Have You Caught the "Being Too Busy" Bug?

Are you too busy to read this? Are we becoming a world of proficient failures? This is definitely a negative spin on the basic idea that we are tackling too many skills, too many projects, too many life goals simultaneously while not being present. Does this lead to half-finished projects? Does this lead to the inability to complete a project, a goal, a milestone; thus ultimately failure? Tackling too many projects, tasks, events, jobs – trying to do what may not be feasible does affect our goals, our relationships and ultimately our health – physically through stress.

These thoughts first originated from the following questions, occurrences and articles. Do any of these ring true for you?
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Why is it we are supposed to work and pursue a passion on the side? When I say “passion”, I’m referring to an endeavor that’s like a starting a small company. This doesn’t mean hobby, this means something that consumes you, infiltrates your work time, your family time, and your self-care time.

Why does being “busy” become a badge? IS this a disease? A wonderful article on “Disease of Being Busy” opened my eyes to what I had increasingly sensed with actions such as having to schedule “appointments” to talk with my friends on the phone. What happened to just picking up the phone and calling? Also, when I was at my mom’s house she called up a friend around 11ish to ask to stop by in the afternoon. I, in awe, questioned this tactic’s ultimate success and even so far as to suggest rude as this friend probably wasn’t available. Her jovial reply was “Kirsten, my friend is of a different generation. We can do that.” Yeah…why do we think everyone doesn’t have a free moment spontaneously?

Seeing my mom and others above 60’s grapple with the lack of connection in REAL life. I am even sensing this remoteness when I see EVERYONE on phones, laptops, devices vs talking.  And grew up in the 80’s.  Recently discussing and learning about mindfulness as a stepping stone to developing an identity, focusing energies and increasing self-awareness. Being present. I’ve still got a lot to learn.

Pressure to have that ideal healthy body, workout more – and be proficient at it. Have ultimate skin and hair health. Half the time and I am texting, google mapping without gloves, that my fingers have frozen off and my hands looking cracked and worn. I’m flying out the house to the next engagement juggling family and work, that I forget the scarf to buffer my chin and neck.

WE are supposed to know everything about our food and what’s in it. Have the ultimate places to shop, eat at the tip of tongue or know what farm it came from or the best farmer’s market.Oh and afford it ALL – gourmet, local, organic, nitro, dripped, steeped, grass-fed, allergy-free etc.….

Own a house, or rent a sizeable apartment AND take care of it. I wonder why I seem to have a film of dust and dirt unless I vacuum every other day. But we don’t have a cleaning person. I realized that more and more people have cleaning people – it’s becoming the norm. Not a luxury it once was. The new expectation is a “clean –crate & barrel-appearing” house.

Have not just one, but two plus kids! This adds a whole complexity to this proficiency of it all described above. Add another layer of – best daycare, best activities, sleep, eat, play, shuttle, and interact.  The anxiety just increased.

Well versed in all the travel destinations or activities around your city, kiddo activities, beer festivals, music events. Oh wait, where’s that app and my login info for all this info?!

Have a blog.

Start a business. Create an app. Spin-out a company based on an idea. I find this ironic since everything can be found online thus reducing the novelties of ideas.  

Well-read in the latest NY Times best sellers, leadership and management books, potty training or sleep books or self-development. Have the time to finish books.

Amidst all this, watch the latest T.V. series, sports and news.  Thanks to DVR we no longer sequester off time to watch as a collective whole – family, friends. We don’t race to watch our 8:30pm show. Instead the on demand capability has allowed us to watch T.V. when it fits our busy schedules. I miss those days in college, when we would specifically sit together and watch – we made our schedule fit the external needs, not adhering the world to each individual’s schedule. The latter is a lot more challenging to arrange.

Even my business is about “FITTING Wellness IN” – because that’s the amount of time we have for anything anymore.  

Proficiency is achievable when we make the time, choose and be present. When one person worked the other focused on family. When someone had a family, they focused on the family. They put aside some activities and pursuits and focused on raising that family. When someone worked, they worked, when they went home or met with friends they were with their friends, not on their phones being elsewhere – or caring more about updating followers of their present location.

