“Busy-ness in the Tibetan tradition is considered the most extreme form of laziness. Because when you are busy you can turn your brain off. You’re on the treadmill. The only intelligence comes in the morning when you make your To Do list and you get rid of all the possible space that could happen in your day.” – Elephant Journal, 2008

Are you on that treadmill? Do you believe time is precious? If you do then you will most likely hear the messages in this article.
Unfortunately, busyness, in our present society is frequently condoned. It can give yourself and others the perception that you are productive, important or useful. Like it or not, it feeds our ego. Don’t get me wrong – we all have busy times in our lives. However, it’s important to ask ourselves, is your busyness a badge of honour and/or an avoidance tactic?

Busyness can be defined in many ways. It can be making lunches, dragging kids out of bed as you brush your teeth, driving kids to school, hockey, dance and not even remembering how you got there. You are on automatic pilot. Busyness can be defined as running into the office, opening laptop, texting, planning dinner in your head, and calling a colleague on your landline. And the day speeds on fast and furious.

Do you ever shower and discover that your mind was racing? “Oh maybe I shouldn’t have said that. What color of pantyhose should I wear? What if my boss doesn’t like my ideas.” So disappointing – we sabotage ourselves because we miss the soothing feeling of warm fresh water on our bodies – we miss being in the moment.

Busyness is both internal and external. Internal, in our minds, and external, in busily doing numerous things. Michael Singer, author of “The Untethered Soul”, calls our incessant chatter as the roommate in our heads. It is non- stop verbiage and unfortunately we believe it and/ or identify with it. How silly is that? Most of it is totally distorted.

Busyness causes:

Relationships to fail – with our roommates in our minds espousing continual nonsense it’s extremely difficult to be present to our loved ones. They too notice our inattentiveness and may begin to feel that they’re not worth listening to or perhaps they discontinue sharing with us. People only see our behaviors, not into our hearts or are aware of the intentions we hold internally. There is no such thing as a good relationship without time to nurture it. Time together is what builds relationship. If time is such a precious commodity why do we waste it?

Addictions – eventually we need to escape from our busyness so we can relax. Often we turn to substances, work, exercise, food and even self help books. Some people have a need to avoid boredom, reality, and their feelings. Busyness is a temporary escape. It can be an addiction in and of itself. I guarantee you – your conscience will always catch up to you no matter what you do.

Health issues – when we race around doing a million things, our stress levels increase and we emit stress hormones which are toxic to our health. You may enjoy the rush of adrenaline that busyness gives you, however I guarantee, it will catch up to you.

One of the most important elements necessary to reduce our busyness is awareness and stepping off the treadmill. Stop and reflect on your day. Book an appointment with yourself and ask – “Am I a Human Doing or a Human Being?” It’s your choice. Also you may want to make it a priority to laugh and have fun daily. Meditation, yoga, prayer, quiet time for your mind and mindfulness are necessities in this rapid unpredictable changing world. Sometimes even seeking moments of balance is good enough for starters. I challenge you to step off the treadmill or automatic pilot and reap the benefits!