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I read a sentence in a book, "Word Power Made Easy", which was:

Apart from the fact that we all, rich or poor, sick or well, have the same amount of time, exactly 24 hours everyday (that is looking at time from a static point of view), it is also true that we can always find time for the things we enjoy doing, almost never for the things we find unpleasant (and that is looking at time from the dynamic point of view).

The word "dynamic" means "constantly changing". I know "static" and "dynamic" are opposite so it makes sense to use them in opposite way. But I want to ask what is "constantly changing" in the fact that "we can always find time for the things we enjoy doing almost never for the things we find unpleasant".

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  • I think the author meant we all have 24 hours and this statement focuses on the static nature of this fact, a static 24 hour time span. The other focuses on how we can use the time or there's some room for our decisions or the dynamic nature of the time.
    – Cardinal
    May 31, 2019 at 14:49

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The author is hinting at "time flies when you are having fun" and other similar sayings/experiences.

Or if you prefer, what he is saying is that to a human time appears to flow faster or slower whether you are doing something nice versus something tedious.

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This use of "dynamic" is the standard physics-related dictionary definition of the term:

static: 2. Concerned with bodies at rest or forces in equilibrium.

dynamic: 1.1 Relating to forces producing motion.

To put it another way: A static object or concept is one that does not change. A dynamic object or concept is one that does change. In this example, the author contrasts the "static" measure of a 24-hour period of time, which is always the same, with the "dynamic" measure of the same period, which changes depending on individual perception.

This kind of dichotomy is more commonly expressed with the adjectives objective, meaning "not influenced by personal perception", and subjective, which means the opposite. I assume the author instead chose to use static/dynamic because A) it sounds more like he's talking about physical reality, rather than opinion, and B) the word "dynamic" itself sounds more exciting, based on another dictionary definition of the term:

dynamic: 2. (of a person) positive in attitude and full of energy and new ideas.

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