Busy? Read this!

Before I start, I suggest you read this blog very slowly, mindfully, reflecting, and trying to answer every question you come across throughout the blog, till the end!

Busy? Who is not? Everyone is busy. Everyone’s busy in some kind. Whether they know it or not, many people use the word ‘busy’ very often than necessary. Does that mean they are more aware of it? Not necessarily. Actually to most people, the reality is far from it. Before I get into that, I feel like I should address this first.

How do you know?

I’ve come across people who use ‘busy’ most probably out of compulsion and all to avoid or give a valid reason for their absence. I’ll tell you what, never say you’re busy, to your close ones! Never ever! And if possible, restrain yourself from saying it to anyone, for that matter! Sure, you might have been occupied. You may convey the same, by saying – ” I’ll call/chat/see to it after my class, or meeting or ______ is completed”. Because sure you may be busy. But the word ‘busy’ does not give any clue on the significance of the kind of ‘busy’ you’re in. And hence, it doesn’t suggest you’re busier than the other person. How do you know? And do you think that your ‘busy’ is more significant than the other person’s? How do you know? Do you think that the person who reached out to you for anything is enjoying life not trapped in time? How do you know if the other person did reach out to you despite his ‘busy-ness’? How do you know?

Do you know?

Why do you think you are busy? What kind of ‘busyness’ are you in? Are you aware of how much time is occupied by each particular action you perform in your daily life? Are you aware of the answers to these questions? I mean, I’m not saying you should have an excel sheet measuring each of your activities. That would be against what we’re trying to do here, it would be time-consuming, instead of time conserving. Speaking of tracking time, are you aware of your screen time? Are you truly occupied that much that it’s hijacking your freedom? Or, Are you using the word ‘busy’ to instill more significance into your life?

Know!

Try to know the answers to those questions mentioned above. Be aware of what kind of tasks occupy your daily life, and the significance of each of those tasks. Be aware, first of all, of the necessity of the task you’re executing. What I mean, is to urge you to wonder if the activity you’re performing, is even necessary. If you observe your daily actions, you’ll come to know many aspects of your personality. Your daily actions show your priorities. And your daily activities determine your life. Meaningful & balanced daily activities = Meaningful, balanced & fulfilling Life. Hence get aware of your time spent on various activities. Track your screen time (most smartphones now come with a “Digital Wellbeing” feature in-built ). And once you track, observe and look for patterns and see if your words and actions are matching. If not, there’s a lot to work on, within yourself.

Do you find yourself scrolling through social media for hours and yet on the other side, do you find yourself complaining you don’t have time to read books, meditate, or make art? You have a lot to work on! But no worries, as I always say, once you are aware of a problem, you’ll soon be aware of its solution as you now work on that problem that you are aware of.

One of the best ways to think about conserving and getting better time management is to parallelly think in terms of energy, along with time. Many times, if we can find ways to conserve energy (not compromising productivity or effectiveness), we end up conserving time too.  And sometimes, strategically expending energy on certain activities can give you back more time to you later! Ex: Expending your energies on reviewing your week, planning, exercising, writing in your journal, and meditating can actually save a lot of time.

And we must realize, that it is not only in actions. Our bodies and mind are also constantly busy. So you ask yourselves, how well you are utilizing each of those types of activities – mind, body, and action at hand. What all do you use your brain power/brain time for?

We all have heard “It’s not lack of time, it’s lack of priority”. But have you realized it?

Everyone is busy. All that matters is what they’re busy at. Living meaningful, balanced, and hence fulfilled life, or merely existing, meaningless, unbalanced, and hence unfulfilling loop of time.

I request you to ponder over the questions you came across, in this blog. And if necessary, feel free to read this blog twice!

Thank You

Sanath Kumar Naibhi