Too Busy for Your Own Good by Connie Merritt Page A

your body needs to recover and reset the stress response. Your body does this by releasing endorphins to stabilize your hormone levels. But if stressful situations persist and your body is continually forced into the alert mode, it is like plugging too many power tools into one electrical outlet. The drain is too much, and eventually you blow the circuit breaker.
    It is impossible to live completely free of stress when you’re as busy as a modern-day lifestyle demands, but you can prevent some stress and minimize the impact when it can’t be avoided. You may feel like you have no choice but to accept that a stressful level of busyness is a necessary part of your job and your life. You may feel trapped. Many women I’ve interviewed have been unable to delegate their duties enough to take a much-needed vacation. They’ve told me, “I can’t fire my family,” and “I don’t want to walk away from my business.”
    I believe that many times it’s not just being too busy that ends up getting the best of you, it’s your feeling of hopelessness about the situation. To this, I say, “Relax!” This book will teach you how to eliminate some of your busyness and change your perception of and reaction to the stress that comes with it. Take a deep breath and let it out very slowly. Now that you realize the dangers of your current lifestyle, are you ready to make a change? That’s the good news. Read on and follow the exercises, and in no time at all, you’ll bring new vitality, balance, fun, and a sense of purpose into your life.

Chapter 4
Preparing to Leave the “Island of Too Busy”
    Please give me some advice in your next letter. I promise not to take it
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    â€”Edna St. Vincent Millay
    It wasn’t until the birth of her daughter that time-management expert Julie Morgenstern felt that her right-brained, creative style of living was anything that needed changing. She had never suffered for this until one beautiful spring afternoon when she decided to take her child out for her first waterfront stroll. After two and a half hours of gathering everything that she needed for the trip, her daughter was asleep, and Julie had missed “the moment.” The chance for the first walk had passed, but more important, she realized that if she didn’t change her cluttered and chaotic lifestyle, her child was never going to see the light of day.
    How many “moments” have you missed? You might not even know, because you probably manage to pull things off most of the time. In the past, you somehow have always found the keys, made the deadline, got the tickets, or balanced the budget. Sometimes we can get so busy and wrapped up in the tasks at hand, coming one after the other, that the truly important moments in life can sort of pass us by.
    You picked up this book because “too busy” isn’t working for you anymore. You want off the “Island of Too Busy.” No quick trip to the organizing store or day at the spa is going to de-busify your life. De-busifying isn’t like putting a cast on a broken arm. It’s building a new, bionic arm that is stronger, more capable, and unbreakable. It’s a journey to look at your life at work and at home and to acquire skills to prevent your excessive busyness from ruining your job, yourhealth, and your relationships. This journey will empower you and make you happier, healthier, and freer.
Admit Your Chaos
    You may be overbusy and wanting a change, or you might be what I call “happy overbusy.” All the parts of your life you love, but the sheer amount of tasks you must accomplish has pushed you into overdrive.
    Eventually, after going with your pedal to the metal for too long, your life begins to unravel. Whether you’re running around for your children, closing the deal of a lifetime, or frantic with charity work, it doesn’t justify what it does to your body and soul. At some