I have written about it before. Once over at Tiny House Talk and once here as part of my Deliberate Living series. But I think this is way too important a topic to just let scroll by.
I reject busy-ness.
I absolutely reject the idea that we have to be consumed with tasks each and every moment of each and every day. Especially when those tasks keep us from happiness.
After being a freelance writer for about 6 months, someone asked me "What do you do now that you have so much time on your hands?"
Here is the thing. It isn't like I am sitting around twiddling my thumbs letting each day pass me by. I may not be "busy" in the sense that I am attached to a desk for 9 hours pretending to work and waiting for the clock to tell me I can go home. I have a lot to do each and every day, but I believe the term we use to describe it is lacking. I am busy in the sense that I have commitments and deadlines but I am not busy for busy's sake.
I took my time back. One of the best bits of advice I ever got about being a freelance writer was to always remember that I work for myself now, not my clients. I want to do a good job for them and I want to produce quality work in a timely fashion but I am not their employee. I am the one who sets my deadlines and am the one who organizes my work. I am also the one who knows how much I can handle before I start to feel overwhelmed. And it is that state of overwhelmed-ness that I am avoiding.
I will never be "too busy" to respond to an email. I will never be "too busy" that I can't attend an event I've already committed to. And I don't want to paint myself to be some sort of saint. Certainly there are times I can't do everything that I want to do and I have to choose. In the way we use "busy" in our culture, I guess you could apply that to those situations.
I just want people to understand that they do have a choice. If you love your job, that's great. It means you are where you belong doing what you're meant to do. If you're not happy, begin to look at the ways you can change your life. It is okay to start small. I chose a tiny house to kick start my big change, but yours can be anything.
What are you going to do to reject the culture of busy-ness and take back your time?
I reject busy-ness.
I absolutely reject the idea that we have to be consumed with tasks each and every moment of each and every day. Especially when those tasks keep us from happiness.
After being a freelance writer for about 6 months, someone asked me "What do you do now that you have so much time on your hands?"
Here is the thing. It isn't like I am sitting around twiddling my thumbs letting each day pass me by. I may not be "busy" in the sense that I am attached to a desk for 9 hours pretending to work and waiting for the clock to tell me I can go home. I have a lot to do each and every day, but I believe the term we use to describe it is lacking. I am busy in the sense that I have commitments and deadlines but I am not busy for busy's sake.
I took my time back. One of the best bits of advice I ever got about being a freelance writer was to always remember that I work for myself now, not my clients. I want to do a good job for them and I want to produce quality work in a timely fashion but I am not their employee. I am the one who sets my deadlines and am the one who organizes my work. I am also the one who knows how much I can handle before I start to feel overwhelmed. And it is that state of overwhelmed-ness that I am avoiding.
I will never be "too busy" to respond to an email. I will never be "too busy" that I can't attend an event I've already committed to. And I don't want to paint myself to be some sort of saint. Certainly there are times I can't do everything that I want to do and I have to choose. In the way we use "busy" in our culture, I guess you could apply that to those situations.
I just want people to understand that they do have a choice. If you love your job, that's great. It means you are where you belong doing what you're meant to do. If you're not happy, begin to look at the ways you can change your life. It is okay to start small. I chose a tiny house to kick start my big change, but yours can be anything.
What are you going to do to reject the culture of busy-ness and take back your time?
i've been self employed all my life. one of my favorite remarks is "you don't have a real job so you can do this or that for me". i don't have a real job as in 9 to 5. i'm a repair master plumber and licensed electrician. i worked from 8 to 10 pm yesterday. with a 3 hr round trip. i love it.those 2 hrs pay better than an 8 hr job. i love what i do. i will come at any hour. period. work less and have alot of fun time.
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