The arch is a symbol of strength, but also of rise and fall. In stories, there are three types of character arcs – change, growth and fall. Thinking deeply about a storybook character’s journey reveals a hidden lesson about the narratives that make us human. That’s why a good story captures our attention. Oftentimes, a character starts off feeling certain, then an event triggers a massive shift.

Adventure can be exciting, or scary, depending on how we perceive it. Naturally, the change arc and growth arc inspire more thrill; the fall arc stirs depression. The change arc tells us of a “hero’s journey.” The TV industry can make millions off of a hero. For example, science nerd Peter Parker becomes the superhero Spiderman. Jack “The Pumpkin King” Skellington in “The Nightmare Before Christmas” finds true happiness only after learning from his mistakes, which heavily impact Sally and their beloved Halloween Town.

The growth arc paves the way for the protagonist to overcome internal opposition and face external opposition. Mr. Darcy in ‘Pride and Prejudice’ seems like the perfect man (in terms of etiquette, finances and physical appearance), but his pride repels love from his life. Yes, he’s handsome and comes across as mannerly in social situations (at times), but only through personal growth can he become a better version of himself. In the face of the witty, energetic Elizabeth Bennet, he develops into her ideal companion.

The fall arc is appropriately deemed a tragedy. This rise and fall unravels the character to his or her very core. Shakespeare’s Hamlet, for instance, desires to avenge his father’s death, an obsession which leads him down an unfortunate path – to lie and murder,  haunted by his guilty conscience and finally to his own death by poisoned sword.

But here’s the positive spin on the arc. While a storybook or screenplay often follows this path, our lives are more complex. We aren’t characters in a story; we exist in a free-form world. Let’s embark on the countless arcs in our lifetimes. Our stories carry on through the lives we touch, the conversations we have, the things we create. In the big picture outside of the book margins and television screens – our lives are circular, and in some ways, never-ending.

Time is one of our few non-renewable assets so it’s critical to set rules for time management to be able to experience more of what you love and less of what you don’t.

Here are six easy-to-implement time saving strategies to consider…

1) Do not answer calls from unrecognized phone numbers

Feel free to surprise others, but don’t be surprised. It just results in unwanted interruption and poor negotiating position. Let it go to voicemail and respond when you are ready.

2) Do not email first thing in the morning or last thing at night

The former scrambles your priorities for the day and the latter just gives you insomnia. Email can easily wait until after you’ve completed at least one of your critical to-do items.

3) Do not agree to meetings or calls with no clear agenda or end time

If the desired outcome is defined clearly with a stated objective and agenda listing topics/questions to cover, then your meeting or call will more likely achieve the desired results. Request an agenda in advance so you can prepare and make good use of the time together.

4) Do not let people ramble

Forget “how’s it going?” when someone calls you. Stick with “what’s up?” or “I’m in the middle of getting something out, but what can I help you with?”

5) Do not check e-mail constantly – “batch” and check at set times only

Focus on the execution of your top to-do’s instead of responding to manufactured emergencies. Set up appointments with yourself to check emails during the day. Two or three times a day is often enough.

6) Do not work more to fix overwhelm, prioritize instead

If you don’t prioritize, everything seems urgent and important. If you define the single most important task for each day, very little else will feel urgent or important. Oftentimes, it’s just a matter of letting a few small bad things happen (return a phone call late and apologize, pay a small late fee, lose an unreasonable customer etc.) to get the big important things done. The answer to overwhelm is not spinning more plates – doing more – it’s defining the few things that can really fundamentally change your business and life.

It’s hip to focus on getting things done but it’s only possible once we remove the constant distractions. If you have trouble deciding what to do, just focus on eliminating or minimizing things you should not be doing. Different means, same end.

“You can never cross the ocean until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.”

– Christopher Columbus

Square rooms.

They don’t listen.

They don’t care.

If a man is in despair.

— Lyrics of “Square Rooms,” 
by Al Corey

The Round Square in the U.K. is one of a number of buildings said to have been built to a circular plan so that there would be no corners for the Devil to hide in. It is now part of Gordonstoun School.

Is it possible that the shape of a room affects our thinking? The editor Julie Beck writes in the Atlantic that, among Western cultures, people are apt to see the individual as separate from the environment. Move to a different house, yet you are still the same person. But in South Asian cultures, she writes, “home isn’t just where you are, it’s who you are.” There is little doubt that people impact their physical environment, living spaces included. But what of the reverse?

Many people tend to want scientific evidence of any assertions (though it is seen as quite acceptable to ignore scientific evidence). But while there is no definitive answer to these questions, there is evidence of the ways that the physical dimensions of a space affects occupants.

Ancient peoples, and some of their modern day descendants, built round structures; the yurt, for example. This shape can be advantageous in highly windy places, as the air flows around the structure. There can be other advantages as well in terms of thermodynamics, efficiency, and acoustics.

Yet a discussion on the website Quora affirmed what anyone might guess, that square rooms and structures are preferred. This is especially true, said one thread, when there are several people, partly because of the round room’s magnification of acoustics! Other threads focused on the idea that square rooms are quick and easy to construct because of the linear nature of prevalent materials. They are also seen as accommodating furniture better than a round room would.

Round or square, other aspects of dwelling space affect the intellect: The psychologist Joan Meyers-Levy found that people in low-ceilinged rooms do better at solving anagrams with words like “restricted,” while those in high-ceilinged rooms do better with words like “freedom.” Ceiling height influenced thinking, she found.

Likewise, the author James Clear writes that, while researching the polio vaccine, an exhausted Jonas Salk retreated from his University of Pittsburgh lab to the Basilica of San Francesco d’Assisi in Italy. “White-washed brick covered the expansive exterior,” Clear writes, “and dozens of semi-circular arches surrounded the plazas between buildings. Inside the church, the walls were covered with stunning fresco paintings from the 14th and 15th centuries and natural light poured in from tall windows.”

Clear quotes Salk as saying, “The spirituality of the architecture there was so inspiring that I was able to do intuitive thinking far beyond any I had done in the past. Under the influence of that historic place I intuitively designed the research that I felt would result in a vaccine for polio. I returned to my laboratory in Pittsburgh to validate my concepts and found that they were correct.”

In conclusion, there is what has been proven and then, far more extensive, there is what we know.