How to learn boatbuilding if you don't have the time

“I want to learn boatbuilding, but …”

I’ve been in touch with a lot of people who want to learn wooden boatbuilding but are held back by obstacles that feel difficult to overcome.

What I hear the most is:

1. I want to learn boatbuilding, but I don’t have access to a suitable workshop.
2. I want to learn boatbuilding, but I don’t have the time
3. I want to learn boatbuilding, but I can’t afford it.
4. I want to learn boatbuilding, but I’m afraid I’ll fail.

These are all real and relevant concerns. But in most cases, I believe they can be overcome.

In this blog post series, I’ll address each of these four issues, one by one.

Obstacle 2: I want to learn boatbuilding, but I don’t have the time

I'm very familiar with the feeling of not having enough time for all the things I want to do. So this post will be a very personal one.

The title could just as well have been "How to find time to do what you dream of in spite of Everyday Life".

At times, I've been very stressed by this. Which is a bit silly, because one of the reasons I started teaching boatbuilding (instead of working in an office at a computer screen all day) was that I wanted a life where work felt more wholesome and less stressful. 

Acknowledging that I'll never have time to do everything that I want to (or feel that I ought to) do, I've worked out a structure for my work life and my private life, which I'll explain in this blog post.

It revolves around composing days where I get to work with various types of jobs that are necessary for myself, my family and my business to thrive.  

Letting go of "being done"

My everyday work tasks involve about equal amounts of office (computer) work and manual (workshop) work.

In the past, I had a tendency to accumulate the various types of work. Say, when accounting day was getting close, I'd spend full days doing just accounting. Which would make me miserable - not as much because of the numbers, but because I really don't enjoy this type of work. 

Other times, I would spend long days in the workshop. In a lot of ways this was what I wanted to do, but I'd often get to a point where I was so physically tired that productivity dropped drastically. Or where I started making frustrating mistakes. 

Both in my office work and my workshop work I've had (and still sometimes have) a tendency of wanting to be done. To get that sense of achievement.

It's often difficult for me to allow myself to simply enjoy the process, because I'm too focused on finishing it. 

Why is this bad? Accomplishing things is good, right?

Yes, it is. But I feel that accomplishment is a very short-term satisfaction. A bit like getting an "A" at school after a long, tiring semester. It's an immediate thrill, but very quickly I start thinking, "now what..?"

On the other hand: Allowing myself to dive deep into my work processes, being in the work with all my senses, allowing the job to take the time it requires is very much a long-term satisfaction.

My days are - more or less - just work processes. So they'd better be as enjoyable as possible. 

The writer Annie Dillard once said that "How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives." 

Although this statement seems ridiculously obvious, I remember being completely mind-blown the first time I heard it.

Life is right now. I'm not just preparing for it.

I feel that focusing on my process, and not the results, gives me a much more balanced work life, where I tend to enjoy the various jobs (even accounting) a lot more. 

And - ironically - by not focusing on the results, I'm quite sure my productivity and the quality of my work has increased. 

Working with time chunks

So, how do I do this? Well, I've divided my work days into time chunks: 

• Before 8 AM
• 8-10 AM
• 10-12 AM
• 12 AM - 4 PM
• After 4 PM

Each of these time chunks is dedicated to a specific type of work:

• Before 8 AM: Anything that feels enjoyable: A morning stroll or jog. Reading. Drinking a cup of coffee while looking out the window. Going to the workshop. Stuff like that, which will start the day on a happy note. I feel that this is very important, because it sets the tone for the rest of the day. From 7 to 8 I cook breakfast and get our kids to school. 
• 8-10 AM: Creative work at the computer. This could be writing, video editing or conceptual work around the school. This is work that I enjoy doing. But it's demanding, and it requires a clear, well-rested mind. That's why I start out by doing this. And I only do it for a couple hours, because after that, my brain will melt down.
• 10-12 AM: Administrative work at the computer. Then I spend a few hours doing administrative stuff, such as replying to emails, ordering building materials, paying bills, doing invoicing, etcetera. I also reply to new messages at the Apprentice Forum in this time slot. Two hours of this kind of work feels manageable, and it frees me up to not worry about it for the rest of the day.
• 12 AM - 4 PM: Workshop work. After lunch, I do workshop work. We've just moved into a new house, so past month has been spent mainly clearing and setting up the workshop space. But my plan is to start building new boats soon while documenting the process in video. Four hours of workshop time works well for me - it's enough to get into the "zone", but it's not so much that I'll get exhausted and stop enjoying the process.  
• After 4 PM: Work around the house, cooking, family time. At 4, I stop doing boat school related work. Kids are home from school, so I hang out with them. Sometimes I cook, and sometimes I do work around the house. 