Life was slower, maybe we weren’t as ‘connected’, but maybe we were more fulfilled, less harried, not feeling we were all at loose ends racing for proficiency in too many areas.

We have become those resumes of people who put their kids into every activity, but excel at none.  As a kid I was proficient in piano. It shaped and formed my identity. I learned many life skills from it – balance, perseverance, dedication, commitment, failure, accomplishment and most of all a skill. I also dabbled heavily in theater in high-school. Piano suffered. That was the beginning of the end of piano for me, which was fine as my life had move another direction. But I CHERISH I became proficient in something and now find myself pulled in several directions like so many in this post-postmodern world. I was present with piano and in return, it gave me multiple life –long gifts.

So I encourage you to re-evaluate what you find most inspiring, joyful, and necessary at this PRESENT moment. Pick. Focus.

There will be time for everything if you focus at one thing at a time.

Efficient At Home or Office Workouts That Won't Bore You! (Trust Me! I don't like working out at home.)

There was “blizzard” earlier this week and it’s mid-March! It’s supposed be the time of crocuses popping up under remnants of snow. Not a full on blizzard. But hey, we must all roll with the punches of life – rearranging schedules, appointments, social outings and more. However, the one thing blizzards don’t have to do is derail your workouts and movement schedule, unless you succumb to the strong desire to cuddle up under the blanket to watch movies, read a book or sleep – which by all means do, if that’s what your body is craving! We all need some rest and recharge. However, if cabin fever is at an all-time high, then I strongly recommend adding some movement to your morning, mid-day or 3pm slump.

I hate or rather hated, working out at home. Despised. I never thought it as good as the gym. Before having our daughter, I needed the gym to work out. Period. I loved the social atmosphere, organized classes, and the accountability from a paying monthly fee. Albeit, to make life work, we sometimes need to compromise. So I began working out at home especially after a friend said “Look at this space you have to work out”.  So I got over getting sweaty in my living room and the need for “machines” and embraced the videos as workout classes. Here’s a couple of my favorites for home or work!

Jessica Smith TV. – Approachable, fun workouts with varying intensities, duration and muscle groups. She touches on everything from walking programs, H.I.T. (high intensity training), yoga, strength, cardio, flexibility and stretching. And who doesn’t love, Peanut, her “active” French bulldog. She adds humor and intelligence while staying focused. She is ideal for those who are new to working out at home and has convinced me to slow down and focus on full range body movements for healing and integrated techniques versus the hamster wheel of the treadmill.

Fitness Blender – These are results oriented quick workouts, that are easy to follow with varying intensities; focused on one body part or total body. I worked up a sweat unexpectedly with a 5 min leg workout. They are efficient, with minimal talking and get right to the point. Best of all, the site has an easy to use search function for finding workouts based on duration, intensity, style (yoga, strength, cardio, HIT), body group (arms) and equipment. Pick your workout to start the day! I look forward to exploring their site more and interchanging with Jessica Smith T.V.

For those in the office, I provide a presentation on D.I.Y. Wellness Tips, in which I discuss how to incorporate movement at the office in various ways from unused conference rooms, to your desk, to even your stairwell. Otherwise, check out the following two sites.

Activity Bursts Everywhere – A.B.E. – These are 10 minute videos focusing on various parts of the body using your chair, your desk or by standing. If nothing else, watch for a good chuckle and you might find yourself partaking in the exercises. Don’t underestimate how just a few moves and deep breathing exercises can help curb cravings, refocus energy and provide that extra boost of focus to power through an hour two. I did these routinely at 11am at my desk vs reaching for those snacks. Worked every time.

Yoga – For a free version, try Yoga with Adriene. It's a six minute video for the desk stretch break. Otherwise, Desk Yogi, is a paid program with reminders, playlists, competitions and more for a virtually integrated at your desk wellness program.

Although I still prefer the gym, I knew I needed to continue these videos when my toddler joined the fun!