Tag: busy

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Find A Routine Because Busy Is Bullshit

The Gods gave us the ability to improve.

However, it HAS to be consciously used, or it will wither away.

Life has a funny way of finding your time and abusing it for little benefit:

  • Think about how often you are on Slack, or texting, or digging through email.
  • Then think about those side projects, the time with family and friends, and the coworker coffees.

Now think about what impact that either option has had on your career.

If you read this post, I would like for you to try to create the space to do at least one of those things this week and make it into a routine.

Any reminder app is helpful (whenever I start a project, I spin up about 8-10 daily reminders, ranging from “Water up” to “Class time”) and I have never seen a single career that needs someone to be “on” for 100% of their time, so spare me the “I’m busy” excuse (then watch this video)

Think about what that will mean in a year.

Remember, the first step is the hardest.

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Work with Impact Requires a “No”

We have limited energy, so focus on impact

Learn how to say “no” for the sake of your impact.

Good taste requires it.

Working without intent is another form of hiding. It frees us from responsibility. It allows us to say things like “I’m busy” which in turn creates “faux importance.”

Busy gives us a place to hide. Focusing on things like e-mail or social media can signal “faux importance” due to the low impact they have on the work that we do.

We think people respect those who are busy, however, they respect impact a lot more.

You can’t stay “busy” all the time and make a meaningful impact.

So don’t choose yes constantly and stay “busy.”

Say no and get back to the work that matters.

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Time to Dismiss the Default of Reactive

Reactive isn’t memorable.

We all have 24 hours in a day. There isn’t anyone who has 23 or 25. You can’t “save” time. You only spend it.

Time’s consistency combined with its scarcity is a major reason it’s the most valuable resource we have.

Our default state is to react to time:

  • Wait for an email to tell me what to do
  • Get that text to show us who to talk to
  • Find “fires” so we can feel effective

All of these things are reactive. None of those instances create memories. You won’t tell people at the bar later about that email that started you on a project. It isn’t a life that is memorable. When someone asks about what you were doing, all you say is you were “busy.”

When one is reactive, they rely on the word busy. Busy is a buzzword designed to protect your ego. When you say your busy, you don’t have to think about why you decided to do something.  You take away your personal responsibility.

At the end of the day, would you rather be busy or memorable?

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Avoid Busy For Two Reasons

Not a great word

  • Using it takes away an opportunity to communicate what you work on. It comes from a place of insecurity.  “If I say I’m busy, then that will confirm what I am doing to the other person.”
  • Being “busy” means we lost track of what we are doing. Just by using that word, we generally settle on System 1 (or gut reaction) thinking. Suddenly, the day is gone.

The worst part about the word is the two behaviors feed each other. When you don’t stop to communicate what you are doing and feed into your insecurity, it gets easier to lose track because “busy” often works.

Note: You aren’t as busy as you think you are.

 

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Missing Sleep Doesn’t Get You on the Scoreboard And Neither Does Busy

Go to sleep.

You don’t get points for making things harder on yourself.

Sleeping, like eating, is an important function to how we operate.

The idea that 4 hours of sleep is a badge of honor is like saying you ate 3 eggs per day, and that’s it. After a day or two, your body would throw a hissy fit.

The lack of sleep is doing the same thing to your mind.

I get it: it’s trendy to say how “busy” you are.

It makes us feel important, but it’s shallow. The “busy” stuff generally cuts into our sleep and the “busy” is rarely important.

That’s why no one ever keeps track of your “busy” days.

The body and mind keep track of the days you don’t sleep, and it just makes things harder on you because your body didn’t do its work.

If clarity and focus matter, start treating sleep as importantly as you do dinner.

Get some sleep.

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The Word That Will Make You Better

Say “no” out loud.

Short, simple, powerful.

If you want impact in this world, you have to get used to saying it.

“Yes,” while sounding sweet, limits your ability to put your energy into projects that matter.

Time is the only thing we have. Our impact on people or our work relates to time shared or the amount of time we decide to share with the work.  Each “yes” takes away from that.

While it’s important to put work in the world, to get better at it, you have to give your work the attention. That’s how you have an impact.

How do you want people to remember you?

Hurried and “busy” (yes)

Impactful and powerful (no)

Make it a point to say yes to Kate Harvie’s new website today! She is a terrific writer. Go!

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