For anyone not familiar with the animal in the photo, it's a groundhog.
Simon Gallagher, who runs the movie site Obsessed With Film, meticulously studied the script for the 25-year-old movie "Groundhog Day" that starred Bill Murray ...
And he tallied up the time that the main character, Phil Connors the weatherman, spends living over and over.
Nowhere in the movie does it say how many times Connors has to repeat the day to get things right.
So Gallagher uses the list of skills that Connors picks up by the end of the movie to form an estimate.
Consider, says Gallagher, that Malcolm Gladwell says you need at least 10,000 hours for mastery in anything.
And, over the span of the movie, Connors masters ice sculpting.
He also develops other skills, like playing the piano and reciting a French poem, flicking cards into a hat, and so on.
With a thorough compilation of assumptions, tweaks, allowances for personality, and other factors...
Gallagher puts the exact time of Connors' life on repeat at 12,403 days. Or just one week shy of 34 years total.
That's a long time to get things right.
Correction: That's a long time to slack off, harbor a rotten attitude, make to-do lists, ignore your to-do lists and generally procrastinate, make more to-do lists, find your motivation, lose your motivation, make big mistakes, head down the wrong path, fix your attitude, get it wrong, get it right, come to many layers of realization, reach a level of perfection, and bask in the satisfaction and glory of a job well done.
At this point, we might feel like we've been under lockdown for a very, very long time. It's been about eight weeks and change.
And granted, it's all a question of perspective.
For instance, I've spent the last eight weeks working pretty much as I've done for the last 10 years ...
Supporting small businesses as they navigate through the COVID mire.
And we've found that many of our customers are, quite sensibly, catching up with menial business matters.
So, as in the case of Phil Connors the weatherman, many are learning and applying new skills. Albeit reluctantly.
And as for Business Buddies we seem to have gotten busier.
The amount of forms and paperwork to fill in has gone through the roof!
Thankfully myself and my partner Lindsey can work remotely without issue.
So, if you feel you could use some support, and you don't fancy learning to play the guitar or piano; to learn a new language; or hone your cooking skills (none of which we can help you with) I’d be more than happy to chat.
If you want take advantage of groundhog year and get your paperwork and bookkeeping ship shape and shiny, just hit reply (or email me at sarah@business-buddies.co.uk) and say hello and we can take it from there.
Best,