The Busy Olympics

Like many lawyers, I absolutely used to be up for a couple of rounds of the “Busy Olympics.” 

Trying to one up someone about how busy I was. Aiming for that “busiest” gold medal. Responding to “How are you?” with “Busy” or “slammed” or “underwater.” 

Exhausted but enjoying that little burst of self-righteousness if I thought I had won.

The problem is that there are no real winners.

At best, the only prize is momentary satisfaction.

Then right back to the overwhelm. And the exhaustion.

Here’s the thing about being constantly busy. Or at least telling yourself you are.

It’s a great distraction. Or a good numbing agent.

To keep you from having to take a close look at your life. And seeing what you don’t like. Or what you are tolerating that could be so much better. Or where you are putting yourself, your goals, your dreams, your growth, your pleasure, your joy, your emotions last.

To keep you from having to feel negative feelings.

From having to be with yourself and your thoughts about yourself.

Slowing down can feel scary if some part of you knows that you’re not going to like what you find.

But you can’t change something until you look at it.

And the busyness only works for so long.

The thing you are avoiding will get louder.

It will eventually make you stop and pay attention.

If you find yourself being busy all the time, some questions for you:

Are you avoiding something? If so, what are you avoiding? What is the busyness distracting you from?

What do you think being busy means about you? How does it make you feel when you get to tell people you’re busy? How else can you create that feeling?

A ❤️ note to you: The thing I love most about coaching is that it is a built in slowdown. It requires you to take one hour a week for yourself to really examine your life, to understand why it is how it is, to decide how you want it to look differently, and to figure out how to make that happen. Then the change inevitably flows from there. If it sounds like something you want in your life, send me an email (jenn@jendnealcoaching.com) or sign up for a free call with me at jenndealcoaching.as.me/consult. Let’s chat.

You can also pick up a free copy of my 10 Ways to Be and Feel Less Busy that I created for lawyers just like you: https://mailchi.mp/jenndealcoaching/10ways