As a parent of an almost-two year old, it feels like there's never enough time. There are only so many hours in the day, and finding time outside of work to exercise, prepare healthy meals, maintain a hobby, keep the house clean, stay on top of projects, and remain connected to others often seems impossible.

There are a number of tactics for dealing with the lack of time, such as asking for help, setting a schedule, and choosing to let certain things just drop. But there is also a strategy to deal with the overall problem, which is to use the same approach I use every day at work: to define this as a design problem. I have constraints (such as time, energy, and money) and goals (such as be healthy, provide for my family, and have fun), and the challenge is to achieve the desired goals while accommodating for the constraints.

What's encouraging is that a key theme in design is that constraints make the design better. When completing a design project at work, it can be frustrating to have limits such as time, the capabilities of the software we're using, or conflicting opinions within the team. But after working on enough projects, you begin to learn that all of these constraints make the work better, because a) you are forced to prioritize, which uncovers what you value, and b) thanks to time constraints, you are forced to actually deliver something.

I have a feeling this applies equally to parenting, and much else in life, and there appears to be some validation of this. In "The Obstacle is the Way", Ryan Holiday take us through a discussion of stoicism, and bolsters the idea that how we respond to obstacles (or constraints) is what defines us.

As a parent, this isn't much consolation in the moment while I'm sleep-deprived and there's a million things to get done. But remembering this mindset, especially since it is such a key component to what I do at work, gives me hope that it's possible to keep making things better, and deeply meaningful to keep trying to do so.