I ran across this video at the beginning of the year and it dramatically changed how I look at my week. I used to have every minute packed and often time I would go from one half hour meeting to the next with no time to prep or really be prepared for what was going to happen in the next 30 minutes. Sometimes even prepping in the last part of one meeting for the next meeting.
If you are a typical employee, there is a good chance that your job revolves not around day to day mundane tasks. There may be some of that, but there is a good chance that it revolves around completing projects. Yes, project oriented work is challenging and rewarding, but often done very poorly.
Not that your work is bad, its the management of the project that we suck at. And more to the point, its the time estimation that we’re the worst at doing.