“I am busy.” “I am really busy.” “I was busy.” “I have been so busy.”
Busy! Busy! Busy! The new buzz word of our generation.
In these current times, using the word “busy” or being busy all the time seems like the cool thing. It creates the impression that if you aren’t busy, something is wrong with you or “busy” is the cool life to live? Looks like when we are busy then we must be really important and doing something important, even when we neglect our health and sanity. Busy doing what? Now ask yourself,” Are you just “being” busy or are you really productive? Have you had such days that you were everywhere doing everything and at the end of the day, you still feel like you didn’t achieve anything? Yep! Been there. And then I stare at my overall goals and wonder why I haven’t moved as much.
Most of us set out this year with goals in every area of our lives, maybe financial, career, or health related. 50% of the year is almost gone, how far have you gone with your goals? Why haven’t you gone to the gym 3 times a week like you intended? Why haven’t you been eating home cooked meals 3 times a week like you set out to? Why haven’t you had your green smoothie in 3 months? “I have just been very busy!!”, “I literally have no time!”, “No energy!” These are the excuses we give. These are the excuses I gave myself! Let me share with you an exercise that really helped me. This was inspired by a conversation with a friend when I talked about how busy I was trying to justify why achieving my goals were suffering.
Take a piece of paper and journal/write down everything you do from the time you wake up till you go to bed for a week. I mean everything and if possible, time spent doing it, from opening a piece of bubble gum, to chatting on the phone, to time in bathroom. Document everything. The 5 minutes you spent on YouTube that became 75 minutes. The unplanned phone call you picked and spent 30 minutes on. Do that for a week. Then take that paper you journaled/wrote and scan through the items critically. Are there patterns you see? Time-wasting endeavors that you counted as “busy.” Are there things you could honestly cut out and make your health a priority on the list?
For me, I saw things like binge “netflixing” on certain nights, when the intention was to watch a 24-minute episode of a series which became 4 sets of 24-minutes. And that is why I don’t watch series. I saw excessive checking of emails, activities that stole time and energy from me. Things that prevented me from going to bed early so I could rise early – refreshed and hit the gym or give me time to make my own breakfast and lunch. I spend a significant amount in my kitchen because I usually eat what I cook most of the time and that takes time! Doing the journaling exercise has helped me to critically examine most of my activities to determine how they move me towards my goal. Can I still do this and have enough energy and time to hit the gym by 5 a.m., knowing full well that if I don’t at that time, I probably won’t.
I would encourage you to try this out (the journaling exercise). You will find plenty of time in your daily and weekly schedule that you can productively assign to things that matter to you like your health, fitness, family, relationship, reading books etc. The message behind this is don’t just be busy. LIVE INTENTIONALLY!
By Tolu Oyewumi, a health enthusiast, with a background and practice in primary care medicine and public health.
Consider Apprentice of Peace and Mindfulness Meditation, two Community Resource Partners who can assist you in Making Time for YOU. To obtain contact information for these two Community Resource Partners and others, please check out the CBHC Online FLOW Directory @ https://www.coloradoblackhealth.org/colorado-black-health-directory/ OR call the FLOW Line on 1.800.209.FLOW (3569).