How to Break the Busyness Cycle Daily!
If you are like me, you are probably trying to squeeze too many activities into too few hours and sometimes feel overwhelmed. Maybe
you’re bragging about how busy you are because it secretly makes you feel important and successful. Maybe you’re under financial and family pressures that outstrip your resources.
Either way, there’s an epidemic of excessive busyness among modern adults that leaves us feeling rushed, discontent, and short on time. May we please have 30 hours in a day? Pretty Please?
After researching and doing my own trial and error i found some solutions that are helping me in managing my time better and becoming more productive.
Major Antidotes to Excessive Busyness
- Turn off your phone. Being connected all day long obviously plays a big role in feeling
overwhelmed. Switch off your devices at least two hours before you go to bed. Try spending a day away from social media. I am still failing in this one but working on it, will keep you posted! - Live mindfully. Engage fully with whatever you’re doing. Focus on one task at a time.
You’ll reduce stress and enhance the quality of your work. And this I practice everyday! - Choose your priorities. Think about your purpose and devote your time to the activities that matter to you. Using your time wisely makes your life more meaningful.
- Establish routines. Do you spend as much time coordinating your work as actually
performing it? A systematic approach turns frequent chores into automatic habits. With my twins I have always created routines and writing them down as activities to be completed has helped me get organized and them to learn the Art of healthy routines. - Collaborate with others. We can accomplish more as a team. Focus on your strengths and try to outsource or eliminate the remaining tasks. As a family this works amazing by creating an environment of team work.
- Sleep more. Resist the temptation to sacrifice sleep in order to get more done. Once I’m done its Nana time! Reading a book or listening to calming music always helps me to chill. Adequate rest makes you more effective. If you’re having trouble keeping your eyes open, go to bed an hour earlier than usual.
- Edit less. Let go of the past. Proof an email once and send it. If your kids eat and wear clean clothes to school each day, you may not need to analyze your housekeeping any further. Micromanaging is sometimes the enemy!
- Count up your free time. Discovering more free time is like finding money in the pocket of a jacket that’s been hanging in your closet for months. Count the hours you have outside of work, commuting, and sleeping. Decide how to use them before external demands swallow them up. Since I have a busy schedule I try to accommodate quality time in between. It really has help me enjoy life more!
Tiny Antidotes to Excessive Busyness
- Brew real coffee. The coffee break is being replaced by instant powder packets you pour into boiling water. Sit down and share a real cup of coffee with a friend.
- Leave work first. Without getting in trouble of course! If you’re spending more time with the nighttime cleaning crew than
with your family, see what it’s like to be the first one out the door. - Check your hair. Have you picked up some of the colorful expressions for being busy, like
you’re slammed or your hair is on fire? Moderating your language is the first step to dialing down the tension. - Quit competing. Sometimes it sounds like we’re trying to top each other when it comes to having a full plate. If someone starts talking about their hair being on fire, try sympathizing and changing the subject to something more constructive. After all, one person talking about how busy their day was, is enough!
- Stand still. Action bias is an innate force that makes us want to do something even if it’s counterproductive. Give yourself permission to stop and ponder your options. Actually give yourself permission to do nothing without feeling guilty!
If we are feeling swamped, it’s time to create more balance in our life. Along with challenges and adventure, we have to make room for mundane tasks and quiet reflection. We will soon find that less activity can be more fulfilling, give us peace and stillness to really enjoy what is important our Life!
XO,
M
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