Stop Glorifying Busyness

 

“The architecture of how we live our lives
is badly in need of renovation and repair.
What we really value is out of sync with how we
live our lives. And the need is urgent for some
new blueprints to reconcile the two.”
Arianna Huffington

 

We often equate busyness with importance and productivity. The problem is, that’s often a lie. And that lie is destroying our health, our relationships and our performance at work. 303

In Guy Kawasaki’s blog post about Arianna Huffington’s new book, “Thrive,” he highlights (with his comments) her ten tips for “creating a life of well-being, wisdom and wonder.” They include:

 

  • Redefine success.
    There’s no prize for working the most hours per week or making the most money. At the end of our lives, we’re all about the same amount of dust, so the question is how much joy you’ve brought into people’s lives and how much have you made the world a better place.

 

  • Nurture your well-being. Make time to take care of yourself in terms of exercise, meditation, music, art, and family life–this isn’t selfishness, it’s good sense. My escape valve is hockey. I play hockey four to five times a week. I also ride a stationary bike and do some yoga four times a week. And I’m not sure all this is enough!

 

  • Take a digital detox.
     We all see the people in restaurants spending their time focused on a screen instead of the faces in front of them. When’s the last time you turned off the cellphone and focused 100% on the people you’re with? Challenge yourself and your loved ones to turn off the digital interruptions. The email will be there when you turn your phone back on.

 

  • Listen to your inner voice. Have you ever had a hunch about something, ignored it and in retrospect you knew that you should have followed it? We all have. The next time this happens, listen to your gut feelings and be in touch with the perspective of your own thoughts.

 

  • Find solitude. Meditation helps relieve stress and helps us tap our inner voice. If you don’t like being with yourself, how can you expect others to like being with you? Many of my best ideas have come to me when I am driving alone. I’ve often thought that my creativity has declined because I do not take long drives as often!

You can read the entire blog post here.

What point resonates most with you, and what will you do about it?  For me, I’m working on digital detoxing and finding the time and space for more meditation.

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