Season 2, Episode 23: Addicted to Being Busy? Break The Habit Now

Midlife at the Mailbox

“There is a sense that if I look busy, I must be doing really well,” explains co-host Amy. As a society, Americans especially seem addicted to being or at least seeming, busy. Many wear their busyness as a badge of honor, using it as a source of validation of their worth. This addiction to being busy can lead to spending less time on the important things and can even lead to burnout. Today, co-hosts Amy and Denyse discuss how to break the habit of addiction to busyness.

Just because you are staying busy, does not necessarily mean you are actually being as productive as possible. If you’re distracting yourself with busy-work or staying super busy as a coping mechanism or means to escape from a stressful situation in your life, ultimately you are doing yourself a disservice. In midlife, people tend to be juggling a lot of responsibilities and it can be very easy to get caught up in the societal push for busyness. You owe it to yourself to slow down and better prioritize what you invest your time and energy into.

As with any addiction, being addicted to being busy can be harmful and have negative effects on your health, relationships, and overall quality of life. Try time blocking and give yourself permission to say no to anything that does not fit into your desired schedule.

Actionable Tips

• Busy doesn’t always mean productive
• Use time blocking to arrange your schedule
• Give yourself permission to say no - embrace JOMO (joy of missing out) over FOMO (fear of missing out)
• In a busy season, take time to check in on your long term goals to ensure you’re not losing sight of the bigger picture when you’re overly busy.

Quotes

• “We also really enjoy being busy, but the busyness that we were used to were things that brought our family to life.” (7:17-7:29 | Amy)
• “There is in our society, this addiction to being busy.” (8:09-8:15 | Amy)
• “Escaping can be a coping mechanism. But if it's going on for a seemingly longer time than it should, that's when to raise concern with that person or yourself.” (21:08-21:18 | Denyse)
• “There is a sense that if I look busy, I must be doing really well.” (33:02-33:07 | Amy)
• “If you're a job seeker or just looking to make a change, sometimes less is more.” (36:31-36:36 | Denyse)

Links:

Articles of Research:

https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/worklife/campus/g15925418/busy-girl-memes/

https://dotcomplicated.co/content/2016/05/11/are-you-addicted-to-being-busy/

https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/owning-pink/201404/are-you-addicted-being-busy

https://www.drchristinahibbert.com/addicted-to-busyness-understanding-6-steps-to-overcome/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2017/07/31/stop-boasting-about-always-being-busy-its-detrimental-to-your-health/?sh=10b26af15131

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