You don’t even have to tell me for me to know: you are a busy, busy bee.
And I’m not going to lie. It can be tough. Try as we might to keep all of our ducks in a neat little row, there are simply days when we feel like why oh why oh WHY do I have so much time and so little to do?
(Strike that. Reverse it.)
But if you’re in this boat, I’ve got a gift for you: five great questions to ask yourself which will undoubtedly spark something – whether it’s a shift in your mindset, a shift in your gameplan, or maybe even a mindblowing revelation about why you’re so darn busy in the first place.
I hope you enjoy!
Question #1: Do I absolutely need to be the one doing this?
There are countless times when although we might prefer to be the one who controls every aspect of a task, in reality, someone else could do it just as well (if not better). If we can learn to be honest with ourselves about what these things are and gain the courage to delegate (whether it’s office tasks, cleaning the house, or anything else) – what a gift that would be! To get inspired, check out 7 Tasks You Should Outsource Immediately from The Muse.
Question #2: Does this task really need to get done at all?
One of the best challenges I ever received was to look at my to-do list and cross one thing off without doing it. That’s right, just delete it. And while my first thought was “What?! Just delete something? That’s crazy,” after some consideration, I saw that indeed not all of my tasks actually needed to get done. Cut yourself some slack! Delete your non-essential tasks and let them slide for once.
Question #3: Am I protecting myself from distractions?
Hear this: no matter how masterful you are at creating your ideal schedule and sticking to it, if you’re not protecting yourself from distractions (i.e. phone notifications, text messages, emails, etc.) you will always feel a little like you’re drowning. Focused time is where the magic happens. Focused time is when you can fall into flow and get more done in your time allotted than you ever thought possible. For more on this topic check out my related post, Four Ways to Find Flow.
Question #4: Am I creating room for space in my life?
One of the greatest realizations I ever had was that if I didn’t intentionally create space in my life for just being, that time would never appear. It would simply fill itself up. Whether it’s twenty minutes a day or twenty hours a week, don’t forget to schedule yourself some downtime. And when that downtime arrives, unplug and unwind at all costs.
Question #5: What can I eliminate from my life in order to better take care of myself?
It very well could be that tactics aside, you simply have too much stuff in your life, in which case it’s time to sit down, take a full inventory of your life, and make some hard decisions. It could be that there are some things in your life it’s time to give yourself permission to let go of (keeping in mind that these might not necessarily be things you dislike!). Having done this a few months ago, I can tell you that it is downright LIBERATING, and I encourage you to try it wholeheartedly.
So the next time you hear yourself shouting “I’m too busy!” – Stop. Take a breath. And then ask yourself the above five questions. Chances are, you ARE too busy, but the good news is: there’s a whole lot you can do about it.
If you enjoyed this post, you might like these other quick reads on productivity from Janelle (that’s me!) at Ellanyze:
Eat a Frog (With a Twist): The Ultimate Productivity Hack