It's important to note that these time slots are by no means carved in stone. If, for any reason I need to modify them a bit, of course that's OK. But still, I try to stick to them as much as I can. 

The reason they work for me is that they allow me to focus on the process instead of the end result.

Why is this? Because once a time slot is over, I know that I've done enough.

Regardless if I've finished all the things i thought I would or not. No matter the results, I've done enough, because I've dedicated the time to work with the things that I prioritize.

And next day, I'll continue where I left off. So in time, every job I set out to do will be completed. 

Sometimes, I don't feel inspired to do creative work. And quite often, I don't feel too much like doing administrative work. But still, I dedicate the time to do it, regardless what the outcome will be.

For me, this is a huge relief, because it entitles me to be in a creative zone, even on days where I feel I can't perform very well. I still stick to the process.

And, strangely, quite often I end up doing good, creative work on the days where I feel least motivated.

Simply because I'm strict around my process, but overbearing in regards to the results I expect to achieve.

The same thing goes for the administrative work: In the past, I've often pushed it ahead of me, leaving huge chunks of to-dos that keep lingering in the back of my mind as a bad conscience while I procrastinate, doing other things that feel easier.

By doing a manageable amount of administrative work every day, in a fixed time slot, I stay on top of things. And - most importantly - I don't need to worry about it the rest of the day. 

I realize that this kind of structure might seem very rigid, perhaps even unfree. And a few years ago, I would have agreed. But I've come to realize that - for me - the more structured my life is, the more free I feel.

I get to do the things that are important for me - instead of just being tossed around by whatever pops into my mind or drops into my email inbox. 

It helps me get the work done that I want done - because just being in the process of working with it is enough.

What to work with? The never-ending priority list

Now, the issue that remains is what jobs to put into the various time slots. 

The way I do this is very simple: I keep task lists on my computer, where I write a note whenever I come up with idea about something I could (or should) do. 

I have a task list for each of the main time chunks: Creative computer work, administrative computer work, workshop work, work around the family and house. 

I keep these lists prioritized. So the top priority is what I will work with first. A task can get a high priority because it has a deadline soon, or it can get a high priority because it will make a big personal difference for me. 

The bulk of these lists originate from my five-year plan. The five-year plan is my overall vision of what I want my life to be like in five years. After writing the overall vision, I break it down into jobs I need to do in order to make it happen.

These jobs go into the task lists. Some of them are very high-level, and some are very specific. This is OK, because the task lists are a working document that I revisit, at least on a weekly basis. 

As I start working with the various tasks, I'm usually able to break them down into smaller subtasks. And very often, priorities change. So what felt important last week might not feel as important today. This is OK, too. If a job feels less important, I simply move it further down the list (or remove it altogether). 

The great thing about these priority lists is that they help me get rid of the feeling of overwhelm. I know that all the jobs I want to do are in the lists. So I don't need to remember them, or do them all right now.

If I do the ones that are at the top of the lists, and work with them every day, slowly I'll be making progress in all the most important areas.

How does this all apply to learning boatbuilding?

What I've described above is my way of organizing my work life as a full-time, self-employed business owner. 

So how can it be applied, say, if you have a day job and want to learn boatbuilding in your spare time? 

Or if you're retired and want to pursue boatbuilding as a hobby?

Well, I think the same principles apply, although you might not need to keep several priority lists.

If you follow a course like my Building the Fiddlehead Canoe Online Boatbuilding Apprenticeship Program, you'll be guided through each step needed to set up a workshop, acquire the skills needed and building the actual boat. The course material could be your guided priority list.

What will be important is to prioritize the time to do the work.

If you're retired, it might not be too much of a challenge to dedicate four hours three or four days a week. And in that case, you'll most likely have set up your workshop and built your boat in less than a year. 

If you have a day job and have children or other obligations, it might be more difficult to carve out big chunks of time.

But here's the thing: You don't necessarily need a lot of time to get started. You'll just need a bit of time - and a plan that you stick to.

If you can spend four hours every Saturday or Sunday morning, that'll be 200 hours in a year - which will get you a long way.

I encourage you to talk this through with your partner or with a good friend. Together, you decide what time each day/week/month will be your boatbuilding time.

This keeps you accountable, which is important. Because the biggest threat to your success as a boatbuilder is if you give up on your work ethic. 

Even if you just work a few hours every week or every month, if you stick to it, you will keep learning and you'll keep progressing. And - one day - your boat will be done. 

- Mikkel Pagh