September begins, take the quiet seriously. Decide what truly matters. Cut the rest. That’s where the real “bonus time” comes from.