‘I am busy.’
‘I don’t have the time.’
‘I am/was so caught up.’
You and me, we’ve both heard and used these sentences in our daily lives—multiple times. In fact, these sentences have become such a norm that no further explanation is required.
We are so comfortable glorifying the term ‘busy’ that we rarely pause to register that we have become slaves to this 4-letter word.
We are too busy to grasp that time is fleeting, to realize that we are getting older, and to notice that our health and relationships are bearing the brunt of our busyness.
We are too busy to see that the time we think we are clinging on to is actually slipping away from us, in the guise of ‘busy’.
Since when did losing control of our time and our lives become something to be so prideful about?
We are all given the same 24 hours a day. Yes, the responsibilities of each of us vary. However, if we can squeeze in the time to doom scroll on Instagram, why can’t we use that time to take a walk?
Too tired to walk? Of course, you will be, because you are unduly busy to give your body the right nourishment, hydration, rest and exercise. Using busy as an excuse to neglect your health – I work 8-12 hours a day, where is the time to exercise or eat right?
Do you remember the last time you read a book, watched a film, or caught up with friends without thinking of work or interrupting your personal time to check up on it?
If I ask you, when do you call to mind being mindfully present to enjoy a holiday, a day off, or a gathering with loved ones without sneaking away to answer work messages or calls?
Would you be able to recollect when you last sat down and did absolutely nothing, other than let your mind and body relax completely?
Could you recall when was your last guilt-free me-time?
I recently noticed that I have stopped reading completely, I used to be a voracious reader who read a book every 2 days. I read because I took the trouble to carve out time between never-ending household chores, work, and errands. I read while waiting in queues, in doctors waiting rooms and salons. I had a rule that I had to read for an hour before I went to bed. An honest assessment made me understand that I have more time and fewer responsibilities than I did earlier, however, social media has me so wrapped up in its clutches that I began to believe that I was too busy to read.
So, the question is are we as busy as we make ourselves out to be or are we using this 4-letter word to escape? From truths we need to face, relationships we need to invest in, from timely self-audits. When will that moment arrive when we take a breath and pause long enough to assess the impairment this time famine has caused in our minds and our lives?
We are working to make companies richer and take our bank balances and lifestyles higher. While our hearts, bodies, minds, and connections are wearing out as they bear the brunt of the bankruptcy of our time. You don’t have the time to enjoy the house you worked so hard to buy, the car you saved up to have, the holiday that you have been planning for ages or the people you tell yourself you are doing this for? And you are proud of being busy?
There will come a day when we, or life, will choose to not allow us to be as busy as we are used to being. That will be the day when you will realize that everyone around you is. That the people around you have adapted to your absence and that your presence is a possible hindrance in their busy lives. That the ecosystem you created but were too busy to nurture had learned to survive without you.
Let’s try and avoid that possible scenario, shall we? Let us learn to control our time, and not let it control us. It may be difficult to do so but it certainly won’t be impossible.
So, unclench your jaw, release your tongue from the roof of your mouth, let your shoulders slump down, and take a deep breath! Relax, reassess, and restructure. You can do it! You are the master of your time, consciously choose not to be a slave to it!