Can Being Busy Be Counter-Productive?

Less is more when it comes to your well-being, happiness and success. Learn to banish that B-word for good

How busy are you? If you answered that with a groan, then listen up — it’s time to slow down.

For too long now, we have worn the term ‘busy’ as a mantle of honour. We see it as a good thing, to have a bulging diary with a hundred things going on.

But al l is not what it seems. Being constantly busy often means being bogged down with too many plans, on top of endless digital interruptions. We call it multi-tasking, but what this really means is we have lots of uncompleted tasks.

And the same goes for our social lives. We make a plan to see a friend and then another gets in touch, so we book them in for the same day. This means that while we’re with the first one, our eye is now on the clock and not on them.

Being stretched thinly leads to anxiety because we never feel we’ve done anything properly. Successful people, on the other hand, do fewer but bolder things — one at a time — and get them done.