Why Are You So "Busy"?

 

"Busy" Is Banned

Ever wonder why you are so "busy"?  For the Building Circles followers, you may know "busy" is banned from the AlphaKORian' dictionary.  That is why it is highlighted.  It really stands out when I hear this word during the day.  Hold on while I drop a couple of loonies in the banned words cuss jar.

Lots Of To Do's

All of us have a large number of things to do.  They all need to get done!  Some should have been completed yesterday, other things need our attention right away and it always seems there is not enough time to take care of it all.

So how do we respond to this?  Some people panic, some get frustrated, some talk about it to everyone they interact with while others stay focused, calm and prioritize.  Working on the calm part and admit it is easy to panic sometimes.  I like to call it passion when I take it up a notch above calm as in last week' topic  Unscheduled Delays.

Eat That Frog First

Do the big task that you do no overly enjoy first.  Remember to Eat Tat Frog (Brian Tracey) and the rest of the day will be easier.  No procrastinating.   Take on that big ugly frog first.  One system that works is First In, First Out.  Many of us tend to take on the new task immediately and get frustrated when the other tasks do not get completed.  The trick is to know when to add the new task to the top or not.  This one is tougher than it sounds.

The Right Answer Could Be No

Sometimes the right answer is to simply say no and it does not become part of your things to do.  You can delegate some tasks to others and hold them accountable to complete them.  You can group tasks together to be more efficient with your time.

Multi-tasking is not more efficient.  How many conversations have you heard the person multi-tasking ask, "Sorry what was that again?"  We are not built to read an e-mail while listening to someone talk to us.  It takes discipline to focus, be in the moment and actually hear what the other person is saying.  When the conversation is completed, go back to reading your e-mail.

Just Do It

All of us have good and legitimate excuses for being too "busy".  One of the best answers is to Just Do It.  Why do we invest so much time in explaining all the things we have to do  and why do some need to share their story each time they complete something  Take all that time, channel it into your next task so you can focus on accomplishing more and continue along your day without constantly interrupting everyone around you.  Group your story telling in shorter, less frequent interruptions and remember to ask others what they are doing.

How "busy" are you today?

(Originally published on 08.21.19)