What are you busy about?

Busy, busy, busy

Are you the type of person who is always on the go, has their hands on 5 different projects, and finds a way to be involved in all of the clubs? Me too! Case in point, I managed to get my picture on 14 different pages of the yearbook during my junior year of high school. That’s a lot of clubs!

Our society rewards busyness. We like to brag to each other about how many demands there are on our time, how many classes we are taking, how difficult the classes are, how many leadership positions we hold in clubs and organizations and how full our social calendars are. We reward ourselves for checking all of the boxes and accomplishing all of the tasks set before us.

How do you feel when you are busy? When I am on the go, I am happy, energized, fulfilled, engaged and interested. I feel like I am living life, making things happen and taking advantage of all of the fun opportunities there are. Life in the fast lane is demanding, but exciting. It’s hard work, but it’s good work.

Too busy

Until the work becomes too much, overwhelm sets in, you hit a wall and a break is needed. Even the most energetic and motivated among us need to take time for recovery and reflection. We need to exhale and to pause. To reflect on what we have done, what we are committed to and where we want to go. In the flurry of being on the go all the time, it can be easy to lose track of the why behind all of the activity.

The ability to switch gears between the fast lane and a period of recovery is one which I have struggled with and which I bet many of you have struggled with as well. The quiet can be deafening, the urge to get up and DO SOMETHING is compelling and the pull to distract yourself with technology (I’m looking at you smartphone, social media, 24 hour news….) nearly impossible to resist. When we do manage to disconnect from the world and reconnect with ourselves, even for a few hours, amazing insights can result.

A deep breath

As a young adult, I attended a lecture after work one day. I don’t remember what the speaker said that night, but I remember very clearly how he started his talk. He asked the whole auditorium full of energetic, ambitious young people to close their eyes and take five deep breaths. Just five. As we sat there in physical and mental silence, I felt a seismic shift in my attitude, my stress level, and my ability to focus. It was magnificent. I found myself wondering how long it had been since I had paused to be still and why I had waited so long.

Will you do yourself a favor and give it a try? No, not later today or when you have time. RIGHT NOW! It’s just five breaths – I know you have 45 seconds to spare. Clear your mind and focus on your breath for 5 inhales and 5 exhales. I can wait.

How did it feel to pause? Foreign? Uncomfortable? Boring? Scary? Emotional? These are all completely normal reactions for overstimulated minds when they take a much-needed break.

Revelations

When is the last time you took a real breather to reconnect with yourself? One which is longer than 45 seconds… What revelations might be in store for you if you did? Give this a try:

1) Take a walk somewhere relatively quiet for 30 minutes. No ear buds, music, podcasts, or company allowed.

2) Rather than letting your brain spin thinking about all of the things you need to do, the snarky comment you read on social media, your plans for the weekend or the test coming up next week, will your mind to slow down. Take some time to notice how the air feels, what the trees look like, what individual sounds you hear, how your feet feel when they hit the ground.

3) Once you are feeling grounded and removed from the daily hustle and busyness, reflect on this quote from Henry David Thoreau

“It is not enough to be busy. So are the ants. The question is: What are we busy about?”

4) Take a few minutes to think about what you are so busy about. What life will look like in one year, five years, ten years? What is your vision? Do you have a plan? Are the things you are devoting your time and energy to today helping you achieve your vision? What changes can you make to your schedule and your commitments to make your efforts more closely align with your priorities?

Coaching is a great way to add some structure to this time of reflection. If the distractions feel too great and the silence too deafening, let me help guide you through the process of recovery and reflection.