I do it! I say it! Do I mean it??! I am that person who always responds to the most genuine question someone can ask you (“How are you?”) ….GOOD…so GOOD…but BUSY! I believe that when I say it…I want the person I am speaking with to know that I am not sitting at home twiddling my thumbs. I AM sitting in my home office tackling the plan for that day. Clearly not everyone knows that I am that person that has to have a plan or productivity suffers. So I tell them by saying…”I am busy”!
I read this very interesting article linked below and I started to have a realization. I do that…I give the default response. Crap…how boring! I fall into the Busy Trap. Why or why when I have numerous more interesting responses!
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/30/the-busy-trap/?smid=pl-share
One variation I actually said to someone last week was…”If I am not over extended, I am not productive.” Is that how everyone feels? Is that why we all say we are so busy? I am hurting myself and others by over extending myself? Simultaneously I am thinking, all that I do and all the busyness it provides me, I feel pretty lame next to most people!
I have had the recent pleasure of meeting some Mom-preneurs that blow my mind. These ladies tackle household chores, marriage, running a company, and not to mention developing and providing a future for 4-5 kids.
I bet the best part of their job is the moments where they get to stop and just enjoy the moments as mentioned in the article. But they get my loud applause! Because they are miracle workers and I am in awe.
Another interesting point of the article is…that I have to admit that I often wonder if I could up and move to an “off the grid” location. I wonder what it would do for my dating life as mentioned. I wonder what it would do to my stress level. Shingles are no fun:( Do not get me wrong…I love Charlotte, I love NC, and I love my life. I live in what I believe is one of the most interesting cities currently. The opportunities that have unfolded in front of me are pretty cool.
With that said I am fortunate to have the freedom to take mini “off the grid-cations”! I am able to come to the lake and hibernate. Being here increases my creativity, my calmness, and my motivation. It helps me remember that one day I want to provide for my family in the same way that my parents have. It provides the perfect blend of remembering that money sometimes can provide the time to live each day to the fullest. “….but I did make a conscious decision, a long time ago, to choose time over money, since I’ve always understood that the best investment of my limited time on earth was to spend it with people I love. ”
Hard work, determination and drive are why I have the luxury of coming to this amazing place! I can only hope that all the hard working role models I have in my life currently, help me to take over that role, sooner than later. I hope that I can find the correct work life balance we all crave. I know the author is correct in saying that it will help productivity!
With that said I will be relaxing at the lake the rest of the week….spending time with my amazing friends and family…but stitching in some work time…and remembering to tell everyone I encounter how I really am doing! Never again “I am busy”!
