It’s the end of the day. Your mind shuffles through the tasks that haven’t been done and at how quickly night fell. You recall all of the things you thought would be done while overlooking the sinkful of dishes, scattered toys the kids never put away, and that project your boss expected you to have done over a week ago. You even thought you might have time for yourself, but the time never came. Honestly, time for self never seems to happen because of the consistent demands you receive from those around you. It’s late now. You’re feeling completely overwhelmed and ask yourself why you didn’t go to bed earlier, why you find yourself stuck being unproductive when you should have been working, and why things never seem to ease up on you. It seems like a never-ending cycle of restlessness, worry, and frustration.
I find myself here frequently. Regretting what I haven’t done and criticizing what I could have done better. But how often do we stop to examine our busy lives? What is making our lives so busy and what are we able to control?
When we accept our busy schedules mindlessly, we may believe we don’t have a choice and focus only on the work that is ahead of us. But what if we believed that we don’t have to stay on the hamster wheel just because it’s there and that’s what everyone else is doing?
When you find yourself running at the pace you are going, consider how it is affecting each area of your life. How present are you with your family, friends, work, and for yourself? How fully are you showing up?
What busyness doesn’t tell us is that it limits our ability to show up for ourselves and others. We are too distracted to be able to focus on the task or relationship at hand. I can get so caught up in what needs to get done that I forget why I am doing it and unknowingly do it by any means necessary. I might blow off my husband or kids to look good in front of strangers for work, only to realize afterwards that my worry and commitment to the task weren’t as serious as I made it . Neither was it worth it.
If you find yourself here, remember that you are only human and this is a normal part of the journey. Finding ourselves caught in the sticky web of busyness presents an opportunity to learn from our experiences. If we are discontent with how we show up for ourselves, others and in our efforts at work, it might be time to examine how we got here and what is in our power to change.
Yes, it might be easier to continue in the way things are because it’s comfortable and takes less effort, but taking one small step towards a healthier rhythm could make all the difference toward your future self and the world around you.
My first step has been mindfulness. I take time to pause when I find natural breaks in my day where typically I would distract myself from my heavy load. So instead of staring blankly at my phone, I do various meditation exercises to free my mind from all of my racing thoughts. This doesn’t take away from my busyness, but brings more clarity and focus in my day. From what I’ve noticed, mindfulness helps me to make better decisions and gives me more energy. As I become more mindful, I believe I will make more intentional decisions to thoughtfully eliminate the things weighing me down. But it’s not a decision I need to make right now. Rather trust that the little steps we take now can make a big impact over time.
What will be your one small step that helps to bring clarity in your life?