The Art of Not Being Busy

I know it’s an unavoidable part of modern-day society but we’ve also made being busy into some kind of strange accolade. The other day I asked a client how she was and she replied with a sense of glee that she’d been so busy. It was as if she had, like so many of us so, directly correlated her self worth to her level of busyness.
In contrast, the other day I visited a CEO who presented quite a different picture. When I booked the appointment with his PA I enquired about his availability. She responded by saying; “He leaves a portion of his calendar open for new ideas specifically for conversations like these.” How novel, I thought; a senior executive who wasn’t chasing their tail.
We met at his office which had an air of calm about it. There weren’t a million papers on the desk and during the meeting he was completely present in the conversation. There was no checking of cell phones or iPads or pained looks of ‘when will this end because I have so much to do’. When I asked how he achieved such presence and seeming calm, he responded with; “It’s simple. I don’t wear busyness as a hero badge. I know the value of not being busy and over-committed”
What this executive knows and many others are beginning to understand is that you cannot be creative, innovative and moving to new levels at the same time as being busy. Busy is a function of ‘doing’ but moving to new levels requires a new way of ‘being’. It requires introspection, reflection, downtime and the interrogation of how we do things.
Busyness is for all intents and purposes, a pattern; a habit that we get into to avoid change. I’m not suggesting don’t engage in activities but unless busyness is coupled with downtime and introspection, you won’t know if the activities you’re busy with are actually in line with your grand vision.
You might realise, after having read this article that you might have been a little overcommitted of late but how do you rectify it? Well, here are some simple techniques to help you to cut to the chase;
Lisa is a brand catalyst, author and speaker. She is the author of six books (including Carbs, Curves and Everything in Between) and has contributed to CNBC Africa, Psychologies, Shape Magazine and The Star Workplace.