The
most important question to ask on the job is not "What am I getting?" The most
important question to ask is "What am I becoming?". --Jim
Rohn
Three
Surprising Ways to Feel Less Busy
--by Christine
Carter, syndicated from Greater
Good, Mar 11, 2016
Busyness
stinks.
Although
people tell me all the time they like feeling busy—perhaps because it makes them
feel important and significant—I’m not buying it. Would you ever choose busyness
over a more relaxed form of productivity? When life starts to feel hectic, here
are a few ways to dial back the overwhelm.
1. Give
yourself a shot of awe
When researchers
induced feelings of awe in
people—by showing them video clips of people next to vast things like whales or
waterfalls—it altered their perception of time such that the people felt like
they had more time on their hands. So much time on their hands, in fact, that
awestruck people become likely to give away their time by volunteering to help
someone out. They also report fewer feelings of
impatience.
Not sure
where to find yourself some awe? Look no farther than YouTube. Try searching
“awe” and “whales,” or just watch this
oldie but goodie video clip—it makes me feel awestruck every time. If
the concept of “awe” feels too abstract, try thinking about things that amaze
you. What makes you feel a childlike sense of wonder? Makes you feel elevated or
inspired? Now take five minutes to let one of those things work their magic on
your busy brain.
2. Create an
anti-busyness ritual
Researchers
believe that the brains in
both humans and animals evolved to feel calmed by repetitive behavior, and that
our daily rituals are a primary way to manage stress. This is especially true in
unpredictable environments or situations where we feel pressured, a lack of
control, or threatened in some way.
When the
pace of life seems to be taking off without you, create a ritual to help you
feel more in control. What counts as a ritual? Something you do repetitively in
certain situations—usually a series of behaviors done in the same order. Think
of your favorite ball player’s pregame ritual.
When I
start to feel pressured for time, my own “busyness ritual” kicks in: I stretch
my neck (first by looking to the left, and then to the right, and then by
tipping my left ear to my left shoulder and my right ear to my right shoulder).
I exhale deeply with each stretch, and then center my head, and straighten my
posture. On my last exhale, I think to myself: “I have plenty of time.” The
stretching and deep breathing may be what helps me feel calm, but also having
and using a ritual—any ritual—can help us feel more in control and
less overwhelmed.
3. Find
“flow”
Dropping
into “the zone” or finding
flow is the opposite of
feeling busy. Time seems to stand still—if we are aware of time at all. Flow isn’t as elusive a state as you might think,
but it does require that we stop
multi-tasking, and that we build a fortress
against interruption around
ourselves. (I also have a “get
into the flow” ritual that I
use before I write).
I know, I
know. You don’t have time to foster awe, or create an anti-busyness ritual, or
stop multi-tasking. You’re too busy!
Listen:
You don’t have time NOT to do these things. Busyness is a mark of what
neuroscientists call “cognitive overload.” This state impairs our ability to
think creatively, to plan, organize, innovate, solve problems, make decisions,
resist temptations, learn new things easily, speak fluently, remember important
social information, and control our emotions. In other words, it impairs
basically everything we need to do in a given day. So if you have important work
to do, please: Take five minutes to dial back your
busyness.
***
If
you liked this post, you’ll love this short and funny
documentary, HumanKinda. The
premise is that busyness robs us of our humanity, making us only “kinda”
human.
This
article is printed here with permission. It originally appeared
on Greater
Good,
the online magazine of the Greater
Good Science Center (GGSC).
Based at UC Berkeley, the GGSC studies the psychology, sociology, and
neuroscience of well-being, and teaches skills that foster a thriving,
resilient, and compassionate society.
Be
The Change: Experiment with the three tips in the article this week. And for
further inspiration here's a beautiful excerpt on "Living at the Right
Speed".
Sourced
From www.dailygood.org
