Are You addicted to being busy?

Seriously, I am asking…for a friend.

I guess I should explain what I mean, I am talking about the busyness that seems to creep into our lives.

You can see it in the way we run around. The way we pass each other on the way to more busyness.

I guess there is a security that comes with being busy.

If I seem busy no one can accuse me of not trying, right? The downside is that there is only so much time in a day.

We see it in the way we make an effort to “Manage time”. Look at all the books committed to trying to manage time.

I think it was Stephen Covey’s that said it best “you can’t manage time, only yourself”. Yet, that is what we try to do, we download the latest app or get another planner.

Each New Year.

Each resolution.

All with an attempt to manage time.

We make the effort because things do need done, but which things.

Covey talks about the idea of urgent vs. important. (Here is a template).

We all have many important things that need done. Big things with long term consequences. Yet we all have urgent things in our life. The next email, the ringing phone. We must decide which we will pay attention to today.

Perhaps if we changed the measurement we would like what we see more.

It is a simple shift.

From Activity to Productivity.

Shouldn’t it be less about how much stuff we are trying to get done and more about what we get done?

The author Tim Ferriss writes about this in detail much better than I do.  The ideas of minimum effective input for maximum output (see here for one of Tim’s excellent blog posts)

He discusses the universal Perato Principle or 80/20 principle. 80 percent of any of our results come from 20 percent of our efforts. (See here)

Until I decided it was more important what I got done than how busy I appeared I could not develop the discipline required to change.

It is scary giving up some of the busyness…but to accomplish things that is what it takes. Maybe that’s you too…

Maybe today you want to get more done, take a brutally honest look at your calendar and take an axe to anything that might hold you back…be brave.

The world need less busy people and more people that bravely get things done.